Somehow it has been three months since my last “goals update.” The routines of my life have changed quite a bit since then, so I figured it was time for another analysis of my resolutions.

Reading: Truthfully, this habit has taken a bit of a hit since I started working again in mid-April. My pace has slowed because most of my time at home is usually spent cooking, cleaning, or placating one of my kids. That being said, I am still working my way through a book or two per month. I’m hoping to get in some extra reading time this holiday weekend!

Budgeting: Again, now that I’m working (and hence earning a paycheck), the approach to this goal has changed a bit. I’m still tracking our grocery expenditures, but I’ve slacked on tallying meals out, and I’m certainly not calculating the cost per meal for our dinners at home anymore. I also maintain a budget for clothing for myself, and I’ve spent more in the past month or so to purchase work apparel, but I’m staying reasonable with my spending.

Breastfeeding: As I mentioned in my last Nathan update, we’ve starting supplementing a bit with formula with mixed results. Nathan is not a huge fan of formula, but he’s gotten to the point that he’ll tolerate it when it’s apparent that the boob is not an option. I would estimate that he still gets about 75% of his kcalories from breast milk. My supply of breast milk seems to have diminished a bit when I started working, but I’m not freaking out about it. Despite my perfectionist tendencies, “doing the best I can” is good enough for me right now.

Fitness-ing: This is the one goal on which I’ve made significant progress! I have considerably less time to exercise now, which forces me to amp up the intensity. I run (outside!) most days of the week and finish up with some dumbbell/body weight exercises. I kinda sorta have a waist again, which is exciting. I’ve also lost a few pounds; this morning’s victory was fitting into a pair of pants that I haven’t worn since 2017! I attribute my success on this goal to three things: 1) not having access to a kitchen full of food all day, 2) walking at least 14 blocks each day between the parking lot and my office, and 3) experimenting with the State of Slim approach (described here). I might devote a separate post to my experience with this diet. Most importantly, my body is recognizable to me again, which has not been the case for the past year or so.

Generally, I’m still actively pursuing the goals I set out in January, but I’m not devoting a lot of time to them on a daily basis either. Just by writing this post, I think I will be more mindful of the decisions related to each of these four areas of my life. Hopefully slow and steady progress will continue through the summer…