Happy Hobbit-ish New Year!

Happy New Year, Humble Readers!

I hope that you all have had a wonderful holiday season, and that it was topped off with a great New Year celebration.  For my Beloved and I, it was a quiet night... a dinner of appies and baked brie, rum punch, playing cribbage, and watching stand-up comedy specials from the dvr.  Sadly, I didn't make it to midnight, having to head to bed at around 10:30.  I'm getting so old. 

As I write, it's fairly quiet in the hobbit-hole.  The wee-lings are both down for a nap (Ginny is likely just looking at books in bed, as she doesn't sleep often in the afternoon anymore), my Beloved is snoozing on the couch, and I'm half-watching the Westminster Kennel Club dog show.  A lovely pot roast is sending off the most delicious garlicky aroma, and sunshine is bouncing off the mounds of snow outside making things feel light and happy inside. 

It's terribly cliché, but the new year is always such a good time to pause and take stock of where I've been, and to think and plan ahead for where I want to be going.  I recently went back and re-read my 2013 New Year post, and I'm fairly happy with how I've done in the last year.  I didn't accomplish everything I set out to, but I did make some good progress in a lot of areas, and I'm happy with where I am right now. 

I don't make resolutions, but I do set goals.  Some are silly or a bit frivolous.  Others are big, long term projects, that I couldn't possibly hope to accomplish in one year.  But I like to have them out there, in front of me so that I don't forget what I'm working toward.  Here's what's on tap for me in 2014...

Health - Continue in the direction I started in 2013 (*cough* need to get back on track).  This includes doing my daily workouts at home and the gym, tracking my blood sugars and food intake, and taking my vitamins regularly

Home - Have my spring cleaning done by Easter (list is written, planning on doing a few things each week), start prepping the hobbit-hole to be listed for sale in a year (replace a few light fixtures, fix a few things, push the condo board for new windows and doors), and expand my balcony garden this spring. 

Creative - Blog REGULARLY (three posts a week should be do-able), continue to strengthen my writing muscles (creative writing at least 15 minutes, 5 days a week), continue making my 'subway' art. 

Learning - More reading, less tv and pinterest (average 4 books per month, half should be new reads).  This category needs to be filled out, but I'm at a loss right now. 

Self-care - Same as last year, cut and colour my hair regularly, buy new summer clothes (build it into the budget, none of my old summer clothes fit). 

Other Projects - update the wee-lings' baby books (ASAP!), use Shutterfly to create family year books

I know it seems like a lot, but really a number of these are carry-over from last year and are just reminders for where I want to be heading.  My reading target is up only slightly over what I accomplished in 2013, and my self-care targets are to help me feel good about myself and to celebrate the work I'm doing to improve my health. 

2014 will bring a milestone birthday for me, and I have a few goals that I want to achieve before then, mostly health related (I WILL be off my blood pressure meds by then! I will!).  I know that this year will also have many other areas of focus, including discovering what comes next for Pippin's communication issues, and expanding Ginny's horizons with new program opportunities now that she's almost potty trained.  My Beloved will continue to plug away at his CGA course-work.

What's on your radar for the new year?

Welcome 2013!

Happy New Year Humble Readers!

Image credit

I hope that you enjoyed your New Year's Eve celebrations, whether they were raucous or serene.  We had a quiet evening here in the hobbit hole... both wee-lings were snuggled under their blankets by 8:30, and my Beloved and I passed the evening playing video games (me - SuperMario Paper on the Wii) and fiddling with the new computer (my Beloved - the new laptop is for his course work as the software he needs won't run on his ancient desktop.  Can we say tax write-off?). 

My Beloved asked me a few days ago if I thought that 2012 had been a good year.  Without hesitation I said yes.  2012 brought us Pip.  None of the ugliness in my family or our financial struggles can overshadow the joy that our wee little mister has brought to our lives.  And Ginny just keeps on surprising us every day with her capacity to learn and to laugh.  In 2012 we ended our journey to build our family, and as I look ahead I can't help but wonder what this new year will bring us.  Undoubtedly, there will be new joys and new challenges that come our way, but today, as the sun shines and a warm chinook wind blows, I feel optimistic about 2013.

