The New Year

Here it is, the 19th of January already, and I haven't shared a drop about my plans for the new year. I don't do resolutions. I prefer challenges.

Here are some of my challenges for 2010:

1. Recycle--our family received an award last year for our efforts to help others and live in a sustainable way. To me, it was a challenge to do some of those things I wasn't doing so well. Recycling was at the top of the list. We had been recycling newspapers and cardboard boxes and had been turning food waste into compost, but I wasn't an avid recycler of other things. Now I have unsightly containers along one wall of my kitchen as constant reminders of what we should be recycling. It's amazing how may #1 and #2 plastic containers we would have tossed into our regular garbage this year if I hadn't started paying attention. We're also recycling paper, aluminum, and tin. I'm also trying to remember to always bring reusable shopping bags with me into stores.

I'm even considering becoming crazy enough to try to tackle some recycling projects at church. I just don't know how to do things half way.

2. Fewer dairy products--I watch documentaries from time to time and read certain types of books that point out issues in our food production practices. It is really difficult for me to see how animals are treated in the produce-it-super-fast-and-super-cheap production plants in this country, and I really wish that I were not a part of it. We have been vegetarians for 4 1/2 years now, so I'm happy that we do not consume meat. I have decided this year, though, to make an effort to cut out some dairy from my diet, while I'm eating at home. I'm not turning vegan. I'm not expecting others to feed me foods without dairy products.

I'm in the process of trying out different non-dairy substitute products, and figuring out what the family is willing to eat and what (if any) will fit in our budget. I would have no problem eating milk products all the time, if I knew the dairy cow got to live a reasonable life. I'm happy to dine on the eggs from my parents' chickens because I know how they live, and they aren't stuffed in a tiny cage, unable to see the light or take a step on terra firma. I just figure that I can make a teeny, tiny difference with each meal I eat that doesn't contribute to the system, and a tiny bit bigger difference each day I go dairy free.

So far, I've cut down and am happy with the little changes I've made. At social occasions, you'll see there's no change. Sometimes you won't even notice a change when I'm in my own home. But trust me, I step away from the cheese more than ever before. I use soy milk in my cereal. I've bought fake butter and sour cream to try. I'm making an effort, and that's the goal here.

3. Stop negative talk about others--Here's a big one and a difficult one for me. I have noticed that I'm pretty sarcastic. I often say things about others that are not very nice, whether it is a celebrity, a person on a reality show, a friend or acquaintance, or a family member. I've noticed a lot of my interactions with others include talk about someone else in an often negative way. I want to stop. Brishen's already joined in with the talk, and that's a sad thing to pass on to your children. I have to make constant conscious choices to keep thoughts to myself. Someday I hope that I don't even have the thoughts--now that would be nice. I admit that I've fallen off the wagon many times already. I have a long way to go!!

This challenge will be a lifelong challenge, and I know I'll never conquer it.

4. Play more games with my family and friends--We are collectors of games. We have a huge number of great games and a wish list of many more. I've noticed that I'm often too tired at night when Jon and Brishen pull out a game. I've decided to schedule game playing time into my week. I also am planning on finding others around who enjoy the types of games we play to have some fun game nights. I don't want to be so busy with "important" things that I can't slow down to play a game with my friends and family.

5. Quarterly project--I don't want to overburden myself with things I want to get done, so I thought I'd choose four projects and work on completing one each quarter. Here are the four I've chosen in no particular order: paint my bathroom, make our front door area prettier, make homemade cheese (silly considering my cut down on dairy goal, but it's been something I've wanted to try for a while), and invite our church's praise team over for food and fun.

6. Better follow a written schedule--it's almost as good as a written budget. You can find time in there where you didn't realize you had it. I realized that we could start school earlier, that the night isn't over after Tae Kwon Do so we can still fit in a movie night or go to the grocery store, that I have a set time for doing a set chore, so I don't need to be trying to fit it in while I am homeschooling or caring for other little ones.

7. Reading--Here, I also have quarterly goals: read one of my antique books that look pretty on my shelf but have not ever been read by anyone at this house; read History of the Ancient World by SWB--it's huge, so I need to give myself a few months or I'll give up on it; read Little Women since I never have and feel guilty about it; and one more yet to be determined. Other than that I can read what I want when I want!

8. RAK--try to recognize opportunities for doing random acts of kindness. My Sunday School class is performing one each week, though not always random. There are lots of websites with lists of ideas, and I expect it will be lots of fun doing some of them!