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| Photo by BH photo & design |
2020 was quite the year of life changes for everyone but 2021 is going to be another year of change for my family. We’re expecting our first baby in just two short weeks so I want to do a better job of documenting this season of my life. Since August, Josh and I have been trying to be more intentional about creating rhythms that will help us to grow into a strong family. One of those that we started this year was a weekend Family Summit. This time it was just the two of us but we hope that even as our family grows in number and age we’ll be able to make this a yearly tradition.
This year we followed a guide from Abraham’s Wallet which led us through four stages of reviewing, dreaming, planning and consecrating. A couple weeks ago we had a “staycation” for our Family Summit, next year we may decide to get away. We had a lot of fun just enjoying restaurants in our town and having a relaxing weekend together. On Friday we spent the evening reviewing 2020, we talked about what was good and bad spiritually, relationally, physically, intellectually, and financially.
In our review we determined that through a “bad year” God redeemed the time to let us grow closer to each other, our family, and make new friends. He grew us closer to His image through the love of our small group and the truth of His word. He carried us through the pain of loss and blessed us with great joy awaiting our little girl’s arrival. The Lord was faithful even when we weren’t - protecting our health and finances in a year where both could have been lost. 2020 was a journey for sure.
On Saturday we got to dream! The rule was that we weren’t allowed to tear each other down in any dreams but instead to simply listen. We went through the same five capitals: spiritual, relational, physical, intellectual, and financial. We dreamed through each, considering what we should stop, start and keep doing. At the end we summarized a vision for 2021: To start a deep relationship with our daughter while still having a relationship with our small group. And for us to grow in oneness through all things.
It’s a pretty simple idea for the next year mainly because we know our lives are going to be wrapped around a sweet new baby, we don’t want to commit to too many new things.
Sunday was the day of planning. Through our review we identified things that didn’t go well, and in the dreaming phase we envisioned ways to make those things better. I’ve listed some of our family goals and most of my personal goals for the year. The guide led us to create a weekly and yearly calendar to make space for these goals to be attainable. I hope this list may give you some ideas for your family or just for yourself. Leave me a comment below, what are your goals for 2021?
Spiritual
Meet weekly with our small group
Read God’s Word daily
Relational
Continue our weekly family meeting
Plan a trip with my parents
One lunch date with a friend each month
Host a game night with friends each month
Physical
Make a weekly meal plan
Go on a weekly family walk
Walk Ella (our dog) twice a week
Workout 3 times a week (this may look different in postpartum)
Intellectual
Read 4 books
Work on a creative project each month
Financial
Weekly and monthly budget review together
Track grocery expenses while shopping to stay on budget
Establish a 3 to 6 month emergency fund
Set up a more intentional retirement account
Start a blessing fund for our daughter
Begin to pay off our house at a faster pace