I'm not one for New Year's resolutions.  At least not in the usual sense.  I've never liked the vague "be better to myself" or "lose some weight" types of resolutions.  Being the to do list addict that I am, I need to have things that I can measure, things that I can cross off my list.  So instead of resolutions, I find setting specific goals tends to work better for me.  Some of my goals end up taking longer than a year to accomplish, but I like to be able to see measurable progress being made.  The tough part is always making the list achievable.   

So here's the list for 2013:

1. Health - Continue the good habits that I developed in 2012 (drinking 2-3 liters of water a day, not drinking my calories, cinnamon tea every morning and evening), only step on the scale twice a week (rather than every day), gradually add in physical activity (twice a week in January and February, then increase it for March and April and so on)
2. Self-care - Colour my hair every 8-10 weeks, get a haircut 4 times throughout the year (build it into the budget), buy new capris for the summer (build it into the budget),
3. Household - Strive for at least one meat-free dinner each week (was about 60% in 2012), keeping up with my weekly/daily to do lists, purge cds, re-work household budget (January), do mending weekly (as needed)
4. Learning - Read an average of 3 books a month with at least one of them being a new to me title, build up repertoire of meat-free recipes, learn a new crafting skill (very vague, but I don't know what I want to learn yet.)
5. Family - Attempt potty-training again with Ginny in January, Transition Ginny to her toddler bed by end of February, send out extended family birthday cards ON TIME, come up with a better way of sharing photos with far-away family.
6. Creative Endeavours - write in my "One Line A Day" journal every day, creative writing (using prompts or working on 'the story') for at least 15 minutes every day, maintain a regular blogging schedule

I know that seems like a lot.  Much of it will simply require being added to my daily to-do list.  Other than that, I think I can manage this list this year.  And it's always a given that some things simply won't happen.  Life gets in the way of the best of intentions, but every journey needs a map to point the general direction. 

What are some of your goals for the new year?

To Do's for 2010

Happy New Year Humble Readers!

And happy 200th post to me! (I can't think of a more appropriate day to celebrate it.) I guess I've rambled a lot in the last year. I am so incredibly thankful for this space and this community. It has given me a vent for my stresses and support through what has become a longer journey than I ever expected. It has also brought me wonderful friends. Thank you so much, all of you.

2009 is over, and while in many ways it was a good year, I have been looking forward to this fresh start. It's a time to let the past go, and to look ahead.

This hobbit has a confession... I have never been good at resolutions. My mom was good at them. She woke up one morning and decided that after 20 years, she was done with smoking. And she was. She decided to lose weight, and in a year she lost all she needed to, and had maintained it long enough to get a gig as a Wei.ght Wa.tchers meeting leader. She's got mega will-power.

But I am not my mother.

What I am good at is lists. I have always been a list person. I love that little rush and wave of accomplishment that I feel as I cross something off my list. So, this year I have decided to not resolve anything. Instead, I'm writing myself a 'to do' list. That way, maybe I will accomplish what I set out to do.

1. Turn off the TV - spend less time in front of the idiot box.
2. Read 75 books - down from my prediction for 2009, but up from my actual reading total
3. Focus on small weight loss goals - 5 pounds at a time and celebrate each victory
4. Make the bed more days than not - make Mom proud
5. Create & keep a managable housekeeping schedule - take better care of the hobbit-hole
6. See all the Oscar nominated films before Oscar night - must make sure to request that night off
7. Write more! - for at least 10 minutes a day, blog, character sketches, writing excersises, anything
8. Become more active - again, at least 10 minutes a day.
9. Eat better - not even so much for weight loss, but to keep my IBS in check
10. Learn to cook Thai food - just because
11. Make sure that my Beloved knows how much I love, cherish, and respect him - Everyday
12. Finish decorating in the living room - bare walls are annoying
13. Set up and regularly utilize a home filing system - no more stacks of paper!
14. Get back to menu planning - I used to do this every week, and I need to do it again
15. Make the spare room practical - organize, clean, and no more waiting for a baby!
16. Paint the bathroom - I'm sick of lime green (it came that way... ugh!)
17. Put up new curtains/blinds - I hate the white horizontal ones we have
18. Do something, anything with our photos - photobook, scrapbook, whatever
19. Get pregnant, stay pregnant, have a baby - in my dreams
20. Be less hard on myself.
21. Enjoy Life!

Ok, so not all of them are really 100% measurable, but I think having them written here will help me to keep them in front of me. I plan to revisit this list often, and to keep you all posted.

What's on your to do list this year?