2014 MONTHLY CHALLENGES

On the morning of New Year's day, we were walking out of a diner with Christine and Jacob. We think it was Christine who brought up the idea of doing different monthly challenges, like no eating out,  instead of year-long resolutions. We all were quickly excited and scrambled home to all write out ideas of things we'd each like to change and improve on, month by month. After an hour of discussion, we have come up with our list and are very excited to start these challenges together, both as couples and as an extended family.

JANUARY:
 Have meaningful Family Home Evening each week. (Read more about it here.) Complete with song, prayer, lesson, activity, and treat. On the last week of the month, we will all have an FHE together.

FEBRUARY:
Read a novel of our choice together as a couple. Matt and I are going to finally finish The Brothers Karamazov by Lev Tolstoy that we started when we were engaged.

MARCH:
 Daily scripture study, and share and write insights with each other throughout the month. Laura is planning on trying to finish the whole Book of Mormon in one month, which is about 17 pages a day, and Matt is planning on studying by topics.

APRIL:
 No blog reading or internet games. (Blog writing is fine though) Laura is also going to limit Facebook during this month, perhaps to 10 minutes a day. This we hope will cut down on internet time that is wasted, and gain some control over how we spend down time.

MAY:
 Cardio exercise for 30 minutes, 5 times a week. We want to improve our exercise habits and health overall.

JUNE:
 Go on a walk as a couple, every day. This sounds like a lot, but I can think of no better way to wind down on a summer evening than walking along the river with Matt. It will help us enjoy our time together and the great weather.

JULY:
Write in a journal, or take a photo, everyday. We want to document some of the fun things in our lives this summer through pictures and words, so we have them in the future to look back on.

AUGUST:
 Attend the temple as a couple weekly, and last week all go to do temple sealings. (Read more about it here.) We want to be better at making temple attendance a habit, and also to enjoy those blessings and feelings of peace together.

SEPTEMBER:
No dining out, instead try a new recipe and cook as a couple once each week. We want to learn to eat cheaper, healthier, and to make great foods at home together.

OCTOBER:
 No eating meat. We might change this one, come October, because we like monthly challenges that focus on doing instead of avoiding, but this is on the list for now. :)

NOVEMBER:
 Spend time developing a talent or skill each day. Matt will probably spend a little time working on art and painting, and I am going to spend time studying Korean or getting better with my sewing machine.

DECEMBER:
 Do something nice for the other each day, record, and share at the end of the month. We want to focus on giving service to the person who matters most to us, and to remember those things and share them with the other people that are important in our lives.