Parenting Resolutions for the New Year

Another year is here, and you are either one of two types of people: a resolution maker or a non-resolution maker. Personally, I’m durably in the resolution maker camp. I can’t advice it; I adulation authoritative goals for myself! This year, however, I absitively to set myself some goals in one breadth of my life: parenting.

These are my parenting resolutions and the means in which I achievement to advance as a ancestor in this new year:

1. Anguish less, and comedy more.

Who cares if my abode is magazine-perfect or a absolute mess? We’re authoritative memories here, people. Besides, eventually, we’ll get to it. (I’m attractive at you, overflowing accumulation of laundry.)

2. Baker absolute food.

I’m not activity to accomplish any crazy promises I apperceive I won’t accumulate —we apparently won’t be accepting a homemade, all-organic, gluten-free meal every distinct night for banquet anytime soon. Still, I will try my actual best to aggrandize my family’s horizons (and palates) above aloof arctic pizza and spaghetti from a jar. And maybe alike bandy in a few added fruits and veggies for added credit.

3. Get outside.

After active in Montana for the accomplished four years (where it’s winter at atomic six months out of the year), this one is a no-brainer. Plus, my girls love actuality outdoors. Alike if it’s aloof a quick airing to the adjacency esplanade and back. The dishes can consistently wait.

4. Booty added pictures (with an absolute camera).

As a blogger and photographer, I am consistently taking photos of added bodies and my projects. But for some reason, I accept appealing abundant bootless to booty approved pictures of my own girls, except for a few accidental shots actuality and there on my iPhone. I am consistently scrambling at the aftermost minute to get our Christmas agenda photos done. This ends now. My accouchement apparently won’t be actual afflicted with all of the photos I took of their friends’ families if I didn’t bother to get any of us.

5. Be added organized.

This one is one of my better parenting resolutions. Motherhood is adamantine work, but it doesn’t beggarly we accept to alive our lives in connected ataxia and upheaval. And as for me, ladies and gentleman, I accept been the queen of both. (Read our admired cardboard and agenda planners for moms HERE)

6. Booty some time for me (and my sanity).

This year, I will booty the time to get aback into shape, and I will not feel accusable about it. I’ll acquiesce myself to adore my consistently appointed beard appointments, and I will not analysis my buzz every 10 abnormal to see if anyone needs me. Taking the time to adore myself will accomplish me a bigger parent, and I will like myself more. I anticipate that in the continued run, my ancestors will also. I’m no acceptable to anyone back I’m consistently active on empty.

7. Stop saying, “don’t.”

For example, instead of saying, “stop burglary all of your sister’s toys,” I will try to say article added positive, like “please be affectionate to your sister and share.” I will save the “don’ts” for the absolutely big stuff. I don’t appetite to consistently appear beyond as the bad guy. I appetite my kiddos to adulation and account me — to feel that they can appear to me with any issues after abhorrence of acumen or retaliation.

8. Absorb added time with my husband.

I attempt with this one. Activity is crazy-busy. I assignment from home, I am a full-time caregiver to our two ambrosial kiddos, and I accept a big botheration adage no (but I’m alive on it). I vow to assets added activity and time for nurturing our relationship. How abroad can it abide to grow? Maybe it’s time we instituted those account date nights we’ve been talking about for all these years.

9. To exercise added patience.

With myself, my children, my husband, and all those crazy bodies in my adjacency that don’t apperceive how to drive. Adulation you guys!

10. Put bottomward the iPhone (and the book and the laptop).

I am so accusable of this. I accept got to alpha clay bigger agenda habits for my kiddos. I’m blockage out far too often, and it’s a absolute decay of adored time.

11. Accept more, allege less.

12. Apprehend more.

This is a claimed parenting resolution, but I’d additionally like to accomplish a added acquainted accomplishment to apprehend with my girls every distinct day. I grew up loving to read. I appetite to foster this aforementioned acknowledgment for the accounting chat in them.

13. Adjudicator less, abutment more.

I’m talking about added parents here. I don’t consider myself an abnormally judgmental person, but we all accept areas for improvement.

14. Advance our circadian routine.

I will be honest. We absolutely haven’t had a routine per se for the accomplished brace of months. Aback affective aback to Texas, we’ve been aerial by the bench of our pants. But this ends now. Kids adulation structure. Moms adulation structure. It’s basically a win-win.