New Year's Resolutions for our Homes and Families

I wanted to ask everyone what you plan on doing for your homes and families in the New Year. I don't want to focus on myself this year, but want to give more to my home and family....I just don't know what yet. Please chime in with anything you are considering for your New Year's resolution for your home and/or family.

[Katydid]

Money and time permitting, we really want to focus on getting our home in shape this year. There is so much that needs to be done: remodel kitchen, deep clean/remodel basement, new flooring, painting all rooms, new furnace and water heater updating electric, build a deck and shed outside... I think those are the main things This house has been neglected for far too long and I and I am literally embarrassed to have anyone over. (the most embarrassing parts are the smell of cat pee in the carpets the lack of ceiling in the kitchen (it was torn down to do the plumbing for our bathroom remodel...three years ago ) and the falling apart linoleum in the kitchen)

Thankfully DH is a carpenter and can do all the work himself, so all it will cost us is $ for materials.

Plus, I want to really organize this year, too (which will be a lot easier once the kitchen remodel, especially, is done... I have hardly any storage in my kitchen. :/ )

I really do want to focus more on hospitality this year, as well.

[TraceMama]

I'm working on getting myself organized to start the new year off right. I'm updating and changing my homekeeping schedule, trying to get a binder together, etc. There will likely be many changes for us this year and I feel like I need to have the basics down pat.

[JoyGal]

I'm in the same idea mode as you Some of these I wan't to accomplish in January (that will continue for the year,) the rest are ongoing.

The biggest thing I'm going to do is get ORGANIZED!! Yesterday I bought some extra large binders to organize paperwork in. DH is super great with this, but I pretty much stink no matter what types of ideas I try. After watching him for long enough, I'm finally ready to put the idea into practice. Today I went through CD's and organized them. Might sound like something little, and really it only took about 15 minutes or so, but wow does that feel better!

Another thing I want to work on is PREPARING. That sounds very vague doesn't it...? There are a few threads on here that have really gotten me to thinking about the preparedness and safety of my family. I'm going to do everything I can to prepare plans for:

saving food
establishing menu plans
planting heirloom gardens
planting herb gardens
learning what I can about more traditional and herbal medicines
designing a financial emergency plan
updating/creating emergency kits and plans

The third big thing I want to start on is my doula training. I've been trying to work out a plan for this, and if I start with CBI within the next few months, by the time I finish all the training on there, I will be about ready to start doing some work out of the home.

Relating to the third thing, is that I want to really find another source of side income that I can do. I think it's time I finish my e-books and start my website.

[monkeylicious]

always lots of goals

as far as home:
go through bins (we still have tons of bins to sort through - we moved over a year ago)
organize and declutter in general
declutter toys and organize those that are left
figure out a homekeeping schedule and make it habit

as far as family:
spend individual time with each girl - daily (i'm hoping this will help with gigi's meltdowns)
do activities together as a family - maybe monthly for a grander activity

as far as other:
get a good grip on spending (logging everything in january :/ )
get ourselves straight with our other stuff - wills, money/savings...

[klpmommy]

This year I have *got* to get the garage in shape. It is BAD. Dh can't do it b/c he won't throw anything away/get rid of anything b/c it might be useful sometime, so I have to do it. I started this past summer, but S got mobile & made it impossible to work out there. So I am hoping this year to do it.

Second goal would be the basement storage area, which isn't as bad as the garage, but would be a huge help.

Third, I would like to keep on top of my house better. I am a messy & I have enjoyed having a cleaner house with the HHBC, I would like to maintain that at some level, although I don't know if I have the energy to *really* maintain it. The decluttering & rearranging I have done with the HHBC has made it easier.

I want to get the kids more involved in the housework, too. I want them to start to learn how to do some of the things so that they don't end up clueless adults like me.

those are probably the biggies. I tend to thing "big picture" rather than small details.

[TrinMama]

I'm on an organizing kick, too! My plan is to start with the kitchen (pantry! ), then tally all the things were giving away for itemized deductions on our taxes (it made a bit of a difference last year since we now have a mortgage). I also bought more bins to organize toys and clothes were not using right now...so if I get the kitchen squared away today, I'll start those bins today, too.

