Welcome, welcome! Per-usual, it’s been a slow start to the new year. But only in the sense that I’m just now getting my 24 for 2024 List done! I’ve been reflecting and brainstorming since well before the first day of 2024, but I take it easy in January. I’m seriously considering taking January “off” in the future. It was a nice reset again this year, and I feel good about that decision.
Anyway, another year…another list! I started creating a list like this in 2022 (My 22 for 2022 List). New Year’s Resolutions seem a bit too black and white for me, so I found the fluidity and flexibility of these lists more my style. Instead of rigid goals, I opt for “aims” that I’d like to focus on in the new year. Some are bite-sized and kind of silly, and some are big and scary to really challenge me.
I recently review my 23 for 2023 list, and I was pleasantly surprised by all the progress I’d made throughout the year. There were a few failures, but that’s okay by me. My word of the year for 2023 was discipline, and I feel really good about how I used that to drive my life throughout the year. Progress is progress!
My 24 for 2024 List
And now for my 24 for 2024 List! I’m surprised how many items I’m keeping as a focus from last year. I’ve taken just a few out, and tweaked others, but last year’s list was great and instead of restarting a whole bunch of things, I want to keep the momentum going!
(in no particular order)
1. 24 Item Clothing PUrchase Limit
This is for myself. No one else really buys clothing in our home except for me. Ha! Over the past couple of years, I’ve done a good job clearing out and dwindling down items in my closet to fit within the spatial boundaries I’d set, but things are starting to pile up again. I know this to be true because we’re out of hangers. And you might be thinking, “just buy some more hangers.” But I’m here to yell a big, fat “NO!” right in your face. Because that’s what they want us to do… just buy more, more, more. I say they… they as in the American society that seems to be obsessed with consumerism.
Anyway, when we redid our bedroom and closets a few years ago, I specifically purchased nice velvet hangers that all match. I told myself that that was the spatial boundary for our closets. When we’re out of hangers, that’s it. So, here I am, out of hangers. Time to purge! Eric needs to, as well. I’ve been buying a lot of clothes for him, too, so we’ll be going through things and purging together.
Now, back to the topic of only buying 24 items this year. I want them to be good. Like, they’ve-been-on-my-list-for-years good. Having this “aim” on the list will help keep me accountable.
2. End the Year with 100 Published Blog Posts
I’ve had “30 new blog posts” on my list for the past couple of years and I haven’t hit that goal. Last year I had 15 new posts, so still made progress, but not as much as I wanted. I’m in this weird phase where I’m trying to figure out what to do next and what that looks like for my blog. So, I took off that goal and I’d just like to get to 100 blog posts this year (which I’m currently 8 away from once this is published). My aim for this is find some clarity about what I want this space to be, and then get posts written that support that goal.
3. Update all old blog posts + PIn on PInterest
Pinterest is a large source of my website traffic. I have a few old blog posts that I shared on Pinterest that continue to drive traffic to my website. So, I want to go back and get old posts updated and freshen things up a bit. And with that, I want to get serious with my Pinterest strategy to continue driving that traffic.
4. Vigorous Exercise 4 times a week
This was at three times a week last year, and I’m upping it to four time this year. I’m loving rowing this year, so I hope to continue that!
5. Read 20 Books
My goal last year was to read 12, and I ended up reading 20. I felt really good about that pace and it was such a good feeling to get back into reading again. I’m shooting for 20 again this year!
6. Get INto the Habit of Walking
Keeping this on here because I love it so much. I just read a quote from the 1,000 Hours Outside podcast that said, “The faster we walk as we age, the longer we live and the sharper we think.” I want to keep my body moving and grooving for as long as possible, and I’m a big believer in walking to achieve that goal.
7. Declutter 2024 items from our household
Maybe another garage sale is in our future? We’ll see how this one shakes out! A few years ago I decluttered 1,000 items and that felt really good coming off of our house renovation.
8. One-on-one dates with each kid, each quarter
We need to do this in 2024! As the kids get older and involved in school activities more, that takes away from quality family time, especially one-on-one time. I’d really like to make this a priority this year.
9. 1 date with Eric every month
Doing it again! I’m pretty sure we really fell off the wagon with this, but since the kids are getting older, it’ll be easier to make this happen I think.
10. Fill our walls with family photos and art that I love (order, frame, and PUT UP!)
I don’t know why this is so hard for me. I think it’s putting holes in the walls for fear that I get measurements wrong. Haha! How silly! I did make progress in this area last year, but I’m keeping it so that I continue the momentum!
