"Every accomplishment starts with the decision to try"- March 2014 Recap and Goals

The beginning of 2014 began with three long, freezing cold and snowy months. After the grueling winter we had, it felt like Spring would never arrive! I'm so excited to see the flowers starting to come up through the ground, the grass starting to turn green, and some 50-60 degree days!  

Here's a rundown of March 2014 for the Gardner's 

March started off with my 90 day review at NIFS. My manager had nothing but great things to say about my performance my first three months with this company! I was very excited to hear this. I LOVE my position as a Health Fitness Specialist as I'm gaining new experience in the field of Health and Fitness!



The second week of March was our first appointment at Midwest Fertility. To say I was nervous was an understatement. Luckily, we now have an amazing Doctor that Barry and I both really like and are working on a plan to hopefully conceive in the coming months!
 
The weekend of March 15th-16th was extremely busy! We headed out to Brownsburg High School around 9am on Saturday morning to help set up for the Riley Dance Marathon. We then traveled to cheer on the Brownsburg Bulldog basketball team at Regionals. After a disappointing loss, we headed back out to Brownsburg for a fun afternoon/evening at the Riley Dance Marathon. We ended the night by celebrating my Mom's birthday over at my parent's house :)
               

I Faced My Fear on March 19th and found out a possible cause for our infertility. Barry was off work for two weeks starting on Friday, March 21st-April 4th. We allowed ourselves some extra room in the budget (since we didn't go to Fort Myers with our friends) and had some fun shopping, going out to dinners, and staying the night at the Embassy Suites in downtown Indy.


Now a recap of the 2014 goals I set back in January. If you haven't read that yet, click here ---> 2014 Goals<----

1. Debt: We started our debt talk back in November 2013 when I ordered the free copy of Advocare's Debt Buster System. We never really worried about debt since we could pay our monthly payments and even had extra money over for vacations, trips, etc. What we didn't realize was how much money we were wasting each month on useless purchases that were keeping us from truly getting ahead in life and building wealth. 



After reading Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover, our entire thought process shifted. We now do a written budget each money where we spend every dollar before the month begins. (We aren't perfect, but getting better each month!) This helps us to stay on track and hit our debt payment goal each month.

 

Our debt snowball has been put on hold during February and March in order to save for our kitchen remodel project and a new driveway/front porch! After seeing so much progress on my student loans the first couple months and cutting my student loans in half, it has been hard to not see the amount decrease these past couple months. We were hoping to delay the driveway project, but Old Man Winter had different plans! I know that paying cash for both these projects will feel amazing, but I can't wait to get back on our Debt Snowball this month!  



2. Advocare: Building an Advocare business is simple, but not easy! We have an amazing team of over 90 champions and are currently earning a residual $1,000 a month! This has been a huge blessing! We are throwing every penny we bring in through Advocare at our debt. We love the products and take them daily. I love helping others reach their health, fitness, and/or financial goals with this company and look forward to many more amazing experiences in the coming months and years! 


3. Dogs: My baby/puppy fever may be at an all-time high. I had a dream the other night that Smokey gave birth to 10 puppies (LOL) First, Smokey is a male. Two, he is fixed. Three, I may be starting to lose it. Even though probably four times a week I ask Barry, "Can we get a puppy?" I know it's not the best time. As soon as we got another Weim, I would probably get pregnant and we would then have a new puppy and a newborn...
uh, no thanks! 
So for now, we are spoiling Smokey and enjoying our peaceful house. 

                      

4. Baby Making Plans: Last month we met with Dr. Will at Midwest Fertility in Carmel. Barry and I both really liked him and had a great conversation about all we have been through the past year and a half. He had some routine tests ordered and we found out that my thyroid levels were slightly elevated (2.89). He said he would like them between 1-2 to conceive and maintain a healthy pregnancy. I started a thyroid medication the next day and will have that rechecked this month. We should have a game plan for May after a couple more tests this month :) 



Are you still working towards the goals you set for 2014? What process have you made? What set backs have you encountered?
- Sarah 

" A goal without a plan is a wish" - February Goals: (Part II)

I can't believe February has come and gone! Yippee!! I think it's even going to hit over 50 degrees today and I'm sure everyone in Indiana is as excited as I am about that! Part Two of my goals may not have gone quite as well as Part One (Fail!) It would be much easier to not blog about this and move on to the next, but I'm not going to achieve every goal perfectly every month. Life happens. I'm glad I'm reviewing these monthly because I now know what I can do better in March and the rest of 2014 :)

In Part 1, I discussed my progress in my career, wifey, and fitness goals. Part 2 is going to focus on my spiritual, personal growth, and budget goals. Let's dive right in!

