Like most people (at least the ones I know), I started the year with great intentions. But that’s all they were—until a few years ago when my eldest daughter shared how she plans for the new year starting in December.
At first, I didn’t think much about her process. I’d always been task-oriented and focused on what needed to get done, both in my work and personal life. I was a planner with endless checklists, and while I accomplished plenty, it was hard to measure what I’d achieved over 365 days, 8,760 hours, or 525,600 minutes. Looking back, I realized I wasn’t tracking my progress in a meaningful way.
Last year, inspired by my daughter, I planned my entire year—not month by month, but task by task. My list lived on my phone, where it was easy to access and check off items. I organized it into three categories: Personal (household chores, self-care, etc.), Financial (budgeting and organization), and Writing (how many novels I’d write, classes I’d take, and social media goals to connect with readers).
Did I achieve everything? No, but I got about 75% of my tasks done, and I had a LOT on that list. My husband teases me for trying to fit five pounds into a two-pound bag, but I’ve learned that having a plan—even an ambitious one—gets me further than having no plan at all.
After publishing my most recent book, Across Oceans Through Time: A Story of Enduring Love, I dedicated December to planning the year ahead. Using the same three categories, I rolled over unfinished tasks from the previous year and added new ones. Unfortunately, life threw a curveball: both my husband and I fell ill during our Christmas road trip to visit family. As a result, I’m still finalizing my plan, but I’ve embraced the mantra: better late than never.
One of my goals this year is to return to writing short blog posts. I’ve missed blogging and realized how much I enjoy it. So here I am, sharing not just my planning journey but also some practical tips that has helped me tackle one of life’s dreaded chores: managing paper clutter.
The key question: what do you keep, and what do you pitch? Here’s my system:
One Month (For Paper Lovers)
- Receipts for non-deductible items: I prefer electronic receipts but keep a plastic zip envelope for deductible ones.
- Deposit slips and ATM slips: Rarely needed, but I save them briefly.
- Reconciled bank statements: These are electronic, so I keep them indefinitely.
One to Three Years
- Checkbook ledgers, paycheck stubs, mortgage statements, and insurance records: All electronic now.
- Charitable contributions and proof of deductible purchases: A mix of paper and electronic files.
At Least Seven Years
- Tax returns and supporting documents: These include W-2s, 1099s, medical bills, and mileage records. Most are digital.
Forever (Stored in a Fireproof Safe)
- Vital documents: Birth certificates, marriage licenses, auto titles, and investment statements.
- Major receipts: For home improvements and significant purchases.
- Estate planning documents: Wills, insurance policies, and retirement plans.
Last year, I tackled the monumental task of sorting through my late mother’s estate documents and organizing decades of family records. Using expandable plastic folders, I created a system for each family member. It was a huge accomplishment—and one I’m incredibly proud of.
For shredding, I keep a banker’s box in the garage. Each year, I take it to a community shredding event and start fresh.
Everyone’s method will differ, but the key is finding a process you’ll stick with. What works for you? I’d love to hear your tips—maybe I’ll learn something new!
By the time we found our hotel and checked in, it was 9 pm. Our room was on the fourth floor. We took the elevator up to the third floor and had to hoof it to the fourth floor because the elevator didn’t go that high.
For the first fifty years (1776-1826), leaders focus on survival, establishing boundaries and putting infrastructure in place, then they move to expand their boundaries as the people move and settle, they diversify their economy through agriculture, mining and trade.
For the fourth fifty years (1926-1976), there’s a complacency in the ruling class and social inequality grows. There’s corruption and nepotism in institutions and trust in them wanes. There’s a moral decay where social norms deteriorate, and materialism dominates. There is civil unrest, and the government struggles to maintain order and central authority weakens. (The great depression hit in the latter part of 1929 and lasted well into the 1930s. Civil unrest was quite evident in the civil rights movement from 1954 all the way to the assassination of Martin Luther King in 1968. Many died as a result of the unrest, and I remember the curfews in my hometown.)
Jesus went off to pray… alone. He was focused on praying. (John 6:15, Matthew 14:23, Mark 6:46)
The reality is… when we obey the Lord, the storms WILL come. Some will be challenging and others not so challenging.
SING in the midst of the storm! (Years ago… when I first became a Christian, Marinatha music was a staple. One of the songs – – almost all of them are based on scripture. One of them was based on Psalm 18. Check it out. 
The Apostles willingly received Jesus into the boat.
It’s a word that means different things to different people. Some disabilities are seen, and some are unseen. Some are mental and some are physical. Even terrible scars can be a disability.
My husband was and still is my inspiration for writing these types of characters.
To this day (and we’ve been married going on twenty-one years), he will not capitalize on his disability. In fact, he does things himself even if it takes extra time and all his concentration. (We all probably take for granted the everyday things we do when we have two capable hands.) He’s an IT professional and types with one hand. He even served in the military. His disability didn’t stop him from living his life to the fullest, but it defined his out-of-the-box thinking in any life situation including his job.
He now wears a brace on his left leg (much like the ones on the left) and his hand is virtually useless, but he perseveres and will not use a wheelchair. He is determined and will fight for the right to be self-sufficient.
It was a stressful, agonizing year. In March, an ambulance took my mother to the hospital and then later to a rehab facility. Sadly, she could no longer stay in the home she’d been in for seventeen years, so rehab transferred her to a long-term care facility. And we knew it was the final stop.
Memories flooded my soul. What I remember most were the Thanksgiving dinners. It was her holiday to shine and one we all loved. Mom started collecting Franciscan Apple dinnerware almost sixty years ago. Until the manufacturer brought out new pieces back in the late 90s, she owned every piece ever made. The collection is astounding and one I will not part with, even though those fabulous dinners are a thing of the past because family members are scattered all over the east coast. I will take the dining room set because it is something my mother cherished along with those dishes.
We haven’t seen a Thanksgiving like that for twenty years. And it’s OK because I have the memories. What is sad is that my grandchildren will never know the fun times we had around the dinner table playing trivial pursuit or cards. Those days are long gone because electronics and Netflix have taken their place.
I accomplished one writing goal, and that was to publish four books in 2021. Although one of them was a compilation or boxed set of the first three books in the Women of Worthy series, it still took time and effort to get it published. And I’m taking it as my fourth book. Since I managed to complete that goal, I’m making the same goal for 2022.