Goals: a look back & a new list

So we all survived our first month of 2017! It's still insane to me that we're smack dab in 2017. I remember when I was younger and my baby brother first started going to school; they deemed him the "Class of 2016" and I basically laughed out loud like "seriously that'll NEVER get here" just because it was so far away...and here we are! PAST that!

I decided to make quite a few goals for January that I'd been putting off for no particular reason and make them happen; no excuses! So before I dive into my new goals for February, I'd like to recap how I did on my January goals!

Lose 4-5lbs  || YES! I actually lost 6 from my starting weight and I'm feeling great. I know the scale isn't everything, but that accomplishment sure feels great!

Book a new wedding || We actually booked TWO new ones and potentially a third coming up! It feels good to be praying intentionally over our business; for God to bring us the right couples and for our business to flourish for His glory!

Track what I eat || I'm going to call this one a win. I did this for the majority of the whole month in my "Fit Happens" journal. At least 25 out of the 30 days were tracked. Some days just got away from me, but this is a HUGE improvement from last year! Intentionally writing down my meals/workouts gave me something to look forward to every day and helped me to stay on track!

Workout 15-20 times || Success! 17 times to be exact. I know I mentioned previously that I was following the Tone It Up challenge. I'm pretty proud of myself because the first 15ish days of the challenge I absolutely crushed it! I fell off the workout wagon a bit in week 3 due to our busy evening schedule but picked it right back up in week 4 and am feeling great again!

Cook more often || YES! I've been loving how much we're cooking at home. A huge accomplishment has been meal planning and STICKING TO IT, especially on the weekends. We used to eat out a lot, and that's been cut down SIGNIFICANTLY. Some nights I'll cook solo, but I really enjoy the nights Caleb and I can cook together. A few yummy things we've made; Enchilada Soup, Garlic Shrimp Spaghetti Squash, Chicken Alfredo Bake, BBQ Chicken Stuffed Peppers, Chicken w/ Asparagus & Sweet Potato Skillet, Creamy Herb Chicken & a few one sheet recipes (my fav)!

No coffee || I did it! No coffee at all this month. Anytime I had a meeting at Starbucks I'd get a non-coffee drink and it wasn't so bad. Now I'm just trying to decide if I want to keep my streak going or enjoy a small cup of french vanilla at work this week! ;)

Finish a book || womp womp. This didn't happen. I feel like anytime I make a book related goal it doesn't happen, so maybe when I stop making book goals, it'll happen and I'll actually finish a few? 

Pay off a good chunk of debt || Caleb and I put our biggest payment ever towards debt this month and we're so so grateful to be able to say that. One step closer!!!! We should be out of debt by summertime and can finally start looking for a house!

Overall I'd say it was an amazing month. I'm learning to be better about giving myself grace when necessary and remember that not every day will be perfect! Moving on to my goals for February!

File our taxes || Caleb does this for us every year and I do a lot of the back-end stuff like totaling up business expenses/etc., but it's always a great to have that behind us!

Plan a Valentine's date-night in for Caleb and I || Self explanatory. We love staying in and since we're trying hard to keep paying down debt I'm going to be planning a fun themed night in for us!

Prep some posts for our photography biz blog || Which can be found through our website here! I'd love to recap some recent weddings we've photographed and also highlight some sessions/seniors/etc.! I definitely won't stop blogging here, but if there's anything wedding/photography related that you would like to hear about, please let me know!

Wake up earlier || I'd like to get a few workouts in throughout the month BEFORE work. I'd also just like to enjoy my mornings more and not feel so rushed. My Nanny used to always wake up a few hours before she'd need to be ready for her day; she'd make coffee, read the paper, and just relax. I've always envied that, but there's nothing stopping me but myself! So, time to make a change!

Schedule a photo session for Caleb and I || Recently, I was asked to find a photo of Caleb and I that was of "good quality" but not a wedding photo, and I basically had NONE. We have plenty of selfies, and well, that's about it. We're photographers who preach "hey, get your photos taken every year" and hardly make time for our OWN sessions - so this Spring we're changing that finally and I'm SO excited!!

Order a photo book || I've made this a goal PLENTY of times, and for some reason I never make it a priority. THAT HAS TO CHANGE! I was recently looking through some of my SIL's photo books and realized how I really need to do this asap!

Whoops. That ended up being a really long post! If you made it through that list of absolute randomness, I seriously applaud you. Reward yourself with a box of Girl Scout cookies ;) and have a great day, friends! It's almost the weekend!