Spiritual Goals



1. Attend church weekly

I only attended church one time in February. Although one is better than none it's not good enough. I have been having a mental struggle with myself every weekend when it comes to going to church. (I'm about to be super honest here so if I offend you, I apologize, I'm just being honest about my feelings.) The thought of attending mass feels like a chore. It's like something on my list I have to do and cross off before moving to the next item. I don't like that. I want my experience to be something that moves me.. makes me think about my life and how I can improve it, etc. Barry and I have been discussing this topic and know we need to make an honest commitment to our faith. I hope to make some great progress in the coming months.

2. Nightly devotional with hubby: (5 nights a week)


This has yet to begin. Whoops! We do have a daily devotional book but I'm going to the library this weekend to find The Love Dare, a couple's devotional book that we can do together. I think this is a great way to reconnect as a couple after a long day and to continue to work on our marriage. My goal (that Barry doesn't yet know about lol) is to put the phones down in the evening and reconnect daily. I think it's so easy to just "go through the motions" day in and day out and before you know it a month, a year, or several years has just passed by in the blink of an eye. I don't want an average life or an average marriage. I want to push daily to get better in every aspect of my life and my marriage is more important than nearly anything else in my life. I can't wait to dig into this devotional with my hubby :)



Personal Growth


1. Read 2 new Leadership books a month (24 in 2014)

This month started off great in the reading department! I finished my first book in the first couple days of February called "Inside my Heart" by Robin McGraw, Dr. Phil's wife. I was ready for a change of pace from all the financial books I was reading and this was perfect. It was an easy read and was a wonderful book about her passion in life: raising her two boys.

                                                                 

I was working through a couple of other books that I just couldn't get into before I had to take them back to the library. My goal in March is to read three new books: one leadership, one on finance, and one for fun!

2. Volunteer once a month



My volunteer efforts also didn't happen in February. I had a goal to volunteer at Gleaner's at least one time every month, but the time I was set up this month, of course it snowed and they were closed. Not a great excuse, as I should have rescheduled, but I didn't. I have been in the works of volunteering at St. Christopher's in their nursery to help with the babies during the 10:30am service. I thought with all the stuff going on with our trying to have a baby, this might be helpful. Well, anyone who has struggled to conceive knows, you have good days and bad. I haven't yet been able to sign up but I am still keeping this in the back of my mind.

I would love more suggestions for volunteer ideas, especially as the weather is getting warmer! Some ideas I had were: Mini Marathon volunteering and/or dog walker at the Humane Society. Next month I'm so excited to volunteer at the Dave Ramsey event on April 24th! I will be able to watch the entire event for free just by volunteering to help set up and clean up after the event. Dave Ramsey has changed how we look at our money, debt, and what type of legacy we want to leave. This event will be amazing!





3. Make someones day, everyday.


I've learned that this goal is by far, one of the hardest and easiest. I love to go out of my way to make someone's' day better. This is as easy as giving someone a genuine smile and a "Hi, how's your day?" or giving someone a compliment. Just the other day at work I saw an older woman walking down the halls at Marquette, where I sometimes work. She had on a bright pair of snow boots that were very cute and stylist. I complimented her and she said, "Thank you! That made my day!" :)


I think my moment of the month was after finishing up a balance class at Marquette just last week. A gentlemen that I haven't seen before took my class, and sat right in the front row. . At the beginning of class he asked my name and said, "Can my balance get better if I come to class regularly?" I answered, "OF COURSE!" He was content with my answer and we started class. At the end of class, after focusing very intently on every move we did, he came up to me and said, "Do you know that you are the first person in a long time that told me I can actually get better at something." I was just silent. He continued and said," My hearing is getting bad, my eyes are getting worse, and everyday tasks seem to get more and more challenging. I have hope again that if I work hard, I will get better at my balance." That made MY day.. maybe my week :) Just another reminder that I love what I do and that I'm able to impact others lives in such a positive way.

 Budget Goals:

1. Hit our budget/debt payment goal every month.

At the end of February we hit a pivotal moment in our Debt Snowball plan. I received two emails from Sallie Mae stating a couple of my student loans had been paid in full! Now that is motivating! Sticking to a budget is very challenging, but we are working very hard to do so every month without giving up our social life or all our hobbies. February threw us a curve ball with our taxes so we did not put the full amount on our debt that we typically do. Our debt snowball is actually on hold right now as we save towards redoing our kitchen and driveway. We purchased nearly all the materials for our kitchen remodel last year, but didn't get to the project. This should be complete in a couple weeks! (I will post before and after pictures!) Our driveway has been something we have talked about replacing for over a year and this winter really did it in. It's cracked all up and down the sidewalk, porch, and actual driveway. This is money we both hate to spend, but know it needs to be done. I guess that's the fun part of being an adult ;)

I would love to hear from you all! What are you 2014 goals? Do you follow a written budget? What are you reading? What are you looking forward to this spring?

