Summer 2017 Goals

I don’t think I’ve ever posted goals on my blog, but there is a first time for everything. I am pretty goal-oriented, but summer has less structure, so I thought it would be a good idea to write everything down!

Travel:

Decide on activities for our Maine babymoon.
Chris and I booked the flights and all of the places we are staying on the trip, so now it’s time for me to fill in the blanks with everything I want to do. I’m trying to keep this trip a little more relaxing than what we usually do, but I’m too much of a planner not to book a boat trip or two!

Baby:

Finish registering.
Chris had the day off on Monday (he’s scheduled to work 22 days straight, and his vacation starts over on July 1, so he took two random days off this week), so we put a big dent into our registry. We made most of the decisions on the big products, but I need to make a final decision on the bedding (the one I really want is pretty expensive, so I’m looking for alternative). Mamas, anything I need to make sure is on the registry?

Sign up for a class/hospital tour.
Chris was really confused when I told him I wanted to do a class and a hospital tour because I’m giving birth at one of the hospitals he works in, but he forgets that he has a lot of call around the time the baby will be born, so there is no guarantee he’ll be home. I’ll just be happy if he’s able to make it to the delivery!

Buy more flowy dresses.
I’m finally getting to that point in my pregnancy where I’m showing, and my clothes are getting tight. I don’t want to spend a lot of money on maternity clothes, so I’m hoping I can get away with buying flowy dresses since it’s summer and will basically be summer in Texas until baby boy is born.

Go swimming more often.
I’m also getting to the point where my back is starting to hurt quite a bit. My mom has been encouraging me to come over to my parents’ house to swim (we have a pool at our apartment complex, but it’s even better to have a private option). I’m planning to take her up on that offer and see if it helps with the muscle aches.

Pick out a name!
I’ve mentioned in the past if it was up to me, we would have a name by now. Chris keeps telling me “we have time,” but the planner in me is going crazy. It also doesn’t help that I get asked at least once a day if we’ve picked out a name. This goal should really read force Chris to make a decision.

Life:

Figure out birthday and anniversary gifts for Chris. 
Obviously, our big gift to each other this year is our trip to Maine, but giving gifts is definitely one of my love languages, so I definitely want to come up with a few small gifts for Chris. It’s just so crazy our Super Week is less than a month away!

Finish organizing our apartment.
Chris and I unpacked our apartment pretty quickly, but I do have a few things left to organize, and I really need to do it before the baby gets here. I’m pretty sure if I don’t, it’s never going to get done!

Make my own ice cream.
Blogging for Books sent me Food52 Ice Cream and Friends, and I am so excited to attempt to make my own ice cream! I’ve never tried to before, but this recipe book has so many delicious options. I’m especially interested in trying to make a chocolate hazelnut baked Alaska and cherry-mint snow cones! This book is so perfect for summer, and I think I’m going to buy a few to include as part of housewarming gifts for some of my friends!

Reading:

Read at least 20 books by the end of September.
This might be a little ambitious, but I’ve finally really gotten into reading again. Since my last book post, I’ve read eight books and will probably be done with a few more before it’s time to write the next one. I’m three books ahead of schedule in my goal of 100 books this year, but I’m hoping to get even more ahead because I’m not sure how much I’ll be able to read towards the end of the year!

Start and finish Erin’s Book Challenge in July.
Along the same lines, I want to attempt to read all the books I selected for Erin’s challenge in July. The challenge is ten books, so it’ll help me get ahead, and I like challenging myself to read even more than I have been.

Blogging:

Get back to blogging three times a week.
These last few months have made it hard for me to blog, but I want to get back on schedule. I’ve really missed writing and commenting on everyone’s blogs (not to mention responding to comments. I promise I will get to that ASAP!). The funny thing is when I do write, I have so much to say. I mean, even this post about goals is getting close to 900 words. Chris has been working seven days a week lately, and I thought it would give me more time to write, but somehow, it hasn’t. I’m really determined to get back on track, though!

Write and edit more travel posts.
I really enjoyed putting together my Chimney Rock travel post this week, and there are so many more I want to write! While Chris is working on the weekends, I really want to sit down and get several travel posts ready.

Have posts ready in my draft folder.
This goal is a little laughable because even when I was blogging all the time I barely had posts in my draft folder, but I really want to get ahead before the baby gets here, so hopefully I can make it happen!

What are some of your goals for this summer?