19 Goals in 2019: 1st Quarter Check-In

Friends! It's been so long! My sweet hubby gave me a kid-free Saturday afternoon to spend studying, so of course I used my study break to throw together a quick blog post. My second and final licensing exam is scheduled for May 6, so these last few weeks are 24/7 crunch time. I'm using this weekend to finish reading my textbook and from here on out I'll be taking practice exams before the big day.

I've been working on becoming registered at my job since I started back in June and I honestly don't even know what I'll do with myself once I'm done studying, but suffice to say that I am very much looking forward to some actual free time. Since we're already halfway into April, I thought I'd take a minute to check-in on my 2019 bucket list progress!

Here are my 19 Goals for 2019:

PROFESSIONAL
Now that I am a full-time working Mama again (in a brand new-to-me industry), there is so much professional development for me to conquer over the next year.

1. Pass my registration exams. IN PROGRESS. I've already made it halfway through this goal because I passed my first exam on December 31, 2018. My second exam is scheduled for next month, so wish me luck!

READING
In my heart of hearts, I will always be a bookworm. But with everything I have going on, I'm not putting any pressure on myself to participate in book challenges or spend all my spare time with my nose in a book. I've been reading as it makes sense to and I read the books that I want to read.

1. Read 35 books. IN PROGRESS (8/35) Recent faves have been The Road Back To You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery and Educated (go read it, immediately!)
2. Read 3 books published before 1990. (0/3) Not even close.

FINANCIAL
2019 is the year I really want to dig our heels in to making some progress with our debt snowball. These are just a few of the things I want to accomplish this year.

1. Increase my credit score by 5%. IN PROGRESS Because I was an independent contractor for part of last year, we had a HUGE tax bill and I was late making a student loan payment. I started out the year making great progress, but because of that late payment my credit score has gone down even more, unfortunately. 
2. Save up enough to buy a minivan in cash. IN PROGRESS ($1,150). I dipped into our savings because of the aforementioned tax bill, so I'm not where I hoped I'd be four months into the year.
3. Contribute at least $500 each to Charlie and Crosby's 529 college savings accounts. IN PROGRESS ($100/$1,000) 
4. Pay off remaining credit card debt. IN PROGRESS (2/3) We paid Chuck's second credit card off in January and our third will be paid off in just a couple more months!!
5. Pay off remaining medical bills. IN PROGRESS We have a couple smaller bills that will also hopefully be paid off in a few more months.

HEALTH

I want to continue working on living a healthier lifestyle with manageable and realistic goals for my busy schedule.

1. Go to the gym at least 2 mornings per week. Nope.
2. Run a half marathon. It's scheduled for July 20, but I haven't even begun training yet. Eek!
3. Attend yoga class at least once per month. Also, nope.
4. Plan one vegetarian meal per week. IN PROGRESS. I've been doing this pretty informally. I haven't been tracking, but I've been decent about eating vegetarian a couple times per week, even if it's just eggs and toast.

HOME

I love, love, love my house and making it more of a home is one of my favorite things to do.

1. Finish converting upstairs room to a fourth bedroom. We're having our friend install the window that will "officially" make this a bedroom in a couple weeks!
2. Convert downstairs bedroom into an office/guest room. Not yet.
3. Remodel downstairs half bathroom into a full bathroom. Not even close.
4. Landscape the front yard. Nope. Nope. Nope.

LIFE

These are a few of the random, miscellaneous things that I'd like to see happen in 2019 for me and my little family.

1. Adopt a four-legged friend. I'll be honest- this probably won't happen this year. With both of us working out of town, as much as I may want a doggo, it would be unfair to get one and make it spend its days at home alone all day.
2. Take a kid-free weekend getaway. Nothing planned as of yet, but we still have time.
3. Take a photography or cooking class. COMPLETE! Whoo! One off my list! Back in January, our favorite family photographer offered an Intro to Photography class and I was so excited to kick off the new year by completing an item on my bucket list. It wound up being just the two of us and I was so appreciative of the time we spent together. I haven't had much time to practice, but at the very least, I can now take pictures in manual mode!

1st QUARTER GOALS COMPLETED: 1
2019 TOTAL GOALS COMPLETE: 1