doesn't do new years resolutions

I just don’t.

I don’t believe that any potential life-changing habit should be reserved for one day in the year. Research shows that most people don’t keep a resolution for longer than a month, so where did this ritual come from? Some research shows reference to the god Janus, but I can’t really find anything concrete. Maybe it’s just “out with the old and in with the new” and a new habit was a lot cheaper than replacing all your old belongings with new ones?

So, just what do we do in the Baptiste family? We change our habits. One habit at a time, one week at a time. This is not new, nor is it reserved for New Year. It happens on an “as needed” basis. The habit we are changing may be the same for each family member, or it may be different. It may be self-imposed, or it may be suggested by another member of the family.

The habits we are working on this week are fairly simple. One for the girls and a different one for me. They say it takes about 21 days of doing a thing repeatedly for it to become a habit, but we’re aiming for change in a week.

The girls task is to bring their plates, silverware and glasses from the table to the kitchen when they have finished eating. My task is to clean the kitchen after a meal and not leave dishes in the sink! I tried to accomplish this a few times using the wonderful FlyLady, but her emails just got too overwhelming for me and I couldn’t follow the “regime”. And, let’s face it, we don’t all have the same schedule as the good ol’ FlyLady!

We have changed habits in the past using this method. I hope these chosen tasks are successful!