October Balanced Life Monthly Goals Review

It's the last day of October and time for me to review my monthly goals.

As I've explained before, my monthly balanced life goals are similar to the spokes of a wheel, with the length of each spoke representing my satisfaction in that area of my life, from 1 to 10, with 1 being most dissatisfied and 10 being most satisfied.  Ideally, all the spokes are of equal length and the wheel will roll along smoothly.  If the spokes are of unequal lengths, then, the resulting wheel will be lop-sided and wobbly.  My ratings for each segment are shown within the parentheses, with the beginning of the month ratings in black and the end of month ratings in blue.

October Balanced Life Goals:

Spiritual: (9.5)(10):   The goal is to live a spiritually meaningful life:
- Continue with daily prayers and gratitude; focus on being more positive and joyful
- Continue to practice meditation at home and at the temple
- Continue to cultivate non-attachment to material things by donating/decluttering more
- Participate in the Kathina prayer ceremony and almsgiving at the temple (10/26-27)
- Host the October rosary prayer gathering (10/19)

This was a good month where my spiritual spoke was concerned.  I hosted the monthly prayer gathering, attended the Kathina ceremony at the temple, met my decluttering goal, meditation goals, and daily prayers, etc.  I am rating this area at a 10!

House (8.5)(9):  The goal is a home that is pleasant, comfortable, and welcoming:
- Clean - get the house ready for the October prayer gathering
- Organize - continue to find a place for everything and keep everything in its place
- Well maintained - continue to implement the cleaning schedule
- Decluttered - find 50 items to declutter

Again, I am pleased with what I was able to achieve in this area.  The house was cleaned and tidied for the October prayer gathering (although, doing so tired me out!), I found places for just about everything, even if they were temporary homes for some of them (another way of saying I shoved a few things in drawers and closets!), I decluttered 50 items, and I continued to implement the cleaning schedule for the most part (I might have relaxed a bit, after the prayer gathering).  I considered raising the rating to 9.5,  but, there are still too many little repairs, etc., that need to be done to get as high a rating.  I am rating it as 9.  

Garden (8)(8):  The goal is a garden that is productive, yet drought tolerant:

- Maintain (water 1- 2 times per week, depending on the temperature; weed)
- Get ready for fall planting

The garden is being maintained. It is starting to get cooler, now, and the garden is recovering from the summer heat.  None of the seeds I scattered seems to have sprouted and most of the cuttings M took to propagate didn't root.  But, some of the chrysanthemums I planted last year and the year before are reflowering, which is encouraging.  Going to keep the rating at 8.

Daughter (10)(10):  The goal is to continue to have a close relationship with her:
- Daily texts, phone calls, and video chatting, etc.

- Enjoy her planned visit in October (for her friend's wedding)

I enjoyed having her home, earlier, this month, although we both fell ill!  Daily contact with her is on-going.  This area is a definite 10!

Family & Friends (10)(10):  The goal is to have a connection with family members and friends:

- Regular phone calls and emails
- Have Aunt C and cousin N over to breakfast (10/2)
- Attend cousin V's grandson's christening (10/13)
- Will be seeing several members of the family and friends at this month's prayer gathering

I was really looking forward to seeing Aunt C and cousin N for breakfast at the beginning of the month, but, Aunt called and cancelled it.  I was disappointed, but, it is what it is.  I did attend cousin V's grandson's christening and met several members of the family and some family friends at the event.  I also had cousin P and several friends attend the monthly prayer gathering, including friend R who helped both before and after.  I am going to keep the rating at 10.

Community (10)(10):  The goal is to be involved in my community:

- Continue to participate in the blogging community 
- Weekly phone calls with neighbor T; check on her while her daughter is out of town
- Continue to participate in the online group of which I am a member
- Participate in temple events

I had a good month of community involvement, participating in the blogging community, interacting with several of my neighbors, and the temple.  I am keeping the rating at 10.

Finances (10)(10):  The goal is financial security:

- Continue budgeting and spending mindfully, with purpose. 

I am blessed to continue to do well in this area of my life.  It, too, rates a 10.

 Health & Well Being (8.5)(8):  The goal is good health:
- Attend the medical appointments scheduled for this month (2 doctor's appointments and, maybe, 1 lab test)
- Continue to work on the following life style changes: 

   - better diet - eat more vegetables, less carbs
   - better hydration - drink 8 x 8oz glasses of water, daily
  - better sleep habits -  try to adjust the sleep schedule (earlier bed time)
   - more exercise - get back on a walking schedule 

- Get back down to a healthier weight through diet and exercise

I attended one doctor's appointment, as the other one was rescheduled due to a change of doctors.  I did one lab test, but I haven't received the results, yet.  I also got the flu vaccination.  In general, things are going well where my health is concerned.  However, there is a lot of room for improvement where the details are concerned.  I really, really need to make some improvements in my life style changes.  I have reduced the rating to 8.

Time Management (8)(8): The goal is to spend my time in a mindful manner:
- Keep to a more regular schedule
- Procrastinate less

I am keeping the rating at 8, but, I think this is another area of my life that could be improved!

Leisure/Crafts/Hobbies/Me-Time (10)(10):  The goal is to relax doing something I enjoy doing for the pleasure of it.

- Engage in daily joyful activities
- Make one baby quilt
- Go on at least a couple of fun outings - one scheduled for 10/3

This has been a very good month for this area of my life.  There have been lots of leisure activities, crafting, and a fun outing with my daughter to attend the taping of a TV show.   I am keeping the rating at a 10.

That is my review of my goals for a more balanced life in October.  Everything went up or stayed the same, except for Health and Well Being.  I know what I need to focus on in November.  But, on the whole, I am pleased with what I was able to accomplish, this month.

Did you make any goals for a more balanced life in October?  If so, how did you do?