I know I’m about a week late sharing this post, but I think it’s important to share or write down your goals or the things you want to accomplish. My mom will be in shock when she reads this because every year I give her the most resistance when she presents printed goal sheets to the family. It’s not that I don’t have goals or that I don’t believe in them, I’m just not so great when put on the spot and know that if I put them out there then I can’t hide from them. I know that sounds so childish. It definitely is, but a lot of the goals I knew I needed to set were very “adult” and I just didn’t want to change anything to truly start adulting.

This year I am taking a new approach. Instead of setting goals that are scary and intimidating, I am creating a 2019 to-do list. I am the master of scratching things off a list and never met a list I didn’t complete. Thinking of the year in terms of things I want to scratch off my list helps me stay motivated to take action and actually make strides toward long term goals. Keep reading to see my personal and professional to-do lists.

PERSONAL TO – DO LIST FOR 2019

BE A SPIRITUAL LEADER FOR MY FAMILY

I don’t talk about it too much on here because this is a fashion /  style blog and I don’t want to preach, but there is nothing more important to me than my faith and relationship with Jesus Christ. I am thankful a million times every day for my salvation and God’s mercy on me because there are a million times every day I realize I don’t deserve one single bit of it. Wes and I are passionate and dedicated to teaching our children the Bible and raising them in a Christ centered home. I’m not perfect but I want to continue to work at being the spiritual leader God wants me to be for my family.

TAKE FAMILY VACATIONS

Growing up, my parents always took my brother and I on a family vacation to the beach every Summer. Some years we coordinated our trip with my cousins and some years it was just the four of us, but I have the best memories from those trips. Wes and I always take two or three weekends each year for a beach trip but never anything too long. Even though Wally is too young to know it this year, I want to start the tradition of a good family vacation. As he grows and as we grow as a family, we can look back on those weeks and cherish new memories.

DISCONNECT & BE IN THE MOMENT MORE

So much of blogging is done online or on social media. While I love the access instagram gives me to keep up with so many of my long distance friends, I often find myself mindlessly scrolling through my feed with no purpose – even when I’m at home with my family. I know there have been several times when I stopped to look around the room only to find my whole family on their phones. I really want to be mentally and physically present when I’m with friends and family and am going to try and limit screen time when we are face to face. There’s a lot to be said for enjoying great company and great conversation.

LEARN TO COOK MORE THINGS

Wes and I really enjoy staying in and cooking but often find ourselves in a rut when it comes to menu items. We have the same three go-to sides and a handful of main dishes we rotate. We love our go-to items but often agree that we need some new things to spice up our routine. This is one of the biggest things on my to-do list because it impacts our daily life. Deciding on dinner is the hardest thing we do each day and I am determined to fix it. If you have any great recipes (that don’t require an all day prep) then please send them my way.

TAKE MORE PICTURES

This may seem like a ridiculous thing to put on my list since 3/4 of my job is taking pictures, but I promise, It is a necessary item to add to the list. While I am pretty good at scheduling photo shoots and posting outfit pics, I am terrible at taking family pictures. It took us 3 days to get a good family picture for Christmas because Wes and I kept forgetting to get one when we were all dressed up. It makes me sad how bad I am at getting family pics so it’s on the list.

BLOG / PROFESSIONAL TO – DO LIST FOR 2019

SHARE MORE

Sometimes I get so caught up in what I’m doing that I forget to share some real things with you guys. It’s not that I think you need to know every single detail of everything, but I want to be real and transparent with you guys. Every day is not full of sunshine and sparkles and if there is a day I can get away with no makeup, I take it! I want to get better at sharing more real life with y’all because it’s happening.

SUPPORT LOCAL

I absolutely love Charlotte and am so lucky to be one of the rare unicorns from Charlotte. It is such a great community full of women entrepreneurs, great restaurants and thriving sports teams. I want to be more intentional about supporting and collaborating with local businesses. If there is anything you want to see or know about Charlotte, please let me know in the comments. I am brainstorming ideas for new segments and would love to get your input.

GROW MY TRIBE

A few years ago I attended my first true blog networking event and conference. Through these events I have met some incredible women and dear friends like Laura, Morgan, Liz & Hillary. I know there are so many amazing women on the Charlotte blogging scene and I would love to get to know more of them.

TRAVEL MORE

Last year I got to take several trips to my most favorite place but didn’t go anywhere new. I have always wanted to go to Nashville, TN and Dallas, TX and am hoping to cross off one of those this year. There are several other places on my travel bucket list but those are the two biggest – except for Vegas. I always said If I ever go to Las Vegas it would be for a big reason or to celebrate something like a 30th birthday. Well friends, 2019 is the year of my big 3 – 0. There’s no trip planned yet, but the year is still fresh. Stay tuned!

LEARN ADOBE AND WEBSITE SKILLS

2018 was the year I got a handle of photography. I invested in a new camera and really spent a lot of time learning the basics. This year I want to build on those skills and become more advanced. I also want to learn more back end skills so I can continue to improve my site and experience for you guys. I have a lot of ideas I want to implement but can’t because I don’t know how or my current theme limits them. I feel so nerdy saying this, but I really want to get more fluent in coding, SEO and email marketing.