My Word for 2019

I have read about people choosing words to set the tone for their year.  I have considered doing it in years past, but I just never felt like it was necessary or even particularly helpful - for me, at least.  But the older I get, the more I value focus and productivity, the more it dawns on me that I don't have forever to create my legacy, the more I am drawn to the concept of choosing a word - just one word - to guide an entire year.

A year is a long time, you guys.  They go so fast, but they hold so much.  So many precious seconds.  We use them to measure our careers, our relationships, our lives.   There is a reason we celebrate anniversaries.  Years are important.  And if choosing a word can potentially help me focus more, live with increased intention, and overall just be better, well, then maybe, I decided, it might not hurt to choose a word.  

And so I thought.  And I thought.  And I thought.  And two words came to mind repeatedly.  Words that in some ways are almost complete opposites - or so I believed.

Those two words?  Relax.  And Wild.  

25 Accomplishments of 2018 (and Final Goal Update)

Once again, I finished out the year by listing my 25 accomplishments of 2018.  I enjoy making this list every year for so many reasons: enjoying the memories made this year, taking a personal accounting of how I spent my time (our most valuable resource, in my opinion), and planning how I will use what I learned this year in the future.

There have been years where I opted not to share my list.  I think we all have years like that.  Years marked by loss and grief may be ones where keeping our lists honest also means keeping them quiet and close to our hearts.  However, in years where we really pushed ourselves out of our comfort zones or accomplished things we are especially proud of, I think it's great to share our accomplishments with others, allowing us to exponentially increase our joy.  Regardless of whether you choose to share your list, I highly encourage you to take some time to make one.  

OK, here we go!

This year's list:

1. Parented teenagers.  Multiple teenagers.  And survived.  Barely.  I honestly don't know how.  I should probably give most of the credit to Dan, my mom and step-dad, and my sister, Jessica.  They keep me sane.  I mean, I parented the other non-teenager children, too.  But compared to this??  That was easy.

2. FINALLY took the Iowa bar exam.  That damn thing.  That all-encompassing, smothering, controlling, God damned thing.

3. Read 40 books.  Many of my friends put me to shame on this one.  I'll do better this year.  

4. Made an attempt to maintain this blog.  I will talk about this more in my Goals 2019 post, but for now, I'll just say that.

5. Learned the very basics of salsa dancing.

Reading List 2019

Hello!  So,  it's that time of year again!  I've put together my reading list for 2019, and once again, I would love to hear your thoughts!  I'd love it even more if you are interested in reading any of these with me!

In 2019, my goal is to read 43 books.  My goal for 2018 was 56, which I feel wasn't the most realistic goal with everything else I had planned for the year.  I have finished 37 (I think) and I'm guessing I will end the year at 40.

To be honest, I am probably posting the reading list prematurely because - BELIEVE IT OR NOT - I don't have my 2019 goals all planned out yet, meaning I have no clue if I will have time to read 43 books.  (Knowing me, I strongly suspect I will not.)  I  have some ideas, but they aren't finalized.  I will tell you that I have determined the four categories in which I have tentatively set 12 goals.  This reading list will be the first goal in my Learning & Self-Improvement category.

Once again, I have divided the list into monthly goals.  And once again, I'm fairly sure given what I already know about some plans for next year, this monthly organization means nothing.

Anyway, here goes (yes, some of these are books I didn't finish in 2018...whoopsie):

January

How to Get Shit Done - Erin Falconer - finished 1/19/19
The Art of Fiction - Henry James - finished 2/5/19
Hillbilly Elegy - JD Vance - finished 1/27/19
To Cornwall, With Love - Laura Wiser - finished 2/2/19

Goal Update

At the beginning of the year, I posted my ten goals for this year.  I had planned to do a mid-year update in June, but then....I got incredibly busy and haven't blogged since May.  Whoopsie.  However, as we near the end of the year (can you believe it has gone by so quickly?!), I thought I would take some time to assess (and share!) my progress on my goals for this year.

Spoiler alert: I still have work to do.

1) Start this new blog - COMPLETE,

Well, I did start it.  However, I have struggled with what direction I wanted to take it.  No one (except Mom - thank you, Mom!) is really that interested in our trip to Pennsylvania or our day playing mini-golf.  However, people may be interested in travel tips when planning a trip to the Poconos (which I didn't include) or ideas for local fun things to do/good places to eat.  People may be interested in many of the everyday things we do around here: cooking from scratch, fun home decor projects/crafts, big family life (and organization!) and holiday celebration ideas.  I have some other really neat ideas for the blog, as well as a few other social media ideas that I am looking into with the help of family and friends.  I plan on spending some time next year learning more about how to expand on some of these ideas.

Poconos, Cinco de Mayo, and Prehistoric Putt

Hello!

I am trying to fit in a little bit of time to post this evening since it has been so long!

We have had so much fun going on around here that I just haven't had any time.

In April, we went to the Poconos.  We thought we were cool and athletic, so we went on a hike....and got lost in the woods.  Which was totally okay because this region isn't known for having black bears just wandering around or anything.  

Birthdays, Easter, Elephants & Good Books

Oh my, we have been so busy!!  

My birthday was a couple weeks ago, and of course, my wonderful family made it super awesome.  We had ice cream and pineapple upside down cake and Reba tickets and a bada$$ Ninja blender and stuff that smells good, and a SAVANNAH BANANA SHIRT!!!  It was a great time.

We also had a very happy Easter, and hope all of you did, as well.

Spring Candles, Lucky Charms Treats, Sushi, and a Birthday Party!

Happy St. Patrick's Day, everyone!

Last year, I made corned beef and cabbage....oh my, it was so good.  This year, I forgot to put corned beef brisket on my grocery order and well, we had these Lucky Charms Treats instead.  (Not actually for dinner.  Just dessert!).

We also had these yummy cupcakes!

I guess I forgot to buy St. Patrick's Day cupcake liners.  Whoops.

We have also had a bunch of other wonderful things going on around here.