-xoxo-
Sarah

January Goals in Review. (Part 2)

If you read Part 1, first thank you. I am blogging mostly to keep myself accountable to my goals for the year, but if I inspire one person during this process, that's a double win in my book! Thanks for reading! I have lots of fun topics I'm excited to blog about in February- switching over to the health and fitness side- and less ME ME ME :)

In Part 1, I discussed my progress in my career, wifey, and fitness goals. Part 2 is going to focus on my spiritual, personal growth, and budget goals. Let's dive right in!

Spiritual Goals

1. Attend church weekly

We hit 50% of our goal this month, which is MUCH better than we have done in months past. We had been in a very bad habit of skipping church... and we had every excuse in the book. The weekend would start with "Let's go to 5:30pm mass on Saturday." Yet, Saturday would come and something "more important" would be going on and we would skip it. We would then say, "Let's go to noon mass tomorrow." Sure enough, we would both just be "busy" and would say "Well, we will go next week." RIGHT..

Finally, we said enough is enough. My goal in February is to be their every Saturday evening or Sunday morning.. No more excuses!  :) 

2. Nightly devotional with hubby: (5 nights a week)

We did this one night this month. Whoops!  The book has since sat right next to my side of the bed, left unopened. This literally takes 2 minutes to read and then we can discuss the topic for another couple minutes. This just takes commitment and discipline..(and putting down those iPhones!) I love the idea of doing a nightly devotional just to keep us talking; talking about new ideas, information, etc. We WILL do better in February.



Personal Growth
1. Read 2 new Leadership books a month (24 in 2014)

I read two amazing books this month... (OK, I read one and listened to the other on CD while driving to and from work.) Rich Dad, Poor Dad was a great break from all the Dave Ramsey I have been listening to/reading. It brought up a couple of great ideas, such as creating our own LLC and reiterated why we are working so hard this year (and years to come) to create a legacy for our family. More Than Enough was a very easy read. Each chapter built on the previous one and laid down layers of conviction to why we are doing exactly what we are doing in 2014. My favorite part of each chapter was when Dave Ramsey's wife, Sharon, would put in her two cents about the topic being discussed. This helped me to relate, being a wife and woman, to a successful and driven husband. Out of each of these books, I would recommend Rich Dad, Poor Dad. The topics he discusses are very different and creates a great discussion between friends, spouses, or parents.


                                 

2. Volunteer once a month

I have to admit that volunteering wasn't my idea. One of Dave Ramsey's main phrases is "Live like no one else, so that you can live and GIVE like no one else." This constant phrase has been in my mind these past three months and I couldn't ignore the fact that we haven't been giving. We are now giving back to our church and I started volunteering at Gleaners Food Bank. While we are working our way out of debt, I want to give as much of my time as possible to help those less fortunate, until we can give more financially.

My first experience at Gleaners was very humbling. I spent a very cold, Thursday afternoon in the food pantry. I had no idea what to expect.  I was asked to be in charge of the front door. I had to let in people when there was room in the pantry and I opened the door for them as they left. Anyone in the Midwest knows how cold and snowy our January has been, and this day was one of our worst. The pantry opened at 2pm, with a line of at least 50 people standing in the freezing cold, waiting to get in to receive their groceries for the week. It broke my heart to see people of all different ages, races, babies, grandparents, teenagers, single Moms and Dads, etc all just trying to put food on the table for their families. It was exactly the reminder I needed. My "problems" are not problems, but simply inconveniences. We never have had to worry about having food on the table, a roof over our head, or a warm bed to sleep in. It's easy to forget about the rest of the world when we live in such a self-involved world. I'm 100% guilty of this, but I'm working to focus my efforts on helping others and providing my time or talents to better someones life.

3. Make someones day, everyday.

This goal is tough. Think about it. If you woke up everyday and said to yourself "How can I make someones day?" I will tell you this... It's one of the most rewarding things we can do. Some of the great memories from this past month were watching my niece, Lauren, play basketball on a Sunday afternoon, taking my niece,Vaida,out to ice cream and shopping for her 7th birthday, and helping a couple on our Advocare team win a $500 Rookie Bonus. Some days it is more simple like smiling at someone who is having a bad day,  giving someone a genuine compliment, or going above and beyond for a co-worker, friend, spouse, or elderly neighbor.

