Family plan final update

Remember that whole family plan I started in August? I was full of vim and vigor with just a touch of smugness because I was figuring it all out.

Turns out that I figured out nothing and the whole getting pregnant thing made my new found goals even harder to accomplish. We've fallen back into most of our bad habits and I finally have enough energy to put some more effort into this whole family thing so I'm throwing out the old plan and starting fresh.

The main thing I've realized through all of this is that I need to grow up. I am quickly approaching 31 years and I still can't keep my own room clean or do chores regularly. My children seem to do better with a follow my lead approach so this year I'm going to make more of a point to lead by example and be present. We are still backing off from a lot of activities and we're going to relish in the beauty that comes from being home and together more often.

I want this to be a year where we all focus on the positive so we'll continue our family journal and we'll all work on accomplishing goals. There are a lot of big changes coming our way and I hope and pray that our focus on togetherness and positivity will aid in making the ride less bumpy.

We have a lot to figure out:

- how to get kids to focus without yelling
- remembering to always flush the toilet and wash your hands
- how to close the bread bag before you put it away
- talking about what bothers us instead of whining and crying
- wearing underwear everyday (this is just for one very special 8 yr old)
- how to look for ways to help
- honesty, even when it's hard
- spend less
- how to organize spaces and keep them that way
- the rules to mad gab
- never missing a chance to say I love you or give a hug
- how to give ourselves time outs
- a workable laundry schedule
- easy freezer meals

And the list goes on and on. I'm excited!

P.s. we are keeping a couple of proven winners from the old plan. The boys daily chore charts still exist, we just got rid of the reward part. The chores for $ list still exists. It rarely gets used but I love that I never buy them stuff and instead empower them to earn it themselves. Finally, the dinner checklist. I haven't cooked for awhile but as we get back on a schedule it's nice that we have a way to make dinner more of a family activity and less of a me feeling put out that no one helps activity.