Does the New Year sneak up on you? It always seems to sneak up on me! I get so focused on the holidays and multiple family birthdays in December. The whole month is one big celebration and then BAM! It’s January! A New Year! I try to reflect on the year I’ve had and set intentions for coming year, but my brain can’t seem to focus on these concepts until the very end of the year. I’m too busy partying in December for reflection. What are my thoughts on 2022? In some ways it was a slow year of rebuilding after pandemic conditions. We still had quite a bit of time around the house. We came back to in-person church and joined a homeschool co-op. Our family vacation to Sunriver, OR was also major highlight. Reading was top priority in 2022. I challenged myself to see how many books I could read in a year and I was shocked to find it was over 200 (thanks to that extra time at home).
Now that 2023 is here, I have some thoughts for the coming year. I try not to make super serious and intense New Year’s Resolutions. I find it beneficial to challenge myself, but my personally type does that all on it’s own without the need of a resolution (I’m an Enneagram Type 1). Since fun isn’t my normal M.O., I try to add yearly goals that bring me joy (thus, the reading goals in 2022 and baking goals in 2021).
What are some of my thoughts for 2023?
I’m working on a whole Bible in two years plans right now. It will wrap up in April and I hope to start a one-year chronological Bible afterward. I thought about doubling up and starting my new Bible while finishing my current plan, but that seemed like a lot. Starting my new Bible in April will mean that the dates are off (it starts on January 1st), but I think this will help me extend grace to myself when I miss a day. I’ll already be off from the actual date, so it’s not as big of a deal. I have a one year Bible that got in high school and have used multiple times, but I decided to get a new one. I wanted a fresh slate and I’m looking forward to the chronological format.
My reading goal for 2023 is 100 books. I’ve also decided to keep track of pages read for an additional challenge. To grow our home library, I plan on letting the boys each pick a new book once a month to purchase. We ordered the January books on Amazon and then also made our way to a popular used bookstore on January 1st. We are doing a good job of growing our home library so far in 2023! I’ll be intrigued to see what they pick each month. I’m hoping this will give me a consistent structure for purchasing kids books. This approach should keep my book shopping in check and spread it out evenly over the course of the year.
As silly as it sounds, I have hopes to watch more television in 2023. In 2022, television time meant a lower book count and I was all about seeing how many books I could read. While I do prefer books to television, I have a few favorite shows I hope to watch again. Jeremy and I started Once Upon a Time this week. This was our favorite show when it was on air and we have so many good memories surrounding this show! I also watched the Call the Midwife holiday episode last night. Television feels like such a novelty now!
Now that Christmas break is over, it’s back to school for our homeschool family. We are two weeks away from finishing our 2nd quarter. Time really has flown by! For the next two months, I’ll be co-teaching a drama class at our homeschool co-op. Each week, we plan to take a classic story to read, discuss, and recreate. We’ll incorporate drama techniques and terminology as we act out these well-known stories. Our first week went really well! Our story was The Gingerbread Man and the kids had a blast acting out the tale (lots of running and giggles). We wrapped up the class by munching on ginger cookies! Next week we’ll dive into Goldilocks and the Three Bears.
While it’s hard to believe the holiday season is behind us, I am excited for the all the possibilities that lie ahead in 2023. I’m not quite sure what to expect by I am hopeful and optimistic. Each day is an adventure, a blank page ready to be written. I hope 2023 is a good story waiting to be told!
Amy Scott's Thoughts 