With this cooler weather gracing us with it's presence over this past weekend the reality that fall is just around the corner creates a tiny giddiness inside of me! such a season stirs my soul with excitement for things like pumpkin spice latte's, sounds of football games on Saturday afternoons, the brilliance of changing colors, and of course warm sweaters and cozy things. Over the years, I have grown to appreciate the art of goal setting in order to make the best use of my time. However, I have the tendency to be that girl who will save/pin every list she sees of "things to do". By the end of the day I have about 126.7 items on my list and realize that I am so exhausted from my overwhelming list that I have trouble finding a starting point, much less accomplishing anything.
A few years ago I stumbled upon Elsie's blog (which happens to be where I found my inspiration for goal setting & a million other things). Last night I read her post on 4 Simple Goals and knew that I had to participate in the fun. The challenge is to create 4 goals that will enrich your life & sort of create a new purpose for yourself in the upcoming season. I love this idea to stay inspired and to make the rest of 2012 full of memories!
1. start my day before 5:30 am. in the midst of trying to create a more balanced day, i realized that i hardly ever schedule in time for myself. working far from home with a pretty heavy workload, heading to the gym, coming home, taking care of Oakley, and preparing for the next day pretty much leaves me with the 15 minutes I use to take shower before i crash. something i've learned about myself this year is how vital "me" time is for my ability to operate smoothly. i unofficially gave it a try this morning & i feel rested, positive and ready to take on the challenges that the day brings.
2. take a nature walk (+ bring my camera). like i mentioned before, the thing i look forward to the most this season are the changing colors of the trees. since i spend most of my time surrounded by skyscrapers and traffic filled highways, i don't necessarily get to see the autumn landscape out any windows. one of my favorite ways to spend a weekend is to be outside and really grasp the fall season with all of my senses. when i was younger i used to take short hike's all the time & i remembered that this was exactly the reason i fell in love with fall in the first place. so i'm really looking forward to this goal, of course, capture it all and perhaps cause you to fall in love with fall too!
3.host a pie party. i love desserts. let me clarify... i love homemade desserts. desserts that when made make the entire house smell of apples, pumpkin, and warm chocolate! for a while now i've been talking about having a few of my closest friends over for said party where we will do nothing but consume delicious, warm, homemade slices of each other's favorite pies. so it's time to start doing instead of talking. i can't wait!
4. makeover living space. although i'm still living at home, i have some empty space to play with. upstairs we have a 'game room' that is typically just a place where junk tends to pile up and guests spend the night. i am always itching to decorate/redecorate, and then some, yet always wishing i had a place of my own to do so. it hit me the other day that i have had such a space to play with for quite some time so now i'm full of ideas of what i want to do with this space and i'm really hoping to find my own style during this project, as well.
For my rewards, I plan on simply treating myself to either a small weekend trip to a new city or a mini shopping spree...haven't decided just yet. I'm really looking forward to accomplishing these 4 goals and all the memories that they will create. If you are reading this, i encourage you to try this out, even if you don't have a blog. Its such a great feeling accomplishing things you have set yourself to do!
