Do you set goals for yourself each year? I'm honest about loving to set goals for myself, both personally and professionally, and setting goals to make our home a place we adore is no different.
In the past I always set a few goals at the start of the year and then tried to get them done in a rather haphazard way. I wasn't very accountable for making a plan and checking things off. So this year I'm going to do things a little differently.
In my personal life, I know I can handle three top goals a day, and I only give myself three top goals a month. So I've decided to choose just three top goals from my home to-do list and re-evaluate every three months. It sounds slow on paper, but I think it will actually help me reach them faster and more efficiently. I won't feel overwhelmed or lose focus. At least that's the hope!
Thoughts on My Old House & Making Goals There
I thought I'd share how I did on my goals in 2019. Several items had been on my goals list for years, and I think I understood why once we moved.
First reason: I never could bring myself to tackle major renovations because I knew we wouldn't be there long. I was always watching the market for just the right house to move into, so it was always on my mind. I hated the idea of pouring a ton of money into a house and then leaving it.
For example, I'd wanted to upgrade the kitchen in our old house from the day we moved in. But I never thought we'd stay for the long haul. I shared more in my moving story, but we bought our previous home as a foreclosure to get into the neighborhood we wanted.
Second reason: I felt the renovations I wanted would over-build the neighborhood. Looking back, after seeing the market and which homes sold fastest on our street, I think it would have been fine. But I didn't want to sink a pile of money in, sell the house, and never recoup a fraction of what we spent.
I know there's a lot to be said for fixing up your home so you enjoy it while you live there, even if it's not forever, but I just couldn't do it.
Now that we're in a home we plan to stay in for decades, I'm completely invested in making major changes. And we don't have to worry about over-building this neighborhood, because we're surrounded by much nicer homes than ours. It won't be hard to recoup the money we put into this house.
Looking Back at 2019's Home Goals
These are the goals I shared at the start of 2019, and I give myself a grade each year. This year's comments are in italics.
1. Living Room. Grade D-
I'm definitely going to build that coffee table and end table this year. I bought a table saw on sale at Christmas and will put it to good use. I'd love a new couch this year too, but we'll see if it fits the budget!
- Swap out the rug. (I bought this "vintage" distressed rug in 2018.)
- Buy chairs to flank the fireplace. {As you can see in my summer mantel post. [above]}
- Build a coffee table – Nope, I never took the table saw out of the box.
- Build an end table – Never did this either!
- I'd love to replace our couch too, but I didn't see that happening in 2018.
2020 Thoughts: That table saw is still sitting in its box in my garage. I WILL unbox it and use it in 2020. And we DID buy a new couch last summer, but it took so long to be delivered that we had it sent to the new house in December 2019.
2. Fireplace. Grade F
- Freshen it up with a reclaimed beam mantel
- Add some architectural details
- Do something about the beige tile.
2020 Thoughts: I didn't want to do anything drastic to the fireplace since I planned to sell the house. I'm glad I left it alone for the next homeowners to dress up and make their own.
3. Girls' Bathroom. Grade: A+
We only have two bathrooms in our home: the master bath and the girls'/guest bath. I painted the cabinets in there and decorated it several years ago, but I never loved the color scheme AT ALL. It's just not me, though I was trying to use some prints I got from my great-grandmother. I'd like to make it pink, girly, and fun for the girls, so a mini makeover is swirling around in my head!
- Paint the walls
- Change out the art
- Add some cute girly touches!
2020 Thoughts: I can say I nailed this one with a complete makeover! I wanted to give this bathroom some personality, and I did! It was my highlight project of 2019, and I'm super proud of how it turned out. Now to make the girls' new bathroom just as fun!
4. Guest Bedroom & Office. Grade F
Goodness. This room has been the slowest-moving project. I finally have a desk I love and a great office chair, but I'm still lacking major storage. We also moved the bed out of here so my youngest daughter could sleep in it after we took her out of the crib. I've always wanted a day bed with a trundle in the guest room, and I'm trying to fit that purchase into the budget this year. Fingers crossed we'll get it soon!
