I’ve been writing down monthly intentions or goals to help me focus in on what is important. Many of the things listed are daily habits I’m seeking to maintain or grow in. The goal is not to obtain perfection, but to make steady progress…and months when there isn’t any progress, to give myself grace and start again the next month. That is my hope for you too as you strive to implement daily/weekly/monthly habits. Here are my monthly intentions for May.

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Recap of Intentions in April
Intentions that were challenging in April:
Staying within our budget (it was my oldest’s birthday in April), working in the basement with my husband (he’s been working hard in the basement by himself, I didn’t track my time for a week like I wanted to, I haven’t decluttered the closets yet (although I think I can squeeze that in today – the last day of April!)
Things that went well in April:
Getting 1:1 time with all three sons, getting at least 6 hours of sleep at night, making our bed, meal planning, my morning routine, getting movement in on days I’m off, and going out with my friends.
Doing Things Scared…or Curiously
I wrote to my email list about two things that I’ve never done before last weekend – I went to my first blogging conference The Blog Connect and also gave a seminar presentation at the same conference.
It’s unusual for me, an introvert, to put myself out there like that. I’ve had it in my head that I don’t enjoy putting myself in front of people. I tend to be much more of a “work behind the scenes” kind of gal. But my word this year is “sparks joy” and I’m challenging myself to try things that I normally wouldn’t do. My thought is, “how do I know if it sparks joy if I haven’t done it before, or done it in a long time?”
There’s the saying “do it scared” that I’ve been seeing a lot of around the internet. I agree that fear shouldn’t stop us from moving forward or trying new things. I prefer, though, to frame it as “do it curiously”.
Here’s a common conversation in my house:
Kids: “Oh, I don’t like to (fill in the blank)”
Me: “How do you know? You’ve never (fill in the blank). You never know unless you try.”
So when I found myself saying to myself – “oh, I don’t like to speak in front of people.” I heard myself respond (to myself), “How do you know? You haven’t put yourself in front of people in a long time. You never know unless you try.”
So I applied to give a presentation to share the lessons I learned while writing my first eBook, How to Start When You Feel Stuck.
I applied with curiosity.
I accepted with a little bit of fear.
Here’s what I learned from the experience:
- If you practice something enough times, it feels a lot less scary.
- You know more than you think. You don’t have to be an expert to share what you know. If you’re a few steps ahead of someone else on a journey, you have valuable information to share.
- Speaking takes a lot out of me. It took me a few days to feel back to normal. Having that many conversations in a weekend was more than this introvert is used to!
- Learn how to see the presenter notes in the slide show so you don’t have to hold your notes…probably should have figured that out before the seminar! 🙂
Aprils Top 3 List:
As part of these monthly recaps and goals, I’m sharing the top 3 posts and top 3 things I was grateful for this past month.
TOP 3 POSTS IN APRIL:
- 10 Lessons Learned After a Year of Decluttering
- Stress Free Meal Planning for Beginners: Finding what Works for You
- Decluttering Your Home
TOP 3 THINGS I WAS GRATEFUL FOR IN APRIL:
- Connecting with so many wonderful bloggers in person at The Blog Connect
- Connecting with my sons during 1:1 times. I’ve been playing tennis with my oldest son which is fun to share a common interest and be able to coach him a little bit.
- Perennials! I’m always amazed at how these flowers bloom again and again every Spring.
Top 3 Posts and Top 3 Things I was grateful for in April #gratitude #top3 Click To Tweet
Monthly Intentions for May:
SPIRITUAL:
- Daily bible reading from The Daily Message.
- Pray for my husband, children, and loved ones daily using the scripture God has given me.
- Take at least 3 slow, deep breaths in the morning. Silent prayer and meditation for 12 minutes.
PERSONAL:
- I set aside Hands Free Mama by Rachel Macy Stafford in order to read the books I recently checked out from the library. I’m enjoying Notes from a Blue Bike by Tsh Oxenreider who I’ve followed for years now. She also has a new book out that I’m excited to check out – At Home in the World.
- Track my time for the week as suggested in 168 Hours in order to make tweaks to my schedule according to my highest priorities. (this is moved forward from last month)
- Going out with friends at least once a month.
- Intentional movement 5 days of the week (running or HIIT video at least 2 of those days).
- As the weather warms up I’m hoping to start running again.
