Dreams and Desires for 2009

[Jen528]

I have been told many, many times that life is not worth living if you don't have dreams, desires and goals.  What do we want out of life and what are we doing to accomplish what we truly desire?  I have found that I can be lazy when it comes to life.  Yes, my house is clean; my laundry's done; the kids are fed, clothed and entertained; my husband's content; my volunteer work for the Church is satisfactory; we have our everyday needs, etc., etc., but am I using my talents to my full potential?  Is there more I wish to have out of life?  Of course there is!  Unfortunately, like I said, I am lazy.  It is easy to be laid-back when life in general is comforting, safe and routine.  But.....I HAVE DREAMS and for once I would like them to become reality.  2009 is my year to shine! 

DREAMS, DESIRES, GOALS OF 2009

• Become debt-free by the end of the year - this should be fairly easy, but it is time to enter the extra payment amount necessary to do this into our budget.
• Build my Mary Kay business to it's full potential- this, also, should be easily attained.  My main goal is to be able to make enough to equal my husband's salary. With the economy as bad as it is, you never know who will have a job tomorrow.  They just laid off 2 guys where he works and even though they don't foresee any future lay-offs, you never know.  My business has grown considerably in the 8 months since I started and working just a few more hours a day will make this dream come true.
• Help my oldest 2 develop a good relationship and understand how important they are to each other - my 10 year old son and 7 year old daughter have never really gotten along.  For some reason, my son has always resented her, yet he gives his undying devotion to his 20 month old sister.  My daughter resents the fact that he is loving towards the youngest and she craves his attention to the point of being annoying.  They are both now in counseling, as this seems to be the only real issue we have left to resolve and we are taking new steps and measures within the home to help them with this journey.  I know that if we could at least get them to respect each other and be courteous towards one another, they would end up seeing how much fun they could have together.
• Take a week long vacation - I mean a real vacation, not a week of visiting grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.  We have never had the opportunity to take a week and do as we please.  I want to be spontaneous, go wherever the wind takes us and just fly by the seat of our pants. 
• Volunteer as a family - I volunteered last year and currently hold the position as the wedding/funeral coordinator at our church.  A lot of times the children have to go with me and they enjoy helping out.  I want to find at least 2 more places within the community where we can volunteer our services.  I think it is important for kids to see the importance of helping others out.  It is a win-win situation and I want my family to see that even though we may not have the new hot items out, there are people out there that don't have near as much as we do and we have the ability to help them. 
• Be in a position to buy a bigger vehicle - this dream is in connection with the first one regarding being debt-free.  With the kids getting bigger and the possibility of our family expanding in the future, we are going to need something with 3rd row seating.  Even though my husband would like to go look for one now, I have told him it is not a possibility until everything else is paid off first.  It would sure make my life easier to have something bigger, but I am willing to wait so that it will not be a financial strain we have to bear. 
• Try for another baby by the end of the year - my husband and I just had a conversation the other night regarding another baby and lately I have had baby-fever.  If it was all up to me, I would try to get pregnant right now, but again it goes back to being debt-free and getting a bigger vehicle.  I asked him if we were able to accomplish this, would he be ready for another one and he said yes.  This just gives me all the more reason to make these dreams a reality.  Call me crazy, but I am ready for #4.
• Start a savings account and have 3 months worth of income saved by the end of the year - We are going to start taking so much out of each paycheck and I have it budgeted out just like a bill.  Someone wise told me that to get ahead you have to pay yourself first.  It never really hit me until lately how true this statement really is and to be honest $50 out of each paycheck is not going to kill us.
• Monthly date with my husband - we made this promise to each other when we got married.  We made a pact that we would go out on a date the 27th of each month.  It doesn't have to be anything fancy or expensive, just some time to connect with one another.  Four months later and this has yet to happen.  Well, I am taking the liberty of marking the date each month and putting my foot down.  For a few hours each month the kids, house, laundry, etc. can be put on hold.  Someday it will be just the two of us and I want to remain the best of friends.  My biggest fear is that the kids will grow up and we will feel like strangers.  I will now allow this to happen.  He is my greatest love and best friend and I am going to do what it takes to keep it that way.
• Think about buying a new home - I don't expect us to buy a new house this year, but I think once some of the other dreams come true and goals are met, we can start researching some homes in our area and see what it would take for us to save for a down payment.  Right now we are renting and it's a nice place, but it would make more sense to put our money into something that we are going to own.  My husband has never owned his own home before and I know this would be one of our greatest accomplishments. 

These are just a few dreams of mine and I know as the year progresses old dreams will be replaced with new ones.  I am just tired of living the "lazy" comfortable life.  It is time to step out of my comfort zone and live life to the full extent.  I want to live a life worth talking about.  As much as I take pride in being a stay at home Mom and a loving wife, I want my kids to realize that there is more to Mom than just being a mom.  It is up to me to make these dreams a reality.  I have the power to create additional happiness and I am going to get started right away.  If you read this, I hope you take the time to sit down and realize what dreams you have and find a way to make them happen.  I think sometimes we all get overwhelmed, but if we break them down into smaller pieces they are so much more attainable.  Life is too short to stand still.  I AM READY TO FLY!!!!