January 2026 goals

This, below, is one of my new favorite views. There’s something about our larger, lower kitchen island (peninsula?) that draws the kids in, and I reliably field one, if not two or three, requests for an assignment while cooking dinner each night. On this evening, Annie was trimming green beans while Shep minced garlic and I pulled together the rest of the chicken piccata meatballs. (Shep was so proud of himself for learning a new task and using a “big knife” that he had me take a video to show John later.) More of this in January, please.

On my calendar:
— June’s tenth birthday. I love her so.
— At least five meals with friends, at our home or theirs. Starting strong with our hospitality goal despite raging illness on the East Coast.
— Seeing the Charlotte Hornets play. This was John’s big Christmas gift; we’re both excited to attend our first NBA game and see Duke favorite Kon Knueppel in action.

What I’m loving right now:
— We saw David in theatres with friends and loved it! The kids have been asking to listen to the soundtrack ever since.
— We bought our first smart plug after realizing it was nearly impossible to plug and unplug our Christmas tree lights in our new set-up and — wow. Saying “Alexa, please turn off the tree lights” feels like magic. My kind of technology :)
— John gave me this navy sweater jacket for Christmas and it’s my new favorite thing to wear. Sometimes I’ll layer a white tee underneath, but it can also be worn as-is, buttoned up. Ladylike but also somehow casual enough for weekday mom life?

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!

— Once again the Brick was far and away the bestseller of everything I shared last month! I am so, so grateful that so many of you took the leap and feel confident you won’t regret it. If you need a refresher on what the Brick is, I’ve got you. Get 10% off with this link!
— I feel like we all must be wearing matching undergarments at this point?! The Eby Relief bra has been a hit with friends of all shapes and sizes and is what I exclusively wear right now.
— This eucalyptus + rosemary counter spray continues to bring all of us joy.
— The Amazing Generation. No surprise, it’s a no. 1 NYT bestseller (YAY!!!).
— My favorite new Christmas decoration, our beloved window candles! They’re a great weight and the dusk-to-dawn sensor works perfectly. I plan to keep mine up until my birthday, at the end of February!

Last month on The Connected Family:
— Here’s when NOT to give your child a phone | One small shift can make a huge difference
— The book that changed the game, this time for the next generation | My review of Jonathan Haidt and Catherine Price’s ‘The Amazing Generation’
— How to love winter | And a few ideas for keeping everyone happily occupied during school break
— 2025 Year in Review | Milestones, most popular posts, top commenters, and more

What I read in December:
— Code Name Helene | World War II books can feel a dime a dozen (and rightly so), but I hadn’t read in this genre for a bit and Code Name Helene was a great return. I love that Ariel Lawhon uses her books to elevate the stories of incredible real women from history and Nancy Wake, a daring socialite spy, is no exception. (I do think I preferred The Frozen River just a bit because of its less-common time period!)
— Confronting Christianity | Combining research, personal stories, and careful biblical study, Rebecca McLaughlin’s apologetics offering explores 12 of the questions that keep people from considering faith in Christ. As Christians, we are meant to “be prepared to give a defense to explain the hope that we have” and I do think this book helped me to do that.
— Real Americans | This novel, an “exhilarating exploration of American identity” that spans three generations, reminded me of one of my favorite novels from last year, Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. If you enjoy twisting narratives that expose a bit more with each loop, this one’s for you.

Reading list for 2026 coming very soon!

Revisiting my December goals:
Edit Sheptember, Volume 7 (No! Very bummed about this but I am forging on. I have now chosen a song, which is often the hardest part!)
Finish the kids’ book ornaments
Send care packages to our college gals
Finalize plans for June’s tenth birthday
Make progress on a big birthday project for June
Carry out our gifting plans with joy
Prepare well in advance for our post-Christmas travel, so that Christmas Eve and Day can be languorous and peaceful
Execute our end-of-year generosity plans
Savor the Christmas season

January goals:
— Finalize details and selections for our master bathroom and built-in projects
— Set up our 2026 budget. We are considering doing something other than the Google Doc set up we’ve used for the last 16 years – will report back if we like it!
— Print 2024 + 2025 Instagram photos and photos for our Christmas album
— Finalize the itinerary for June’s tenth birthday trip
— Brainstorm my affirmations and phrases for each family member
— Learn all of the first jump rope routine
— Register Annie for kindergarten
— Buy new glasses
— Attend to the first clutter spot: the piles in our bedroom
— Finish going through my phone screenshots. I kept up with this daily practice for most of the year but dropped off in the last quarter; I want to finish strong because it was so helpful!

As a reminder, many of these are drawn from my 2026 PowerSheets goals!

Grateful for you, friends! Please feel free to comment on anything I’ve mentioned here or anything else on your mind!

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