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Setting Goals Month by Month: July 2015

Doing webcam to keep up with a parent who is away

The kids and I took off on a last-minute road trip at the end of June! I had been wanting to visit my grandmothers for a while, and it became clear that Mike was not going to get the time off work to come with us. He was also stressing about meeting some deadlines, and leaving was an easy way to free up more of his time. We enjoyed checking in with him via webcam (that’s the photo above) during our trip – hooray for modern technology! I was a little worried about being the only adult on a road trip with four kids, but I followed my own road trip tips and it went really well! I didn’t bring along ANY electronics for the kids. Anna did lose it a couple times, but overall the kids were happy to make up stories about Santa and his Alaskan husky Rudolph’s adventures with Vanilla the chocolate milk cow and her calf Cocoa. We listened to The Ordinary Princess (highly recommend, and very inexpensive on Audible – affiliate link). This recording also works really well even on a loud freeway.

Luckily my June goals were pretty simple, so we still did all right. We had a nice visit with Mike’s mom and aunt, but Mike was sick on our 14-year anniversary. The kids wrote lovely thank you cards for their teachers. My desk is neater than it was, but still not completely organized. Our silkworm eggs have not hatched, so we haven’t had to deal with that situation yet. We did get the unexpected gift of fish from Emma’s third grade teacher, so the kids and I are enjoying having some pets. Our original planned summer of staying home most of the time has turned into trips every month, so we haven’t really established much of a rhythm at home. Missing on that goal is well worth seeing my grandmothers, siblings, and other friends and family!

Setting Goals Month by Month: July 2015

setting-goals-every-month

Hosted by Mama Smiles, 3 Dinosaurs, Kitchen Floor Crafts, andSomething 2 Offer.

July will be a busy month! Here are my goals:

  • Get organized for and enjoy a trip to Massachusetts! Mike has to work there for a week and a half and we are able to come along again. We are all looking forward to seeing my sister and friends. Character trait: thankful 
  • Celebrate my 35th birthday – this Saturday! Character trait: thankful
  • Continue the unending chore of organizing and decluttering the house. Character trait: helpful
  • Keep the kids on the practice-first schedule they had started in June before our trip. Character trait: curious and helpful
  • Continue to help the kids write snail mail letters to family. Character trait: kind.

What are your plans and goals for July?



MaryAnne is a craft loving educator, musician, photographer, and writer who lives in Silicon Valley with her husband Mike and their four children.

20 thoughts on “Setting Goals Month by Month: July 2015”

  1. What a simple but great idea! I always have these “someday” goals that never really pan out because I haven’t committed to working toward them. I have a monthly goal list for my blog, but never realized to make one for my life. Thanks for the eye-opener…

  2. Elisa | blissfulE

    It’s already the fourth of July here in Australia, so HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! :)

    This month, we will celebrate John’s and my birthdays. I also want to organise some different audio memory work for the kids, re-jig their math curriculum, and start working on spelling. We’ve started with a new violin teacher, which requires going back and fine-tuning things like bow hold, so that will be a focus this month. And we have a holiday booked for the last week of the month! Yay for July!

    I hope you have a wonderful time in Massachusetts, just like you did on your most recent road trip! Your pictures on Instagram looked like it was a terrific time!!

    1. Our road trip was wonderful, and we are really looking forward to Massachusetts – leaving next week!

      It sounds like you will be busy doing many exciting things in July! Happy early birthday – I think yours is one week from today?

  3. Happy early Birthday, MaryAnne! My hubby and daughter both have their birthdays coming up this Sunday- best birthday month ever! :D Enjoy it, as well as the long weekend! :) The cleaning and organizing can wait until after birthday fun, right?? :)

    ~Michelle

  4. Ooh we’ll be the same age MaryAnne :) Happy advanced birthday! And that’s amazing you took a road trip by yourself with four kids!! Major kudos!

  5. Decluttering, keeping life relatively calm after a busy June, and reorganizing some stuff on the blog, oh and write a VBS curriculum for our Navajo trip…. I must be on drugs to think I’ll ever have a calm month.

  6. You are so ambitious to take a road trip alone with 4 kids and no electronics. I’m impressed! I’ll definitely have to check out your tips. Also, happy birthday! My 34th birthday is today.

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