- Be in bed by 11pm. Sleep at least 6 hours a night, with 7 hours being ideal.
- Write down 3 things I’m grateful for daily each evening.
HOUSEHOLD:
- Meal Plan dinner for the weeknights (get FREE Meal Planning printables)
- Declutter all three closets again. (Moved from last month)
- Work at least 15 minutes in the basement (with or without) hubby on Sunday evenings when I put in a load of laundry.
- Budget and track daily expenses with the You Need a Budget program. Meet weekly with my husband, and talk about money as well as business and home stuff for the upcoming week.
WRITING & BLOGGING:
Elite Blog Academy (EBA) has been my main blogging course that I’ve been going through all year. It’s been instrumental in giving me direction and guidance every step of the way.
EBA only goes on sale once a year. If you’re interested in starting or refining your blog, the EBA Blog Structure Blueprint is a must have! You can download it immediately when you sign up for the wait list HERE.
- Post at least once a week (ideally twice) on my blog for May
- Write 500 words at least 3 times a week
- Write one guest post for May, featuring ideas from my eBook
- Figure out FB ads to let more people know about my FREE 7 Day Decluttering eCourse. (still figuring this out!)
- Contribute an old post on Huffington Post. I was so excited to become a contributor to Huffington Post. You can find my entries so far here.
Monthly Goals:
- Date night with hubby.
If you can’t get out of the house for date nights, check out VidAngel . You can stream movies for $1. We used to use Redbox, but the convenience of not having to go out of the house to return the movie, is super convenient.
- One on one outings with each son.
What are some monthly intentions that you have for May?
This post shared at these lovely link ups.
Yes yes yes, I totally agree with approaching things with curiosity! In fact, curiosity is my word for 2016. Children has this wonderful knack for being curious about everything. They have an ability to be endlessly fascinated by everything they encounter and have a desire to discover and learn, and not just of the obvious, but of the little peripheral details that most adults wouldn’t think or care to pay attention to. But I think that as we grow up, many of us lose sight of this, which is a shame. Related to this topic, I really enjoyed an episode of the Freakonomics podcast called “Think Like A Child.” // Happy May & good luck with your intentions! I love what you said in the beginning about making progress and giving yourself grace. Do you know the serenity prayer: “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” -Reinhold Niebuhr? What you said reminds me of it 🙂 -Audrey | Brunch at Audrey’s
Hi Audrey! I love that curiosity is your word for 2016! Yes, children are so curious and fearless – they are a good model for us adults. I am familiar with the serenity prayer but never connected it to goals or intentions. I’ll definitely check out that podcast – sounds like a good one! Thanks for reading and commenting Audrey
Angel – I am your neighbor over at Holley’s #CoffeeForYourHeart today. I love the “setting your intentions” it sounds so much better than setting goals. lol even though it’s the same thing- I have never heard of VidAngel before I am going to have to check it out. I to am an EBA course member! Yay, still have so much to learn.
So great job stepping out and even applying to speak at the conference and then saying YES! that is awesome and I am sure you blessed the women. Have an awesome day – May the month of May be a huge success for all your intentions.
PS.. if you are looking for another place to link to on Thursday’s I would love if you would consider joining my new linkup #TuneInThursday – it opens Thursday 3am PST and runs through Sunday night. you can find it at debbiekitterman.com/blog (Please feel free to delete the link if you think it inappropriate).
Angela – oops sorry about spelling your name wrong -apparently I didn’t hit the a hard enough … but maybe God wanted you to know He sees you as an Angel. 🙂
What an encouraging word – thank you! Mistakes have a purpose don’t they! 😉
Hi Debbie! Thank you so much for dropping by and commenting! I would love to link up with you. I’m heading over now!
Well done on attending your first blogging conference! I’m an introvert too (I think an awful lot of bloggers are) and I’ve still not plucked up the courage to do one. I thought maybe this year I would, but for various reasons it’s not worked out. Next year I’m determined to do it! Thanks for joining us at #SharingtheBlogLove
Congrats on attending a blog conference, as an introvert I know the ordeal so it is a massive step for you X #sharingthebloglove
Hi Angela, this is the first time I think I’m visiting your site, and I’m really enjoying it. Such a beautiful set-up and an encouraging post to read. I love the ideas of ‘one step at a time’ and ‘doing it curiously’. So glad I hopped over from # Faith ‘n Friends.