Word for 2019: MORE

Last fall I began thinking about what my word for 2019 would be.  I started thinking about my goals and plans for the year, and it all came down to one word: MORE.

Goals

Cook More. Clean More. Blog More. Do More household projects.  Make our home a more organized and efficient space. (That’s a big one on my to-do list!)

Where I’m Coming From

Since having our baby, I’ve been just a wee bit consumed by that!  I love spending time with him, and it is so hard pulling myself away to do actual housework, blog work etc.  As a result, a lot of projects and daily activities just fell by the wayside last year.  Now that he is out of the infant stage, I still struggle to pull myself away, but I know I have to get things done!  I have to do MORE and be MORE!

I still believe that being present for my son and our family is MY MOST important job!  And I definitely don’t want to compromise that for the sake of mopping the floor!  But…I know that in order to be a leader and teach my son about being a responsible person, I MUST show that in my own life each day, so I am strategizing and working on ways that I can do more in our household and make sure we are running more efficiently.  At the same time, I’m also working on ways to get back to my blogging, to be more disciplined with that and to maintain a more regular schedule.

Hopefully this will help me to accomplish MORE this year.

I started journaling in my new planner, as I have done the past two or three years, and I decided I would share some of my notes with you.  Normally I don’t share things like this, especially as it is just total stream of consciousness, but I’m trying to “put myself out there” more.  Also, I thought my notes might inspire someone to write similar notes to themselves.

Be More…

do more, expect more, be more.

  • Be the good. Be the positive force.  Be the change you wish to see.

Know that you are made for more and you ARE MORE than you think you are.

Positivity: Find good things in every day through every challenge.  See the good. (It’s never that bad!)

YOU ARE

  • You are strong.
  • You are brave.
  • You are smart and confident.
  • You are a mom, a wife, and a leader.

BELIEVE

  • in God.
  • in Self.
  • in those you LOVE.

Accept Challenges.

  • Strive and Rise Above.
  • Thrive!
  • Never settle.
  • Always Be More.

So those are my notes: My mental challenge to myself to BE MORE!

And I hope through all these positive affirmations, I can challenge myself to DO MORE this year.

I’ve already started working on new strategies: I’ve started making changes to my daily routine and being more conscious and intentional about what I am doing.  And I am also working on ways to make more concrete plans for my weeks.

I, for one, struggle to come up with an exact daily or weekly schedule for myself.  For example, if I say, “Okay, on Mondays I will work on posts, either Monday will roll around and I simply won’t feel inspired to write.  Or else, I’ll have more pressing things to do in my household, and writing just will NOT be a priority.”  Similarly with housework, I often find sometimes I need to do a task only once a week.  Other times that same task may need to be done two or three times in a week.  Even with our cooking, I generally have a rough idea of what we are going to make for the week, but it is hard for us to nail down an exact meal plan for the week.  I’m working on being okay with that and understanding that it is okay to do what works, as long as I am getting things done!

BUT to help myself be a little more intentional, I made this daily planning printable.  In my planner I’m also making a list each week of projects I want to work on.  And I also have a printable goals planner to provide a quick overview.

What About You?

Do you have a word for 2019?  I’d love to hear about your goals and plans!

And if you have any tips for doing more each day or keeping a more efficient daily schedule, I’d love to hear your tips and ideas!  Please share your thoughts in the comments or give me a shout out on social media!

Focus and Simplify: My Words and Goals for 2016

words for 2016

Do you have a “word for 2016”  A word?  Yes, a word!  A few years ago, I first learned about the word of the year concept.  I think of it as a one-word resolution.  Your word can be anything.  It can be a one-word goal you have for yourself, a feeling or emotion that you want to feel in the new year, an action you want to perform in the new year, and above all just anything that you want to have as a priority in your life for the year.  Today I’m going to talk a little bit about that.

As you can see, I’m cheating this year and am selecting 2 words….is that allowed? lol. [Read more…]

Share Your Hero with Mrs. Fields and Win!

Disclosure: This post was written by me on behalf of Mrs. Field’s. The opinions are my own.

Share Your Hero with Mrs. Fields

 

Do you have a personal hero? This summer Mrs. Fields® is celebrating heroes near and far. They searching for America’s hometown heroes to appear on future boxes of Mrs. Fields cookies, and you can help! Just go online to MrsFieldsMoments.com and share your hero’s story for a chance to win a year’s supply of cookies for your and your hero!

And that’s not all!  As a proud supporter of the USO, Mrs. Fields® is also donating 25,000 cookies to our heroes in uniform. [Read more…]

Ultimate Blog Party 2012 + A Jewelry Giveaway

Ultimate Blog Party 2012

Welcome to Simply Sweet Home! I’m so excited to be participating in Ultimate Blog Party at 5 Minutes for Mom.  I’ve been joining this event each year since 2008, and it always a fun time for one and all!

