August goals

September 2017 Goals

~ Stephanie Shaul ~ 1 Comment
A&BTSOSChapelHillFinalDinner63
photo by Ally + Bobby, planning + design by Stephanie Shaul Events

September is here, friends! I always associate September with school starting back up, the impending arrival of autumn, and getting back into routines and rhythms (and wedding season!). How did your August go? I shared all that we were up to in August yesterday, and I also loved reviewing my August goals, which I happily crossed most everything off the list last month! We had fun trips to the mountains of North Carolina with lots of our couple friends, as well as a weekend in the sunshine at Carolina Beach. It was a productive yet relaxing and fun month before the craziness of the fall wedding season arrives, and I tried to use my time in August wisely. It’s also our five month wedding anniversary today, which always coincides perfectly with the renewal of each month!!

As you’re reading this, I’m busy finishing packing for our back-to-back trips to NYC to visit my sister and brother-in-law (and go to the US Open!), and then we’re heading straight to the Outer Banks for the rest of the week! You can follow along on our family vacation over on Instagram, if you’d like to. And once we return… wedding season is most definitely in full swing with so much goodness on the radar. Here’s to our last big hurrah of Summer 2017!

Personal Goals

  1. Enjoy every moment of our vacation week in NYC + OBX! Savor loads of quality time with our families, enjoy the juxtaposing settings of the city + the beach, and relax as much as possible.
  2. Create (and share) a Fall 2017 to-do list.
  3. Celebrate Rob’s birthday with great excitement and love him well. I have a surprise or two up my sleeves!
  4. Finish planning and go on our anniversary getaway to one of my very favorite destinations! Our one year engagement anniversary and six month wedding anniversary are the same day, and we plan on celebrating this wholeheartedly.
  5. Serve selflessly and joyfully at our church and with the child development center at the Raleigh Rescue Mission.
  6. Decorate our first married home for fall and think of some small but fun ways to celebrate the season!
  7. Leave my phone in another room when we’re home at night.
  8. Enjoy the slightly cooler weather by eating dinners at home outside, going on regular evening walks, and playing tennis.
  9. Love on and serve one of our married/young parent friends well by baby-sitting so they can go on a date night! This is something we really want to do much more often.

Business

  1. Make the full switch over to my new website! It is quite the process changing everyyyything over to Stephanie Shaul Events.
  2. Share SO much more of our wedding!! This both personal + business… and oh so very exciting!
  3. Celebrate and serve my couples well in their season of engagement.
  4. Plan ahead as much as possible for my Fall 2017 weddings so that I set myself up well for October and November.
  5. Book two new 2018 weddings.

How can I encourage you in your goals or cheer you on? What are you most excited for in the coming month?  I’m still loving summertime, and I can’t wait to spend a long week in NYC and the Outer Banks before returning to work!!

August 2017 Goals

~ Stephanie Shaul ~ 6 Comments
A&BStephanieRobEngagement88
photo by Ally and Bobby from our engagement session

August is here, which is a welcome respite for me from weddings! July was a busy one with a friend’s wedding in Charlotte, trip to Ohio to visit family, two weddings in Chapel Hill (Angela + Jason’s and Anna + Jeff’s), and lots of fun times in between. I rounded up many of our favorite July activities, and we’ve been crossing lots of the summertime bucket list. July was all about trying to balance out the busy-ness of work (did I mention I was the florist for my Carolina Inn wedding, as well as the full planner and stylist?!) with savoring the fun summertime season and longer days. I have been really intentional about stepping completely away from my computer/work at nights and on the weekends (minus wedding days, of course!), as I want to fully be present with Rob and with our friends/family. I guard our time together, work very hard during the day, and set boundaries with work, which has served us both really well – while knowing I’m serving my clients well, too!

In August, I have zero weddings (work or friends), and it’s a nice break to have a few free weekends in the near future! I have the honor of being a panelist at the Creative at Heart Conference in just a few days, which is happily being held just down the street our our beloved wedding venue, the Merrimon Wynne. We’re going to the mountains for a weekend getaway with friends, and we definitely plan on taking another day trip to the beach this month. I may or may not be working on a fun birthday surprise for my sweet husband, too! August, let’s see what else you have in store…

A&BStephanieRobEngagement151
photo by Ally and Bobby from our engagement session

Personal Goals

  1. Leave my phone in another room if we’re hanging out at home in the evenings – or in my purse if we’re out and about.
  2. We started serving with the greeting/welcome team at church, and we’re scheduled for two Sundays in August – hooray! I want to serve gratefully, selflessly, and joyfully. And I’m also hoping to start volunteering with Raleigh Rescue Mission this month!
  3. Host a dinner party + game night and a casual cookout at the pool.
  4. Enjoy a getaway weekend in the mountains with friends and soak up quality time together in nature.
  5. Plan a birthday suprise for Rob and love him wholeheartedly! (His birthday is in September when we’re in the Outer Banks.)
  6. Really be intentional about the friendships and relationships in my life (sending snail mail, planning friend dates, little surprises, praying for friends)
  7. I hurt my ankle some over the last few weeks, so stretch and rest it enough so that I can play tennis again bi-weekly with our friends! And go on regular evening walks.
  8. Cross a bunch of things off our summer bucket list (still on the top of our list: kayak and Fearrington Village)

Business Goals

  1. Have my intern work on and post two new blog series ideas + continue blogging at least three times a week
  2. I’ve recently overhauled and updated my packages and pricing structure, and I need to finalize my pricing guide. Work on this ASAP so that I can send it to my wedding inquiries for 2018!
  3. Book two additional 2018 weddings.
  4. Plan the rest of my Fall 2017 weddings well and work ahead whenever possible during this “slower” month.
  5. Work on the back-end of my business since I don’t have the pressing urgency of a wedding this month: updates systems, streamline processes, update my portfolio and website.
  6. I’m a panelist and breakout session leader for the Creative at Heart Conference here in Raleigh next week, which is such an honor. I attended this conference almost two years ago in Charleston, so it’s especially sweet to be asked to be a part of it. I want to be fully present while I’m there, encourage/share/advise to the best of my abilities, and to give it my all.

How did your July shape up? And what does August hold in store for you? I’m looking forward to a slightly slower month, celebrating four months of marriage (today!), and spending time doing some of the things I love the most!