Lauren and I after her basketball game! She scored 2 points! :)

 Budget Goals:

1. Hit our budget/debt payment goal every month.

We read the Total Money Makeover back in November 2013, but this month was our first month we stepped into "gazelle intensity" as Dave Ramsey refers to it. We start out each month with our written budget. Every dollar is given a name. (Mortgage, groceries, debt, etc) This has helped our marriage, bank accounts, and sanity. Money and budgeting are now exciting topics in our house. I look forward to our chats every Sunday. There is no better feeling than seeing my student loan debt decreasing month after month. Even with a couple unforeseen expenses, (what do you mean I can't use unlimited data on my phone? oops!) we hit our debt payment goal! When you have a plan and know what you are working towards and why, the drive comes from deep within. We know exactly when we will be out of debt, therefore every month is one month closer to being able to scream, "WE'RE DEBT FREEEE!!!" (Anyone else obsessed with watching these videos from the Podcast?)
 Month 3 is a definite win in my book!

2. Use envelope system to stay on track for all purchases (expect gas and Costco.)

Every month of using the envelope system gets better. The first we weren't use to using cash and would frequently forget to bring them with us to the store or out to dinner. The second month we over-budgeted, and the third month seemed just right. We have an envelope for groceries, eating out, house items, miscellaneous, and a swear one more that I can't think of at the moment! We use our debit card for gas and Costco, but have an allotment for each of these categories. It's exciting to me to see how far I can stretch each envelope and come up with creative recipes, date ideas, etc! :) 

I would love to hear from you all! What are you 2014 goals? Do you follow a written budget? What are you reading? How do you give back to your community? :) Have a great weekend! Bring on February!

2014. Debt, Advocare, Dogs, and Making a Baby :)

 

Most people begin the New Year celebrating with friends, excited about leaving a year in the past and ready for a fresh new beginning. It's a time of reflection, goals, and resolutions. It's a cleansing time, really, like an artist looking at a blank white canvas ready to paint with an array of colors and brushes. When you are so hopeful and can't help but feel like, "This is the month.. This is MY month" the let down never gets easier...

 

 I had already planned how I would tell Barry. I should know by December 30th so it was perfect timing. We would be at Dawson's with all our friends while I "pretended" to sip on champagne throughout the evening. I can picture being in the back room, dancing, singing, and laughing... just waiting for the countdown to begin. It would start "5,4,3, 2... "I'm pregnant!! HAPPY NEW YEAR!"I pictured the look on his face and his excitement knowing how long we have hoped and prayed for this moment. 

Instead, we both struggled through the evening, trying to put a smile on our face, and enjoy the evening. We left an hour or so after midnight and drove home in silence. I knew he was hurting and as he knew I was, yet nothing either of us could say would make things better. We ended up in tears soon after walking into our house and just let it out. All the frustrations, anger, disappointment that was built up over the past 14 months finally came out.  We realized how much we tried to hide our feelings from each other in order to protect one another from hurting even more and vowed to keep our communication going strong. This journey will only continue to bring us closer as a couple and stronger in our marriage.  while we tried to continue to look on the positive side of things and keep looking ahead to a New Year. 

 

After our much needed talk on New Year's Eve we came up with many positive thoughts/ideas to focus on in 2014:

1. Debt. We never saw our debt as a problem or an issue. I always thought it was "normal" to have a mortgage, car payment, or student loans, yet since reading Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover we now have a better idea as to what we want our future to look like.  We have a high goal of paying off $60,000 this year, which include my student loans (Boiler Up!) and both of our vehicles. This enables us to sit down every week and discuss our progress while giving us a focus/distraction and will create a better future for our family. 

 

2.  Advocare. This gives me more time to build my Advocare business to the level I need to replace my full time salary. We are currently at the Silver level, but a Gold level would represent the option for me to become a work at home Mom which is something I believe I'm going to want very much. One of the things I love most is that I get to help so many people achieve better health, income, and see them grow into amazing leaders. 2014 is going to be an amazing year for our business.

 

3. Dogs. I warned Barry not long ago, "You either give me a baby or another dog!" LOL Smokey wasn't adjusting well to my new schedule since I started full-time with NIFS and we are thinking he needs a buddy! This is still in the very early stages of planning so please check back for updates on this decision. P.S. How cute is this?!

 

4. Baby making Plans: We are currently in the 3rd cycle of 50mg of Clomid. My doctor doesn't think anything is wrong with either one of us and thinks the Clomid will help give us the boost we need to conceive. We shall see!