Goals for July 2019

Hello! Welcome to the first post in my monthly goal-setting series. In case you are new here, for the remainder of the year I have decided to start setting three specific goals for myself each month. My objective is to be more intentional (my word of the year!) in my day-to-day life. This series is designed to share those goals with you as well as to provide me with more monthly accountability.

For the month of July I tried to think about what kinds of goals I’ve been wanting or needing to focus more on so far this summer. It’s been getting hotter and hotter outside, there are a ton of exciting things happening in our lives these days, and I’m trying to get better at blogging! With those things in mind, I chose some simple goals to begin with.

1. Drink more water daily

It’s pretty embarrassing to me that I have to set this as a goal for myself but if I’m being honest, I am TERRIBLE at drinking enough water daily. I have no problem consuming a cup of coffee every day (because who can survive without caffeine?!) but water is a whole different story! Now that it’s July, the weather has been getting hotter by the day and I feel chronically dehydrated. In this season of my life, sleep and water seem to be the two things I’m most deprived of. Since sleep isn’t one I have much control over these days (#parenthood) – I choose to focus on being more intentional about drinking water daily.

Does anyone else struggle with this? How do you make sure you drink enough water throughout the day? Any tricks or tips welcome!

Why this is a July goal: Drinking enough water is an easy way to be more HEALTHY. I feel good when I’m hydrated and my body is happier overall.
Action plan: Drink a glass of water first thing when I get up in the morning. Add a fancy straw or some colorful fruit to make it feel more special and enjoyable. And start carrying my favorite tumbler/water bottle around with me everywhere so I always have water on hand.

2. Take more photographs (and to get IN more of them!)

Taking photographs is a new hobby of mine. I have always had a love affair with photographs. When my grandmother died 12 years ago, she left me all of the family photos she had collected over a lifetime. This was a priceless gift for me. I have incredibly fond memories of pouring over those albums for hours as a child when I would visit her.

I’ve kept scrapbooks, photo collages, and boxes of photographs from my whole life. Needless to say I’m pretty confident that “saving the family photos” is high on the list (after family members and pets of course) if the house is ever on fire. Nowadays that would sound more like “grab my phone!” but you get the idea.

This summer I am enrolled in an(other) online photography course called Framed! From Camera to Album (Summer 2019) hosted by Kelle Hampton and Corinne Bowen. The goal of the course is to facilitate intentional storytelling through photography while learning how to organize, shoot, edit, and create a summer photo collection. It seems like time is flying by so fast these days, especially this summer. My boys are growing and changing and the moments feel so fleeting.

I’m determined to embrace it and to capture as much of it as I can by taking more photos. And I’m determined to be IN more of them for several reasons:

• When my boys look back at these photographs some day in their future, I want them to remember that I was there with them. I want to be a part of those memories.
• Kelle Hampton said recently “it’s not like I really want to hang baby pictures just of MYSELF up on the walls in my house!” TRUTH BOMB! My favorite photos are undeniably the ones that include my family (especially my Mama) in the shot with me.
• Some day I won’t be here anymore and I want to make sure my boys have photos that capture my love of them. For them to see my face looking at them and loving them.

Proof of Mama is so important in the process of memory keeping.

Why this is a July goal: One of my favorite things is being able to pull a moment up to memory just by looking at a picture. I want to be intentional about capturing these days of our lives. To tell the story of us. I also want to be present IN the story (not just a hidden face behind the camera).
Action plan: Keep my camera on hand for easy access. Make an effort to bring it along for simple every-day excursions. Pull out the tripod and start practicing getting IN the shot (or just hand the camera off to Paul more often!). Post on instagram daily for accountability.

3. Practice writing every day

I used to keep a daily journal and it was incredibly cathartic for me. Nowadays I find myself sitting down to write a blog post and stuck and frustrated about what/how to write. I believe mostly this is because I am so out of practice. As I mentioned in my very first blog post, I’ve been using writing as a creative outlet and form of self-care long before I even knew what those things were or that I needed them. For me, there is a mental release in the expression of emotions shared, in the flow of putting pen to paper, and the potential connection you create with others when you find commonalities within your stories of life. 

Why this is a July goal: Writing used to be so enjoyable for me, yet when I feel stuck, it becomes more of a chore. I want to get back to what I love most about this form of expression. Plus, the fact that it is also a means of self-care for me is also a win-win.
Action plan: Buy a cute/functional notebook to journal in and keep it nearby for easy access. Carve out 15 minutes at some point in each day to write, even if it doesn’t feel productive. Publish at least one new blog post each week.

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I’ll be back next month to update you on how well I kept up with these goals and to share my August goals. Wish me luck!

What are your goals for July? Leave a comment below!