For family, we need more time together. Praying, playing, the whole bit. I think I really need to organize my days into fairly predictable routines more than I have...usually it's so open-ended that not much gets done. But I know bedtime rolls so smoothly (the most routine part of the day!) that I want to add routines to the rest of the day, too.

[ArmsOfLove]

I really want to say that I'm going to keep the house up to my standard and be organized and always on top of things--but that would be setting myself up for frustration and disappointment. Maybe next year but my health is not there yet

So this year I think my goal is what God gave me--to infuse peace, tranquility and beauty into our lives

I want to find and maintain a pace that will not overdo me.

[monkeylicious]

thought of another - we lost some pics off of the computer from evie's first year so:
keep up with copying pics onto CDs

[Grover]

I want to get the housekeeping financial budget sorted out
I want to get organised of the[teenage] girls bedrooms,so that they dont slip into chaos,its tough because I want it to feel like their space but some standards need to be kept.
The house has taken quite a abit of wear and tear over the last 2 and half years and I want to get up together again-now that S is not soo tiny Im hoping this will be possible.Just repainting a few wallls and polishing the fireplace would make big difference
I think that I need to set the reception room as my designated target for maintainance as far as just cleaning goes.It the part thats most widely seen[by postmen,delivery drivers-etc and it really lets the rest of the house down as its always cluttered with odd shoes,unhung coats and an assortment of toys.
But mostly I want to be a bit more welcoming and a bit less begrudging of the extra work guests create

[TraceMama]

I'm back to add more specifics.

I *have* to finish decluttering the house, namely the basement storage area. There are boxes and boxes of books that haven't been opened since we moved a year and a half ago! Continue decluttering kids' clothes as we move from season to season and size to size. Get rid of a ton more toys!

I need some more organization in places like the kitchen and bathrooms. Something needs to be done about dh's office. :/

I'd like to stay on top of my homekeeping/cleaning schedule so that I'm less overwhelmed and feel able to handle it.

I need to spend daily floor time with the boys, especially in some gross motor activity for them.

I want to get really organized about homeschooling and make it a priority.

And, last but not least, I need to figure out a way to combine all of that without stressing myself and my kids out. :/ I think we've got some *big* transitions ahead of us and I need to remember that my first priority is to be there for my dc, to help provide them comfort and peace, to be calm enough myself to handle their big feelings.

I've been thinking about this for awhile and ideally I'd like to:

-provide my family with a home-cooked meal every day
-show more patience with DH and DD
-finish decluttering and organizing the house
-once the above is done to MAINTAIN it and develop a cleaning plan
-update my home binder

[AdrienneQW]

I don't do resolutions as much as I do "themes" - and my theme for 2009 is definitely going to be the home. Just haven't thought of a catchy title yet. (Last year was "lose weight in 2008" and while I didn't lose as much as I wanted to, I did lose 38 pounds. ) Some of the elements I plan to incorporate and focus on include:

-homeschooling
-decluttering
-organizing, particularly developing "systems" (right now I am working on a system for organizing, labeling, and archiving photos)
-emergency preparedness

[TrinMama]

Originally Posted by AdrienneQW

I don't do resolutions as much as I do "themes" - and my theme for 2009 is definitely going to be the home. Just haven't thought of a catchy title yet. (Last year was "lose weight in 2008" and while I didn't lose as much as I wanted to, I did lose 38 pounds. ) Some of the elements I plan to incorporate and focus on include:

-homeschooling
-decluttering
-organizing, particularly developing "systems" (right now I am working on a system for organizing, labeling, and archiving photos)
-emergency preparedness

ooh, i like the theme!

[saturnfire16]

My new year's resolutions are:

1. Stick with our debt pay-off plan. We should be completely debt free (except student loans) in 4 years. I'm taking it one month at a time.

2. Keep the house clean. I want to stick to a basic, simple cleaning schedule.

3. Do yoga and belly dancing. I eat healthy, use good body care products, and I'm pretty happy with the way I look. Now, I just want to tone up and feel good and sexy.