It’s monthly goal check-in time!
For me, September always feels like a “back to reality time”.
Back to structure, a faster pace and some pent-up energy looking for a productive outlet. As my friend says, “She’s ready to kick the door down and get all the things done”.
I am usually ready to kick the door down for a few weeks and then one day I may not even make it to the door, or I collapse in front of the door because I can’t keep the pace.
There is a bit a bit of magic about September too. Fresh school supplies and back to school outfits, new activities and events beginning or reemerging after a summer hiatus. The crispness of fall and the changing colors of the leaves.
It’s excitement and a headache all wrapped into one for me.
Read on to hear about my September goals and progress as well as how my spending experiment is going.
My September encouraging words:
Merge “Summertime Shannon” and “September Shannon” – Sustainable Life
Priority: Gentle and realistic transition into fall
Monthly Goals:
- School prep and start-up – Got it done as gracefully as possible
- Flexible fall routine that includes margin – Done
- Date with Mya – Done, Crumbl Cookies works its magic again
- Spending Experiment – Making great progress and learning a lot about myself
- Ella driving lesson & practice – Didn’t happen, she did get her permit but hasn’t driven once lol
- “Essentialism” – notes from the book, 21-day challenge, simplify & apply – Did some of this but moved the bulk to next month
- Dan – finances (budget & action plans) – Moved to December, this season is too busy for us to tackle this now
- Dan – vacation (decisions & plans) – Done, our whole family is vacationing together in November which is really special because all 7 of us usually can’t all go away together
- Dan – marriage workshop (decide & plan) – Still working on it, but have made progress
- Commitment decisions – groups and activities – Made some decisions, still working on business networking commitments
Weekly Goals:
- 1 hour decluttering – 1/5 weeks
- Read “It’s Up to You” with Mya & Cal – 3/5 weeks
- Strength 3x’s – 2/5 weeks completed 3 strength sessions, 2 weeks did 2 sessions, 1 week did 1 session
- Stretch 2x’s – Done – my body is craving stretching and strengthening more and more which feels good
- Something I enjoy / Look forward to – Done
Daily Goals:
- Meditation – 18/30 days
- Journaling – 11/30 days – I didn’t feel like journaling however I feel it when I’m not doing it almost daily. I need this as an exhale.
- Dan – Spend intentional time or do something intentional for him – 27/30 days
- Mindful eating – Completed 26 full days and 4 half days
- Evening routine – 14/30 – Really felt the effects of this not being more consistent, especially with the faster pace of life
Spending Experiment
I have been doing my spending experiment for two months now. It has been really freeing and empowering. I don’t like having a lot of stuff around and it has felt good to use up all I have of something before replacing it. We were able to minimize the school supplies we bought by going through old items that could be reused. Last month I did a lot of decluttering and organized our office and school supplies and ended up with bags of perfectly good highlighters, pencils, and dry erase markers. I like the intentionality of really thinking about a purchase before making it.
I still believe that I tend to be pretty mindful with my spending, however I have realized that I like to splurge more than I thought! I have been observing that sometimes I want to buy something in an attempt to lift my spirits if I’m feeling down or anxious. And it could be anything, like cleaning supplies.
The first month of my spending experiment, my husband wondered if our monthly credit card bill was off because it was over $500 less than a typical month. Although it was summer and didn’t need as much, I’ll take it!
Comment below……. Where would you like to travel to one day?
Want to take it a step further?
Open a special travel savings account and deposit $10 into it this month.