11. 3 Family-Focused CAMPING Trips
I love camping. It’s one of my greatest past times, and our kids also love it. This year, I’m hoping to get three family-focused camping trips under our belts. We upgraded to a new-to-us camper this spring, and we’re eager to take it out. So far, we’re camping at Ahquabi Lake State Park and Maquoketa Caves State Park as a family. Eric and I are also looking forward to camping with friends up in Decorah this summer! We still need to decide on one other camping trip, likely this fall, with the kids.
12. Figure out better photo/keepsake management and memory keepsakes (photo books? File system for kids items?)
I actually got a good chunk of this one done in 2022 – each kiddo has their own tote for important papers and keepsakes. I want to take that a step further and get our photos organized. Eric is actually getting this one figured out for us by using a hard drive to house all of our photos/videos. This way, we can off-load easily, and then find what we need quickly and efficiently. I’m excited to maybe start getting yearly photo books printed for each of the kids or maybe a yearly family album? The only other thing I need to do here is designate another tote to each kid that will house their bulkier, more tangible items. Things like their coming-home outfit, favorite stuffies, etc. This will be really easy to put together, I just need to make it happen.
13. 1,000 hours outside!
So, I’m not sure how this one will go, but I have good intentions of making it happen. I love to follow 1,000 Hours Outside on IG! I need to print out a tracker from 1,000 Hours Outside, so we can get a bit more motivated. We’ll have our work cut out for us here, but we’re all better off spending more time outside than inside.
14. Plant a Cutting Garden
I’ve never been so excited for spring! Since getting most of our landscaping done last year, I’m so excited to see how things look in full bloom in 2023. With that, I’d like to plant a cutting garden in 2023! I think it’ll be fun and new and something I’ve never done.
15. DIY 5 projects by myself
I did this last year, and I’ll do it again this year!
16. Learn something new
I’m really just putting this here because I’m having a brain fart, but it’s always good to learn something new! Can’t wait to see what this is for me. Haha!
17. Save for Phase 2 of House Renovations
This will be our main financial goal for 2023. We have future plans for our home, and we want to be able to cash flow as much as possible. Therefore, we’ve made the decision to take this year off of all major house projects and instead focus on family time and saving for the future.
18. 12 Months, 12 Spaces, $200
I’ve had this idea on my mind for a while now. I’ll make punch lists for 12 areas of our home that are 95% done, and focus on one a month. I’ve given myself a $200 budget to finish that final 5% of tasks to actually finish the space! I’ll be blogging more about this concept, but I think it’ll also provide great content for the blog/IG.
19. Meet with a fellow blogger/IG Friend/Life Coach
I’ve got a few people I need to do this with in 2023. It’s always great to have peers and mentors in your field that you can reach out to, and I hope to build more relationships in-person this year!
20. Practice Daily Routines for Myself
As I mentioned above while discussing my word of the year, I do a great job of giving the kids structure and routine, but I’ve lost it for myself. I want to build my own routines and structure back into my day-to-day living.
21. Try a new recipe each month
Gosh, I really enjoyed this one last year. Looking forward to trying new recipes in 2023!
22. plant a Small Vegetable Garden
We’ve done a garden about every other year here. This year, though, all three kids will be old enough to really take part in the process. So I think we’ve got to give it another go! BUT, one thing I’ve learned is to keep it small, manageable.
23. Invite People INto Our Home MOre Often
We’ve been so deep in the trenches of parenthood and house renovations, and I’ve missed inviting people into our home. Whether it’s family, friends, neighbors, etc. I love having people in my home. I love visiting about life with people. It’s one of life’s greatest gifts to connect and break bread with others, and I hope to have a home that makes people feel welcome and comfortable.
24. Live by the 1-in-1-out rule
I love the concept of living minimal, but it’s not something we strictly practice in our home. However, I love the 1-in-1-out rule, especially when it comes to clothes and kids toys/items. I want to work to incorporate this into the consumption cycle of our home to help ease the burden of having more stuff to manage.
What’s on Your 24 for 2024 List?
Okay, that’s all I’ve got for my 24 for 2024d List! I’m excited about these things, and I think that’s something else that’s different than setting rigid resolutions. Shouldn’t you look forward to working on your goals? Shouldn’t life be more about fun and connection than meeting standards and expectations that others have for you. I think the thought of growing and learning more about yourself should be exciting, not draining. I hope whatever you aim to do in 2024 excites you and brings you joy! Cheers!
-MG
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