As most of you know this is one of my favorite times of the year. The very start of a new year. After celebrating a birthday on New Year's Eve, I feel like I get the perfect transition into the new year. New age and a new chapter in my book.
In my senior year of high school, my Sunday school teacher, Dr. Steve Lynch, asked us to write down New Year's Resolutions. He told us he would follow up with us when we went off to college and keep us accountable to our goals. And in September during my first semester of college, I received an email from him asking me how my new year's resolutions were going.
Honestly, I had forgotten all about him following up with me. I consider myself to be a very loyal human. Especially to those who invest in me and support my life. It matters to me that I put forth an effort to deliver on any promise I make to these said people. When I received that emailed and I had failed almost all of my resolutions I had set, I felt like I had let Dr. Lynch down; even though they were MY resolutions. It was then that I started to take New Year's resolutions seriously.
The next year I made it a point to email Dr. Lynch and tell him my New Year Resolutions for 2010. I was determined to finish all of my goals that year. In July 2010, Dr. Lynch passed away unexpectedly. I was devastated to hear the news but I have kept his memory alive by always setting New Year's Resolutions and making it a point to reach most, if not all of these goals. Thank you Dr. Lynch for instilling in me this wonderful tradition! Your mentor-ship meant the world to me and I miss you every day.
Now I keep myself accountable by writing this blog post every year and then recapping at the end of the year to see how far I have come. And occasionally I try to write during the year progress reports. Now to debut my 2018 resolutions:
1. Find my Financial Peace. My parents gifted Brenden and I Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University for our engagement a few years back. It was our pre-marriage counseling if you will. And while we still follow a lot of the rules and have completed some of our baby steps, I want to have control over my money. Basically having more responsibility of where my money is going instead of just saying this is my "miscellaneous" line item.
2. Stay in Church Throughout the Year. I find myself very dedicated in the first few months of the year to going to church. It's the summer months that I tend to drift the most. I am making it my goal to stay in church throughout the entire year. I will do this by joining a small group and staying accountable to my Sunday visits.
3. Balance my Workouts. This past year I found myself frustrated with my progress in the gym. I had stalled on all things endurance and attempted a half marathon in November that liked to have killed me. This year, I want to continue to run but balance it out with yoga and CrossFit.
4. Eat Like an Adult. It's a joke with most of my friends that I can eat pretty much anything and not feel the effects. While it may look that way on the outside, my body is feeling it more and more these days. My goal is to limit processed food in my diet and focus more on a holistic diet. Getting equal protein and veggies and maybe a little less carbs.... Yes, I said it. It's time. My face and hips are definitely feeling the side effects of these bad foods I ALWAYS eat.
5. Continue to Strengthen our Marriage. Brenden and I will celebrate two years of marriage in April. We are still learning more and more every day about each other and how we tick. It is important that we work on our communication and stay present in our relationship. With this I am working on shutting off devices outside of our room (as I sit in our room and type this blog...)
6. Stay Present in Every Day Life. This year I found myself using my cellphone as a clutch. If I had nothing else to think about or nothing else to talk about, I reverted to reaching for my phone and scrolling through the toxic social media. Instead, I want to pick up a book, stay engaged in the conversation, sit on the couch and JUST watch TV (without my phone in my hand).
Again, these are all tailored around my Seven Basics to life. My family and friends mean the world to me and it is important I devote my time to those relationships. I hope 2018 brings lots of time spent with them all while letting the other resolutions supporting my time with them.
What are your New Year's Resolutions? Do you need someone to keep you accountable? Let me know in the comments below and I would love to help you stick with your goals while I try and stick to mine. It's a new year, a new chapter, a new chance to make this year the best year yet.
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