One Simple Goal

This logo is on my favorite shirt.
It's a motto our family will continue to focus on in 2012.

As New Year's Eve approaches, I can't help but to reflect back on the year that was. I think it was good one, if not an easy one. We made a lot of significant changes this year and I think we're better for all of them. It's an on-going challange to simply our lives. Creating better routines and breaking the bad habits we've developed over the years is hard sometimes but it's a battle that I think we're winning.

Our priorities for 2011 were simple: eat better, exercise more, work as a team and get healthier financially. We've done very well at eating better, making smarter use of our money and working together as a team. Though our focus on nutrition slipped in December, we made some significant moves on the financial front and Team Blanchard is working very well together. Overall, I'm really happy with how those three life goals are progressing.

Exercising regularly and together are on-going battles. We haven't done well with them at all. We've relied too much on Scouts and not enough on our family. We've gone for a few family hikes and outtings this year, but not nearly enough. Our school transport routines rely on driving almost all the time and Jonas is old enough now that he's spending more and more time out playing with his friends, leaving Steve and I to putter about on our own. Those two things translate into a need to refocus and reinvent our family exercise opportunities. Hopefully the introduction of snowboarding and the arrival of the winter snows will help us get over the hump.

So our family mission for 2012 is even simpler - to keep simplfying. Reprioritizing and really buckling down are simple goals that are not so easily acheived. We're slowly moving ourselves into a better position for the future and that's really our big life goal. Eat well. Play well. Strengthen the team. Simple!

Cheers!