A few months ago, for the book club I am in, we read, The Happiness Prjoject, by Gretchen Rubin. Now I have a confession to make, I haven't actually finished the book, but I loved it, and wanted to begin my own "Happiness Project" the minute I picked the book up. Gretchen Rubin spent a lot of time doing research before she even began her "Happiness Project" and I'll admit I will lose interest if I put it off that long (let's be honest, I did lose interest, we read this book, back in January, but my interest is back, so I'll grab hold of it!)
I've also been reading a bunch of different articles I've found on Pinterest (of course!) that have given me a bunch of tips on being a better parent. I came across one article, 30 for 30 Challenge about playing with your kids for 30 minutes a day for 30 days (had a been smart enough I would have tried it for the month of June, but I guess I'll have to try 31 for 31).
Long story short, (I'm not much of a blogger), I've decided I'm only going to try a couple new things this month to improve on.
First in the area of becoming a better wife. I don't know about you, but I think I must be married to the world's greatest man. He's loving, and caring, and always puts me first. What's more, he rarely if ever tells me what to do or how to do it. He's my biggest cheerleader, and unfortunately, he's usually last to get my attention. So to become a better wife this month, my goal is spend time each day just listening to him. He doesn't require much in that department, but he does need a listening ear, even if means, I follow him around his garage for 15 minutes as he works on a car, and he tells me what he's doing. Some times that's all he needs. He just wants to know that I care about what he's doing.
Second, in the area of becoming a better mom. I'm going to try the 31 for 31 Challenge. I'm going to play with my kids for 31 minutes a day for 31 days. Some days it may be that we read for 31 minutes, but hopefully not every day, because we need play time too (since we already read most days anyway). Hopefully this will add more fun to our home and my kids will see that I'm not always trying to boss them around.
Third, I am going to read an article or a talk on parenting every day. This might be a talk from a general authority (a leader of my church) to remind me that I'm doing God's work, and I'm doing the best I can after a rough day, or it might be an article about 20 dates I can take my boys on. Either way, I'm going to improve this month.
I'm also going to keep a record. That's where you lovely people come in, or maybe it's just me who will be rereading these posts some day. Either way, it's a way I'll be accountable. And at the end of the month, even if I'm the only one who has read these posts, and changed for the better, then good for me!
I know it may not seem like I'm doing much, but for me, I have to start with little steps. My family is what is most important to me. So if these little things improve our relationship, then I'm willing to do them. (WOW! That was long!)
