January 2025 goals
We may be nearing the end of the month, and I may have been tapping away at these goals for a few weeks now, but I still wanted to share! With no preamble whatsoever, here’s how I’m breaking down my 2025 goals this month – and a little bit about what else we have going on around these parts…
On my calendar:
— Being the mystery reader in Shep’s class! I’m bringing this family favorite as well as this one by my brother-in-law.
— June’s 9th birthday. She is my best little friend.
— Our 20th dativersary, my oh my. Planning a celebratory dinner at Brodeto.
What I’m loving right now:
— We saw The Best Christmas Pageant Ever in theatres and absolutely loved it! I’ve never read the book and so didn’t come in with any preconceived notions. I did cry at the end :) Add it to your movie-watching list for next December!
— John turned on this Christmas lounge playlist our first night in Blowing Rock (he said he was going for “classy Christmas hotel lobby vibes”) and we never turned it off the rest of the trip. It was the perfect festive background music for games and meals and puzzling!
— Turns out roller blades just might be the hit gift of Christmas 2024. After just a few wobbly steps June was off like a rocket on hers and hasn’t slowed down since. Shep (6) was a little slower burn, but a few weeks in he’s equally as gung-ho. June has this pair and these pads and Shep has this pair and these pads. The blades light up, which is actually quite handy in these winter days when they’re often out cruising around after dark.
As a reminder, you can find allll the things I’ve loved over the last few years neatly organized right here!
What you’re loving right now:
This is where I highlight a few items here that have been popular in the last month with fellow readers, based on my analytics. Here’s hoping this will help you find something you’ll love!
— This medium hair clip I slipped into my own stocking :) I like the look, but am still figuring out the best way to get all my hair caught up.
— This $5 scalloped ceramic spoon rest, another favorite stocking surcee!
— Our foyer shoe cabinet, a new addition to our home I really love. Don’t be fooled by the description – it’s the most beautiful aloe green!
— These magic puffy pens June found in her stocking
— Shep’s beloved light-up soccer ball, the star of many street-style games in our neighborhood
Last month on The Connected Family:
— The TCF Tech-Free Gift Guide | Or is it really a gift guide at all…?
— On learning to play the piano | An open letter to June on the value of creating (also, my favorite thing I’ve written for TCF so far)
— 10 things that made learning to play an instrument easier | Practical advice for reluctant pianists
What I read in December:
— The Opt-Out Family | I did far less reading-for-pleasure than usual in December as I hustled to finish my Bible reading plan. I did, however, make it through Erin Loechner’s new book. Erin can be a polarizing figure – personally, I agree strongly with so much of what she says but sometimes cringe at the way she says it – but I enjoyed her book. She’s a natural teacher and her schtick for creating engaging real-world experiences for the people we love is clever. Very in line with everything we talk about at The Connected Family!
My reading list for 2025! I’m 1 / 24 so far :)
Revisiting my December goals:Frame a few pieces of kid art via Framebridge (Rerouted and framed this embroidered banner for the loft/playroom instead.)Find a dresser for Annie’s room (Done! Local friends, I found it at The Perfect Piece, which I had never been inside before the day I bought this dresser!)Edit Sheptember, Volume 6 (Finally!!! What a relief!)Finish the kids’ book ornaments (Done! They turned out so well and I’m thrilled. The kids liked them, too :))Submit the paperwork for my own passport renewal (Done! Now we just need somewhere to go, ha.)Stuff, stamp, and address our Christmas cardsExecute our end-of-year generosity plansSavor the Christmas season
January goals:
— Inquire with a designer friend for our bathroom project
— Print 2024 Instagram photos
— Set up our 2025 budget
— Make a loose plan for this year’s read alouds
— Confirm a reunion date
— Make a scripture ring for our table with the verses we’ve memorized so far
— Prep for the book swap (most importantly, design and print door hangers)
— Print photos for our Christmas album
— Send an email to friends in my county encouraging them to email their school board reps about the potential phone ban
I also plan to run every weekend, practice the piano several times a week, clean out my phone screenshots daily, and keep up with our Hebrews reading plan.
As a reminder, many of these are drawn from my 2025 PowerSheets goals!
Grateful for you, friends! Please feel free to comment on anything I’ve mentioned here or anything else on your mind!
Affiliate links are used in this post!
I bought that Christmas card album that you recommended and compiled most of our cards into it (still need to track down a few) and it has made me so happy! I know we’ll look forward to pulling it out every Christmas. Thank so much for sharing that idea. :)
So much here I have to comment on! Took Cam to a late night showing of the Best Christmas Pageant in early December and it was such a precious movie and memorable evening. Loved it!!! Also have Brodeto on my list after running across it last week when looking for somewhere to go- can’t wait to try it! For 20 years, please write a post along the lines of “tell me you’ve been dating for twenty years without telling me you’ve been dating for twenty years” LOL I was just reminiscing last night about our dates to Blockbuster and then when Brian upgraded to Netflix and got 3 dvds by mail each month LOL! Lastly, we did the passport process this month too so you are wise to do that now. Our trip is in March and i’m starting to get concerned about the timing. We landed on Costa Rica for his first international trip and I cannot wait to tell you about it. We are going to Drake Bay Greenleaf – look into it bc I think it would be right up yalls ally :)