Can anyone believe 2009 is ALMOST here? Seems like just last week the summer-sun was shining. With every new year, like many, I try to make a list of goals and tasks I would like to accomplish for that year.

THEME

This week I want to set our minds on setting some goals for next year, whether personal, for the whole family, or for school.
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 2009 is creeping ever closer, as I am writing this during the evening hours of December 31st...  I kind of assumed there would not be a Memoirs assignment last week - oops!!!  I was working on setting some goals for myself to get the new year started, many are the same old, same old things.  Last year I tried something a little different and instead of making New Years Resolutions, I gave myself some goals and deadlines for the first quarter.  And I actually did pretty good with them.  But I didn't do a very good job of following through in the second quarter, and then didn't even bother setting goals in the third and fourth quarters.  Not a complete failure, but as usual I struggled with follow-through.  To start off the first quarter, my goals wll be very similar to last year's - here's the general list (the details are just for me):

1. improve my health in the ways I can - eat better, exercise, lose weight
2. stick to our budget and keep my records up to date
3. declutter and organize
4. keep school records and grades up to date
5. practice hospitality by inviting company regularly

As I thought about the things on my list, I realized that I am focusing on diligence and discipline.  I have great plans but lose motivation along the way.  I start strong but sometimes fail to finish at all.  So in short, I am going to practice perseverence and with God's help, see if I can improve my record of sticking with a task through the end.  If I can do that, then a lot of the things on my To-Do List will likely get checked off in the coming months:

• make new window treatments for the bedroom
• paint the hallways and stairwells
• finish my quilt
• continue to improve my knitting skills
• organize and redecorate parts of my house
• read lots of books
• have time to enjoy the things that mean most to me, and minimize the time spent on things that drain and annoy me

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