- Build or buy a desk with a built-in filing cabinet. (Done in late 2016. It's from Ballard Designs Outlet, and there's a similar one from Pottery Barn. You can see more of it in this post.)
- Add curtains to the office. (done!)
- Paint the office walls. (Done! I painted them Simply White by Benjamin Moore.)
- Buy a real office chair. (I did that in January 2019! I got this one for a great deal, and it's super comfortable. I love it!)
- Replace the full bed with a day bed and trundle in the office/guest room. (I've had my eye on this day bed and trundle forever. I just need to sell the current bed and pull the trigger!)
- Repaint the bedside tables or buy new ones.
- Add some bookshelves with cabinets to the room for books and storage.
2020 Thoughts: I never got to any of these because I needed the whole room for my office. That's why we bought a new house with a dedicated office and its own guest bedroom.
5. Master Bedroom.
It's time for a refresh in this room as well. I still love our bedding, but I don't love our furniture, except for the nightstand I made almost 7 years ago. I still love those! But it's time for a real, new bed instead of a headboard I made and a metal frame. We're (almost) in our 40s, and it's time for a grown-up bed.
- Change out the art above the bed.
- Buy a new bed.
- Change out the lamps.
- Paint the dark wood furniture. (This will probably take some convincing, but we'll see. #wishmeluck)
2020 Thoughts: I did change out the lamps, and we got new beds and a new rug, but I didn't cross anything else off this list.
My 2020 Home Goals
It would be easy to make a huge list of things that need doing in every room of our new house. Truth be told, it ALL needs to change. Even if it's only the paint colors, I'll be changing every single space in this home at some point over the next 5 to 10 years. I have big visions and I'm so excited. BUT I've committed to focusing on three things each quarter and then regrouping every quarter to reassess and set new goals.
So, for these three months, this is what I'll be focusing on:
1. Paint! Paint, paint, and more paint!!
I'll need to paint every wall in this home at some point. But my first goals will start with these spaces:
- The kitchen, entryway, hallways, butler's pantry, hall closet alcove, stairwell, upstairs loft, and upstairs hallway are all connected and will be painted the same color, so I want them all done ASAP. I've been sharing that process on Instagram stories already.
- The dining room
- My office
- Maybe the living room. I still can't figure out a color for it, so we'll see if I can choose one and get it painted.
This covers most of the downstairs, except for the laundry room and our master bedroom and bathroom. Those will wait for another time.
2. Light Fixtures.
I want to replace the lights in nearly every room. But first, I'm tackling:
- Hallway light. It was removed during the move-in so we could get things upstairs, and we never put it back. I'm going to hang a beautiful brass sconce there! Can't wait!
- Entry light. I have an idea of what I want, but I just need to find it and buy it.
- Add an overhead light in the office.
3. The Office.
I feel a little selfish working on my office before any other room, but it's my command central for working on the rest of the house. I want it done first because 1) it's hard for me to be creative in a space I don't love, and 2) it's one of the first rooms you see when you walk into my home.
- Finish organizing the space
- Paint the walls Shoji White (Sherwin Williams) – see my favorite white paint colors here.
- Add an overhead light (see above)
- Add blinds to the French doors (I'm leaning toward bamboo blinds.)
- Take down the old curtains and buy and hang new ones
- Rug (I'm cheating, because I already have this in place. Haha! I bought this one when we moved in.)
- Make panels for the back of the desk
- Style the bookshelves
- Order or DIY art for behind the desk and the other wall
- Hang the calendar and art behind the desk
Bonus #4. DIY Dishwasher Panel. I'm adding a bonus goal, because it NEEDS to be done, probably first thing. I bought this dishwasher because the one that came with the house broke the first time we tried to use it, and it was 17 years old. So building a custom panel for the dishwasher is probably the first thing I'll do!
Ahhh!!! It feels so good to get that on paper and know I'm only focusing on these three (or four) areas for the next 12 weeks. It will help me get them done, because instead of feeling like I need to build a dining room table, coffee table, dishwasher door panel, desk panels, and more, I know I just have to tackle a few of them!
I'd love to hear about your home goals in the comments! What will you be accomplishing this year??
