It has taken me all evening to write this post. When I think about this new year, I can’t help but feel overwhelmed. There are a million things I want to accomplish and I never seem to have enough time.  I need to change some habits.

Here’s my problem

The thought of changing my habits is overwhelming. I think of the long list of habits that I want to work on, and it’s easier to just not start.

Here’s my point

I finally got off of my though-treadmill and decided to plan my year out, working on two habits at a time. I’ll work on a healthy habit and a habit that Charlotte Mason suggested each month. Even though mothers should only help their children with one habit at a time,  I’m a grown-up, so I can handle it, right? There’s a lot of work to be done.

Here’s my why

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote that my one-word resolution is habits. I want to help my children develop positive habits, but I know that first I have to model positive habits to them. Before I can expect them to change, I need to make sure I’m modeling what is right.

Here’s the what

I’ve planned out the habits I want to work on this year, month by month. Honestly, it drives me crazy when I see habits for children all planned out for the year. Habits sometimes pop up throughout the year that need to be addressed, and planning month-by-month takes away flexibility. If you’re working on the habit of Imagining in March, and suddenly your child starts lying through their teeth, then you HAVE to scrap the schedule and address lying. So, these lists of mom habits assume that I won’t develop some terrible habits this year. I mean, I don’t think I will. I’m going to approach them just as if I was helping a child develop positive habits. 

Healthy habits

I’m choosing a healthy habit each month, because I want my children to not live off of cheese and bread and sugar like it seems they do some days. My plan is not to lose weight (I will never, ever diet in front of my children), but my plan is to show what a healthy lifestyle looks like. I am almost positive that by the end of the year, I won’t be a clean-eating, daily-exercising, super fit mama, and that is okay with me. The goal is to model healthier habits for my children.

*Note- I don’t have any qualifications to give health or fitness advice, but these are habits recommended by experts.

Personal Habits

I feel like I’m caught in this eternal whirlwind of busyness, so I’m not even sure how I do with some of these habits. I’m assuming I’m not terrible at all of these, but there can probably be some room for improvement. Also, this will let me be more intentional with these habits and help me learn about my own strengths and weaknesses.

Are there any habits on these lists that you want to work on this year?