For those of you who are stopping in from the party, my name is Jerri. I’ve been blogging here at Simply Sweet Home since 2007.  This blog features recipes, product reviews, giveaways, craft/decor projects, and basically anything else I can think of to help make your home a “simply sweet” home!

I also host a weekly linky party called Friday Favorites, where you can share your recipes, projects, or anything else you like!

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My Ultimate Blog Party Story

Ultimate Blog Party 2012
For those of you who do not know, there’s a party starting later this week! (April 13 to be exact!)  Each year the Ultimate Blog Party is hosted by 5 Minutes for Mom.

This isn’t my party post, but rather my own little Ultimate Blog Party Story that I’m sharing with you today! (And okay…it’s also my entry for a little contest they are having over at 5 Minute for Mom. If I share my story, I could win a little cash!)

[Read more…]

Ultimate Blog Party 2011!

Ultimate Blog Party 2011

It’s time to get your party on at the Ultimate Blog Party hosted by the lovely ladies of 5 Minutes for Mom.  This is my 4th year to “attend” the UBP (my how time flies!), and it’s always great fun for one and all!  If you’re new to blogging or unfamiliar with the party, go check it out!

If you’re visiting from the UBP, welcome to Simply Sweet Home!  My name is Jerri, and I’ve been blogging here for three and half years.  The goal of my blog is to share recipes, ideas, and products that can help make your home a simply sweet home!
If you become a follower of Simply Sweet Home, here’s what you can expect each week:

Monday – Weekly Recipes
Tuesday – Giveaways
Wednesday – Craft Project / Home Decor / Jewelry / Misc.
Thursday/Friday – Friday Favorites Linky Party
Weekend – Product Reviews and Sponsor Spotlights

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Friday Favorites Party
I’d love for you to come back and join in my weekly linky party!  I’ve been hosting Friday Favorites for 57 weeks, and each week we have 100+ posts linked up.  You can link up recipes, project, tips, etc.—-basically anything you consider to be your favorite post for the week.  And each week I feature 5 of my favorite ideas from the previous week!


connect

Follow Me! I’d love to connect with you!
@SimplySweetHome on Twitter.
SSH Fan Page on Facebook.
JHRivers on Etsy.
Subscribe to my RSS Feeds.
Subscribe to my weekly email newsletter.
And I’m now on Pininterest!

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Visit My Shop
I also have a shop on etsy called Simply Sweet Creations where I sell jewelry and accessories.  This week I’m offering a 15% discount to blog party guests! Just enter the coupon code: UBP11 at checkout!

Party Food!
Don’t leave without having a little dessert!
Today I have some Samoa Cookies for you!
Thanks so much for stopping by!  Please leave a comment so that I can come and visit you too!
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Assessing 2009 and Goals for 2010

Goals for the Home:
Last year I created a list of goals for 2009 with mixed results. My husband getting laid off from his job prevented us from doing a lot of the home improvement projects I wanted to do, although we did manage to get a couple of things accomplished.

For this year my goal is to come up with a regular schedule for household chores–nothing too exact–just a basic schedule of what I want to get done each week. And I also need to go through the entire house to do some assessing, reorganizing, and general maintenance.

Finally the room in our house known to us as “spare-oom” has recently become the “junk room.” So one of my main projects I need to work on is getting it cleaned out. And then I need to go through the stuff in our outbuilding and decide what to keep and what to get rid of. (I’m not looking forward to this at all, but I know it’s got to be done!)

Financial Goals:
Again the whole lay off thing prevented us from reaching our financial goals of paying off some debts last year. So we’re going to try again this year.

Business:
One goal we have for our business this year is to set up scheduled time. In the past, we haven’t kept a regular schedule, so for this year we need more consistency. And we also have a goal to set up at least one regularly scheduled meeting at our home or another location each week.

Cooking & Diet:
I did well with my goal of making at least one new recipe each month, and some months I was able to do more than one. I will try to continue on with this goal in 2010 because I love cooking, and I love discovering new favorite recipes for our family.

Also, I’ve gotten out of my meal planning habit, though I’ve managed to get back on it in the last few weeks. So this year I need to work on this more.

My husband was recently diagnosed with diabetes, so this makes my need to meal plan a lot more crucial. And due to his condition, he was placed on a diet, which doesn’t depend so much on restricting foods as it does on restricting portion sizes, carbs, and calories, so this year I’ll be working on sticking to the diet that the dietitian has given my husband. And I also need to work on my own diet and take vitamins.

