I had this post nearly ready to go when we left for Austin but never made time to post it. I'm taking that as a sign of a great and full trip.

Friends! Despite temperatures near or above ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY degrees I have not melted! Surely if I have not packed my family and moved by this point I have made significant progress on embracing summers in the desert and finding the hygge in summer. 

July is the halfway point through the year which brings to mind my 2017 intention of choose. I said I wanted to choose family + writing, choose gratitude, choose action, and choose savings. Overall I feel I'm doing well. Already this year I've assessed and taken action to bring more balance to my life when I was feeling overwhelmed with commitment. I've been dipping my toes into freelance writing and editing opportunities and learning A LOT. I've picked back up my One Line A Day journal which gives me an opportunity to reflect and be grateful every day. I also try to turn my thoughts towards listing things I'm grateful for when I feel frustrated or in those little stretches of time that pop up during the day (like walking from the parking garage into the office).

Choosing action is probably the goal where I feel the least accomplished. To be honest I feel overwhelmed and also angry and sometimes scared with leadership in my country. I'm staying somewhat up to date with the news by listening to Up First and reading the Skimm or headlines. I have made calls to my representatives although not as often as I had planned. This month I hope to attend a meeting of Democrats from my legislative district. It feels like there is so much to be done and I feel unsure about whereto dedicate the time I could potentially give.

I do feel really good about my actions in choosing savings; we have never tracked our finances so diligently. We've even been able to decrease our budgets for groceries and personal allowance spending. That feels really satisfying.

 I love checking in on my goals midyear. There is still so much time to take action and I'm remembering the quote from Nikki McClurre that I included in my 2017 goals post: 

"What should I do differently?"  sounds much better than "What should I have done differently?"

And with that, on to July!

Big things happening in July:

+ Travel to Austin! Looking forward to being on my parents screen-in back porch, breakfast tacos, and Barton Springs. We just got back yesterday and had such a great time. It is still work to travel with the boys but so much less work! 

+ Fourth of July! Starting to really love this laid back and patriotic holiday.

In July I choose to:

+ Have focused and productive work days. This is one of my busiest times at my full time science writing job and I have two big reports to complete. I have a box of Girl Scout Cookies in my desk drawer and a sleeve of Thin Mints is waiting for me on August 1st after these are turned in. Ultimate moderator. 

+ Start buying and making Christmas presents. This is the first year I'm trying to start so early because Chris and I hope to make some of the gifts we give. I love the idea and now we'll see if we can follow through!

+ Make plans for Chris's birthday. He's turning 40 in September! 

Recurring monthly goals:

+ Spend 15 minutes each day on creative writing. This is any writing that's just for me. It could be blogging, writing in the boys' memory journal or working on an essay.

Update: I've started using my One Line A Day Journal again so that's something. Taking out the journal for just a quick few sentences can motivate me to jot down a few memories in my journal for the boys as well. 

+ Make Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday evenings for work and leave Thursday and Friday open. 

Update: Doing pretty well. Overall it is hard for me to find motivation for working in the evenings - even on work that I find fulfilling. 

+ Check Mint at least once each week. To CHOOSE savings I need to be mindful of every transaction and stick to my monthly personal allowance budget.

Update: Yes!

Happy July!