SMART Goals: February, 2014

I didn’t meet all of my January goals, but that wasn’t really the point. I am a person driven by actionable goals, and my daughter has taught me to slow down and enjoy the journey. Things seem to have progressed extremely slowly during this relocation, and I go to bed at night feeling like I haven’t “done enough.” However, I have to remind myself that we just moved two months ago, and everything will sort itself out. Deep breath.

Also, I have been having a particularly hard time with our toddler lately. She has been experiencing separation anxiety due to the recent changes, and she’s been very clingy. The daily tantrums and tears continue to be challenging. It’s difficult to see her so frustrated and insecure. The last couple of weeks have not produced my proudest parenting moments. I e-mailed my mom the other day for moral support. She said, “Patience. Love you. Does yoga help you and the little one?” She was right. She has always been the stable rock who gets me back to what’s important. I need to spend more time cuddling my girl and creating a stable environment.

So my February focus will be to continue to settle into our new life in New England and adjust to our new lifestyle. Though the snow-covered trees and bright sunshine are breathtaking, we are ready for some warmer weather so that we can get outside and enjoy nature. Speaking of which, our highlight yesterday was watching four deer walking through our backyard. How cool is that?!

Can you spot the deer?!

My SMART goals for February

This year, I’m teaming up with ten other bloggers to write our monthly goals in the hopes of inspiring you to write your goals, too. Please join us, tell us your goals, and share your successes and failures. Here’s to our collective growth and making the world a better place!

This month, I will:

HAPPINESS:

Celebrate Valentine’s Day with my husband and daughter. Connect and laugh with them, cuddle and love them.
Spend quality time with my daughter and help her through this difficult time in her life. Read at least two recommended parenting books to get some fresh ideas on how to effectively parent a toddler while developing her self-esteem and security.

HEALTH:

Reinvest my time in a daily yoga practice for myself and with my daughter, even if only for a few minutes a day.
Find a new yoga studio and attend at least one class.
Jog around the neighborhood at least twice a week.

PASSION:

Embrace this month’s theme of Self Esteem (“Svadhyaya” in Sanskrit) by not only writing about the topic on the Kids Yoga Stories website, but also thinking of ways to build my daughter’s sense of self.
Share a Valentine’s Day kids yoga class plan on the Kids Yoga Stories website, along with some recommended love and friendship books.
Write a survey requesting feedback from our community on ways to improve the KYS books. Aim to receive at least ten responses.
Send gratitude to at least ten people who have supported the KYS journey.
Complete the draft copy of the next Kids Yoga Stories book, an African safari counting book.

Our new editor of Kids Yoga Stories!

As always, I would love to hear your feedback. Please e-mail me at giselle at kidsyogastories dot com with your suggestions for improvement, either for the yoga stories or website. Help me deliver high-quality content that assists you with bringing happiness, health, and global education to children everywhere.