the best laid plans of mice and men...

yeah, so we don't have any mice, but you get the point...

i have all these plans, you see? plans to have a clean apartment. plans to see more friends. plans to make baby blankets for my nephews. plans to make amazing healthy food for my husband and baby girl. plans to lose my baby weight. plans to have an amazing relationship with God. plans to call my best friend in Chicago and my brothers on a regular basis. plans to get a baby sitter and go out with my hubby. plans to get the laundry done. plans to scrub the weird spots off the kitchen floor beneath where Violet's chair sits. plans to organize the apartment. plans to become a coupon guru and save us hundreds of dollars on everything. plans to make, write, and send out thank you notes for Violet's baby shower (from almost a year ago.) plans to work out. plans to read books. plans to make the bed.

plans to blog?

so, it's obvious that all of this (and more) cannot realistically all happen. seriously. i even have plans to use a daily planner. i buy one at least one or twice a year with every intention or making a plan in my planner for all my plans to happen. yeah, it's usually a waste of money. at least i get a discount at work.

how is this all supposed to really happen? is it all really important? don't forget all the blank canvases and paint brushes and paint (and that college diploma) that are sitting in the basement unused.

don't even mention the proverbs 31 woman. trust me, she was left-brained, or OCD or something. for me, unattainable.

but what is really important?

i'll tell you what my day usually consists of (in no particular order): playing with my daughter, feeding my daugther, changing my daughter, talking with my daughter, reading with my daughter, finding something yummy to cook for my husband (or saying "yes, honey, why don't you pick something up on the way home"), snatching a couple of minutes to go online or read a book, remembering to eat something, taking a nap, running downstairs to throw the diapers in the washer, begging the baby monitor to let my daughter sleep just a little bit longer, and possibly connecting with a friend in someway maybe once or twice a week. oh, and i usually call my mom once a day. is there really room for anything else?

but somehow there are other moms who do it. with 4 ducklings following behind all in a row. how?

but i guess that's not really the point of this blog.

the point is that i have lots of plans. ideas of what needs to get done. or what i'd like to get done. but, as we know, things don't always go as planned. nor should they.

so... the next plan that i have is... to have some basic goals for each week that i'd like to get done. in the interest of finishing this blog before my daugther gets up from her nap (please sleep just a bit longer, my dear) these goals are going to be a bit fuzzy. or basic. or some other word that would fit better here if i weren't anticipating that "mom-i'm-awake" siren.

i'd like for my goals each week to be:
1. to spend time with Jesus a little each day.
2. to invest in my daughter and my hubby each day, to say something encouraging to both of them at least once a day.
3. to do something intellectual each day. read a book, read a blog, listen to NPR while resting, write, or discuss something thoughtful with someone, for at least 30 minutes a day.
4. to "exercise" or get my heart pumping for at least 25 min a day, 5 days a week. this may happen in smaller increments during the day as long as they add up. this is by doctor's orders :)
5. to do something to save us money once or twice a week. this could be 30 min working on coupons one day, or going to the farmer's market for our produce on wednesdays.

uggh. there's still more that i need to figure out, but the external processing must end. the siren is sounding.

if anyone has any good ideas (right-brained, artist-friendly ideas) please let me know :)