It’s that time again. Time to start a new year and set some goals!

I’m not a fan of vague resolutions like losing weight or getting in shape. I like to come up with a list of some specific goals that are attainable and help me stay focused through the year.

Last year I didn’t even post my goals until March because the first two months of the year I was so sick with morning sickness I could hardly function.

This year I’m a mother of three little ones and working on improving my health. I’m not searching for a new diet or the latest fad. I know all the basics and what works for my body. This year it’s about digging deeper into many aspects of health (for myself and my family), relationships and my writing.

So here we go. I’ve got a lot I want to do and learn in 2015. This is a longer list of goals than last year. But many of them are related, and there is so much to learn!! After my recent dentist visit and discovering I have seven cavities I started to research solutions and have already learned a lot. But there is more to go. Most importantly I want to see what God has planned for me and how He wants to use the gifts and talents He has given me.

FOOD/HEALTH

This year I want to really dig deep with my knowledge of nutrition and health. Plus I want to put what I learn into practice and continue to teach my children about true health.

1. Learn more about natural remedies – essential oils, herbs, homeopathy

2. Focus on properly preparing foods (soak, sourdough) and incorporating ferments. I will be trying some recipes from Nourishing Traditions and making some new ones. This also involves understanding different varieties of grains and how each one should be prepared as it relates to phytic acid content. I will be looking into possibly using rye, spelt and kamut and making a sourdough starter again. This will be a big step to decide if we stay 100% gluten free or not. None of us is allergic to wheat/gluten or has celiac disease. And after a long stretch of being 100% gluten free for healing we might be ready to add some in to add nutrients to our diet.

I have actually been in prayer about this for a while (about what direction to head with my kids) and God has brought all this to my attention. It may be time for some changes and getting back to a full traditional diet.  This does not mean I won’t make plenty of gluten free things. But it would mean adding more variety to our diet.

Nourishing Traditions does not promote a gluten free diet for good health for everyone. It tells of numerous cultures that thrive on a variety of grains. Even the GAPS diet book says this in regards to pregnant and breastfeeding women: “If your digestion is normal you can have potatoes, sourdough bread and whole grains cooked at home in moderate amounts. Remember that all these carbohydrates must be consumed with good amounts of natural fats to slow down their digestion and improve their nutritional value.”

I went down the gluten free path to deal with infertility and hypothyroidism for myself and to deal with behavioral issues and allergies for my kids. But it might be time to expand our diets now and see how it improves or impairs our health. More experimenting.

I am a bit nervous about this one, but I feel like it’s the direction God is leading me. So I’m moving forward trusting that He is in control and knows what we need.

3. Perfect my gluten free bread recipe and create gluten free sourdough – this will depend on how my decision about gluten ends up. But I will probably still do it so we can have variety.

4. Understand vitamin and mineral deficiencies. Restore levels for myself and my kids. This will include taking digestive enzymes and/or stomach acid, fermented cod liver oil and fish oil. It will also include making sure my kids get probiotics, ferments and nutrient dense foods (like butter, coconut oil, egg yolks and liver) most days. It is also related to properly prepared grains.  When I was sick I got out of the habit of preparing grains the right way, and now I’m paying the price. I am rereading Nourishing Traditions and GAPS to better understand this. I will also do other research. I would love to read Cure Tooth Decay and Nourishing Broth. I think they will be on the top of my birthday list! This NT book for children would be wonderful for my big girl! Part of my research on grains is related to making sure my kids are not deficient. Sometimes I wonder if gluten free is limiting their intake of certain nutrients like vitamin B. Also, the lack of proper preparation of even gluten free grains has not been good for them.

5. Study environmental allergies and find solutions for my daughter to breathe and sleep better so she can focus better.  This will include looking into things like chemicals, chlorine, dust and mold. It will also be related to my study of vitamin and mineral deficiency.

6. Continue to work on healing for my son’s allergies and continue introducing foods.

7. Work on healing my cavities. Again, this is related to vitamin/mineral deficiency, properly preparing grains and boosting my nutrient supplies while breastfeeding.

8. Start solids for my little one. I’ve got a couple months yet, but I’m already thinking about first foods.  I will stick to grain and sugar free for the first year and focus on very nutrient dense foods. I will also be watching for signs of allergies and see if she tolerates dairy.

9. As my little one gets older I need to focus on getting more sleep again. My metabolism has been suffering lately. My temps have dropped and are usually in the 97’s. I need to get back to 98.

10. Cut back on sugar, especially for my children. I think it will help their overall health immensely.

 

FAMILY/FRIENDS

1. Continue homeschool preschool with my three year old and get him ready for Spanish immersion preschool in the fall.  He has already been making such great progress in his learning over the last few months. I know he’ll be ready in September.

2. Read more. I have already started this in the last couple months, but I want to do it even more. Most days I read while I walk or bike if my little one is taking a good nap. This will also include spending more time reading the Bible and having more quite time with God.

3. Continue to focus on creating deeper relationships. This pertains to my husband and my kids. They are my priority. But this is also about making friends and showing my children how to interact with friends. I can’t expect them to understand how to behave in social situations if they never see their parents interact with friends.  This will include playdates and having friends over.

4. Simplify. This was a big one last year, and I need to keep it going this year. After another generous Christmas I want to clean and donate. Part of this is related to my daughter’s allergies. The less stuff sitting around means less dust collecting and the easier it is for me to keep the house clean. Plus with a little one that will be on the move very soon I am going to need to keep the floors cleaner.

WORK

I already have a lot of ideas for my blog in the coming year. Here are some possibilities:

more series, a newsletter, more infertility and allergy related resources, more research posts (grains, dust/mold allergies, vitamins and minerals), product reviews and giveaways, introducing first foods posts, postpartum nutrition, improving my photos and using my new dishes, working with Stonyfield Yogurt, continuing to write for Real Food and Health magazine, possible other contributor opportunities, update the look of my blog and update old photos/posts.

Of course there will be plenty of delicious new recipes as always! I’d love to hear what you want to see as well!

And every time I read through my list of goals I think of something new. So I’m sure I won’t run out of ideas as the year goes on.

WORD OF THE YEAR

The word that keeps coming to mind lately is GRATITUDE. It’s something I need to work on and something I need to teach my children. It relates to my goal of simplifying. My kids just got a ton of stuff for Christmas…and the next day my daughter said she was bored. That is a big red flag for me. We have too much and my kids don’t really understand gratitude.

Gratitude is also the antidote for anxiety.  And that is something both my daughter and I struggle with. This really stood out to me when I read the book 1,000 Gifts.

So as individuals and as a family I would like to focus on gratitude this year.

This is my starting point for 2015. I have a lot to research and experiment with. I have kids that are growing and need different things at the stages they are in. I pray that God will give me the guidance to meet their needs, the patience to allow them to learn and make mistakes and the focus to give them the attention they need. I want to be grateful each day for each person in my life and for the simple things.

I don’t know all that God has in store. But I do know his plans are perfect and beyond anything I could imagine. So here I go. I’m ready to keep making progress in 2015.

How about you? What are your goals for this year?