New Beginnings = Better Endings

Top of the mornin' to ya! :)

Britt slightly stole my idea for this blog post by sharing her other 2013 goals, but oh well! I'm going to share mine as well! There are ironically a bit similar, but hey, we're sisters.  We're mentally connected somehow???

So here's what my personal, uncategorized New Year's Resolution List looks like in no particularly important order...

1.) Never miss a day of prayer and devotions.  I have a great devotional book that has a devotion for each day of the year, and it has a space at the end of it to journal something special about that day.  And it's not one of those lame devotional books that you read in less than 2 minutes!

2.) Put more effort and work into the ministries I am involved with at church.  Right now, my main focus is the Youth Ministry since I am currently in charge of it.  I want to put all of my energy into the work that God has called me to do! When things get busy, my work for God should be the LAST thing that suffers.

3.) Pay at least $3,000 toward my Student Loans - I don't technically have to start paying until I graduate in the fall, but I really want to get a head start!

4.) Break my morning coffee habit - I'm definitely not completely giving up coffee.  I just want to break my caffeine dependence on it in the morning so I don't go through withdrawals when I don't have it!

5.) Stop drinking diet soda - I'm actually trying to stay away from ALL soda, but I especially want to stop drinking diet.  I continue to hear more and more bad things about it and its effects on your health, so I just want to break myself away from it once and for all!

6.) Grow my hair out - I want it to be at least as long as it was at the beginning of 2011! :)



2011



7.) Be more grateful - I take so many things for granted. I want to start taking time often to think of how blessed I am and also to take the time to express my thanks to the people in my life who are a part of those blessings.  God has been so good to me!

8.) Create at least one "DIY" project a month - Britt definitely beat me one this one, as she said that her goal is to do at least 2 per month.  But she's already more crafty than me anyway! I want to start being crafty in the smart way (saving things I might be able to use for a craft project instead of BUYING craft materials) in order to save money!  Buying materials for DIY project kind of completely defeats the purpose anyhow!

9.) Learn how to play at least one song on the piano and perform it - So, I have to admit, this one was on my 2012 New Years Resolutions List too.  I DID do the first part though! (learning the song) I just never got around to performing it.  We'll see how this year goes!

10.) Learn at least one new thing every month - anything useful! This could range from learning how to run a program, learn how to cook a new recipe, learning how to work on something on my car, etc. January's "Something New" is going to be learning how to french braid! :)

11.) Learn 100 phrases in a different language - I know quite a bit of phrases in Spanish already, but since I will be going back to Haiti in March, I chose to learn 100 phrases in Haitian Creole! I guess this one is more like a "3 Month Resolution" since I want to do it by the time I go back to Haiti in March!





Haiti 2012



12.) Get out of my comfort zone - This one might be the hardest of them all.  I am naturally, honestly a shy person.  If I see someone that I might know in a store, I tend to want to run the other way in order to avoid an awkward conversation!  I also usually avoid doing things that I really want to do just because I'm afraid it will be awkward.  So, this year, I want to step out of my fearful comfort zone and live life to my fullest :)

13.) Read for 20  minutes before bed for at least one month - I am not a reader at ALL. (With the exception of the Hunger Games series...I got a little bit obsessed.) But I always hear about how good it is for you and for your brain, so I want to try to make it a habit to read at least a little bit every day.  I'm starting off with the goal of one month, but if I make it that long, I am going to continue the routine for the rest of the year.  I'm going to start this one in the month of February!

14.) Start the Envelope Budget system - Same system as Britt! I saw this on Pinterest a long time ago and I've wanted to do it for a long time - so I finally am!

15.) Last but not least, I want to lose 48 pounds.  Yea, 48 is kind of a random number...why not 50? Well, here's why.  There's usually 4 weeks in one month.  12 months in a year. If I lose one pound a week this year, I will reach my goal by the end.  One pound a week seems so attainable and in my reach! There's a total of 52 weeks in the year...so I have a few extra weeks at my disposal for those times when you just need to cheat because a diet is a permanent lifestyle...not a temporary change.

And, of course, our "Mile a Day" Challenge. We've started a #SCIADSAS hashtag on Instagram for our "blog related" pictures.  Check it out!

I'll keep you posted on the progress of all my New Year's challenges!

What are some of yours?

Happy 2013! Make it the best yet.