Exercise:
My husband has set some diet, excercise, and weight loss goals for himself. So I’m going to try to help him (and help myself) by exercising with him and doing some excercise on my own. My husband plans on exercising 5 times a week, so I’m going to shoot for 3 times for myself.

Crafts:
Last year I started making jewelry. I had planned on opening a shop a few months ago, but I never got around to it. So this year it’s going to happen for sure! I also want to try my hand at a couple of other craft projects this year, I have several different things in mind, one of which is mod podge. I’m always seeing the cutest decor projects made with that stuff. And then there are a lot of other things as well.

Blogging & Office Hours:
As I look at the blog, I think it lacks cohesion and is a bit unpredictable, so I’m thinking of trying something new for this year. Just as I do my recipe at the beginning of each week, I’m going to try to do regular features for the rest of the week. I’ve sorta tried to do this in the past, but I just didn’t stick with it. So now I’m giving it another go.

I also need to have scheduled blogging time. I often get on the computer for hours at a time and have no idea where the time goes or what I’ve even accomplished. So this year, I’m going to try to keep better track of what I’m doing with my time and to be more consistent with posting, commenting, twittering, etc.


Spiritual Goals:
In the past few months we’ve started going to a new church, and each week my husband and I discuss the lessons and sermons together. We want to continue with this in the new year and also work toward having a better relationship and just being better people.
Happy New Year! And Good Luck With Your Goals & Resolutions!

-Jerri

Blog Hoppin’ Tuesday: Why You Should Read Simply Sweet Home

For this week’s blog hop everyone is telling readers why their blog is worth reading. So here’s a few fast facts about Simply Sweet Home, and why you should come here ALL time!

1. Recipes – I always post a featured Recipe of the Week, and sometimes I post additional recipes or recipe links for you to check out.

2. Sweet Thursday – Each month I host a dessert carnival, complete with yummy looking photos and links. At the time of the carnival I announce a theme for the next month, and you can submit your dessert and be featured in the next carnival.

3. Giveaways – I host a few giveaways each month. You can win all kinds of prizes including jewelry, print/media products, website memberships, and much more. (In fact, I have 3 awesome giveaways going on right now and couple more coming up in honor of my blogiversary!)

4. Tips & Ideas – I post on a lot of ideas for home and family, including organizing tips, home decor, party planning, crafts, and money saving.

5. Personal Posts – This year I’ve worked to make the blog a little more personal: I share items from my home, shopping trip finds, and fun photos of my kitty cats. (And when hubby and I have a baby, there will be a lot more personal stuff featured here!)

6. Special Events – From time to time I host special events on my blog. In December I’ll be hosting my 2nd Annual Christmas Festival.
7. I strive to make Simply Sweet Home a fun and informative place for everyone. I’ve been blogging here for 2 years, and though the topics may vary from week to week, the goal is still the same: Sharing ideas on how to create a Simply Sweet Home!

-Jerri

MckLinky Blog Hop

Special thanks to Grace Jacobsen for sponsoring this blog hop.

Blog Hoppin’ Tuesday

I’ve decided to participate in the Mcklinky blog hop. I’ve seen a few blogs that I visit participating, and I thought it would be fun to try it out. If I enjoy it, I may even make it a permanant weekly feature here.

For this week’s blog hop, the theme is “3 Things You Didn’t Know About Me.” Here are my 3:

1. I started making my own beaded jewelry a few months ago, and I plan on opening my own Etsy shop in the next few weeks. (More details to come soon…)

2. I’m a huge fan of the Harry Potter book series and the movies. (Can’t wait to see The Half-Blood Prince!)

3. I love collecting things! Some of the things I collect are mice figurines/ornaments, Hallmark ornaments, dolls, bears/animals (especially Beanie Babies), and antiques. I also have a China cabinet filled with figurines and other little treasures that I’ve collected over the years.

-Jerri

MckLinky Blog Hop

Camera Critters: One of my Office Assistants in Action

Camera Critters

Camera Critters has a very cute meme every Saturday. Since I’m obsessed with always taking pictures of our cats, I thought it would be fun to partcipate sometimes. For this post, I’m sharing some pictures of one of my office assistants, Miss Dixie Belle.

Anytime I’m at my computer, I usually have an office assisant cat nearby. Here is Dixie sitting at her my desk. Do you think she knows she’s having her picture taken?

Here she is posing behind her “name plate.”

As you can see, she is very sophisticated.

Here she is checking to see that her named is spelled correctly.

Here she is relaxing while pondering our latest post.

And here she writing a post or perhaps it’s a letter to the editor, explaining why she should get a raise.


-Jerri