New Year’s Resolutions

Happy New Year!

2011 was a whirlwind of a year and I hope 2012 is just as exciting!  To get myself on the right path I’ve made my New Year’s resolutions.  Sure, there are those anti-resolution folk, who claim we’re setting ourselves up for failure or ask why resolve to do the same ole things year after year. I don’t think they get it.  Why would you ever tell someone that it’s not worth making a change?  Striving for more?  Wanting something better?

A new year’s resolution is an acknowledgement of a new beginning; another chance to clean the slate and start anew.  Sure, I may falter throughout the year but that doesn’t diminish the occasion.  A setback now and then is not an excuse to abandon my goals, it’s just an opportunity to re-evaluate and strategize. 

This year I have big goals and big dreams and while I write this, listening to songs from my youth, I’m even more inspired to make each one come true!

1. Lose Weight – I know this one’s pretty generic but here’s the story.  Lately, I just can’t get excited about clothes shopping and that’s just sad.  So, for the umpteenth time I’m giving myself a year to lose an undisclosed amount of weight.  If I falter on this one I’ll be enforcing a penalty for the first time.  I have to give up all the ‘cute’ clothes from my past taking up a very large portion of my closet space.  I might have to do a little show and tell of what I’d be giving away to explain the enormity of this penalty.

2. Make three quilts – One for each of my children, and like my children I want each one to be an individual creation by me (with suggestions from Nate of course).  Don’t worry I’ll share it all with you when the time comes. 

3. FOOD - Can and freeze enough food to fill my freezer and pantry.  Last year I started out with good intentions and then all my bean plants went to pot (not literally), the tomatoes never really produced and like I’ve shared before, I don’t like okra.  Having home grown food, free of chemicals and all other processed perversions is important to me and I’m making it a priority starting now.

4. Blog Re-design – I’ve been toying around with things here and there but I really want to create my dream layout.  Prepare for changes throughout the year before I settle into something permanent. 

5. Home redo – My husband and I have decided to try to sell our house this year.  We really want something bigger with more land.  We had thought about moving to a college town close by but the more we look we may stay within a 30 mile vicinity.

6. Homeschooling – This first semester has been more satisfying than I thought possible, I really want to get off my lazy haunches, step up our curriculum, and add in a foreign language.  We also need to upgrade our science plans and I’m going to start working on a local geography program that I’ll be sharing here and there.  It’s nice to live a state whose motto is “Show Me.”

7. Art – I want Art to become more infused in our lives with more projects that include the entire family, trips, classes, lessons, you name it.  Not only will I be sharing our own projects but I also hope to use this blog to showcase  (living) artists I admire.

8. Getting Published – It’s no secret that at the heart of me is a writer.  I haven’t made it a priority for some time now but the fire has been rekindled and I want this…bad.  The only way I know to really work on getting published is to get back into the habit of writing all the time.  That’s where you come in, my unsuspecting captive audience!   I’ll try not to be too annoying.

9.  Photography – I don’t know if this falls into the Art category, but, I want to learn how to use one of those spiffy SLR (? I don’t even know what they’re called) cameras to create the pictures I envision in my head that my little Olympus just can’t handle.  I haven’t decided if I’m going to take a class or just study online resources.  I still have to get the camera, any suggestions? 

10.  Emergency Preparedness – Um, I’m blushing right now ‘cause when you make an admission like this most people look at you  funny.  But here’s the deal.  I do feel like the world is changing.  I don’t know what tomorrow will bring.  The idea of having supplies stocked away in my home and under my bed makes me feel better.  It’s just that simple.

So there they are, my new year’s resolutions; nothing too extreme or unattainable.  Throughout this month and this year I’ll be sharing more with you as I work out the details, celebrate accomplishments, and even work through setbacks.  I encourage you to follow along and please chime in and let me know about your own resolutions!

(photo courtesy of The Graphics Fairy)

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