My Word for 2017

Quality time. Quality things. Quality over quantity. Quality books and movies. Quality experiences. This word just keeps popping up when I think about what I want from the upcoming year. 

The past year has been a whirlwind. A new baby definitely changes your priorities and makes some things much trickier. It's harder to spend time relaxing and watching a movie or grabbing a beer with a friend. Definitely still possible, but harder. Your time is limited and you want to make sure you are finding some sort of balance between home/friends/work, etc. 

With that in mind I find myself once again thinking about QUALITY. I want to do all of those things, but it might be less often than before, so I want each moment to count. I feel the same way about things. Having a baby brings a whole lot of stuff into your house. You quickly realize that your home can be filled with plastic junk if you aren't careful. 

I've purged so much in the past year and a half and it's so freeing! When I bring something into our home I want it to be something that will last for years. Whether it's wooden blocks for Sydney or a new pair of shoes for me. I'm done with buying junk.

So that's my 2017 goal. Quality in every aspect of life. Do you have any goals for the new year?

One Little Word

I found the One Little Word project over at Entomology of a Bookworm (who found it here at Sophisticated Dorkiness). This is a project that focuses on picking one word to define your year. You can pick anything that might speak to you. Something that is a goal or inspires you. 

The more I thought about it the more I love the idea. This is the first year in as long as I can remember that I haven't made a list of New Year's resolutions for myself. This goes hand-in-hand with a lot of the changes in my life over the last year. I started a new job last January, which I love but it is also a lot more challenging and time-consuming.

This year I struggled a lot with balancing things in my life. Family, friends, work, this blog, my weekly theater reviews, and so much more. I've just felt very overwhelmed with a lot of different things and I'm not used to feeling that way. I tend to like having a lot of things going at once, so this is a bit new to me.

2014 was an incredible adventure. I celebrated my five year wedding anniversary, 30th birthday, took a dream vacation, started a new job… but all of that was a lot. It was all piled on top of everything that happens in a normal year and it was enough to make me lose my breath. 

In 2015 I want to refocus my energy, not just on the things I have to do but on the things I love to do. I also want to make sure that I'm doing things that I truly want to be doing and not just things that I've been doing for a long time out of obligation, if that makes sense. So my word, the word that just kept coming back to me over and over again is... simplify. 

What I truly want is to simplify my life. I want to find my balance again and let go of the things that are distracting me from what's really important. I don't know all that might need to change to get myself there, but that's ok. Right now I just want to focus on simplifying things and see where that takes me. 

If you were to pick one word for your year, what would it be?

Image from here.

Top Ten Goals/Resolutions For 2014

This week's Top Ten from The Broke and the Bookish asks Top Ten Goals/Resolutions For 2014. They can be bookish or not, mine are a mix.

1) Pay off my student loans by the end of the year.
2) Visit New Zealand and Australia, the trip is set for September and I can't wait!
3) Host a fancy dinner party.
4) Have a Meatless Monday every week (doesn't have to actually fall on a Monday).
5) Get in better shape to hike in New Zealand.
6) Embrace my new job; learn as much as I can and challenge myself to be creative and fearless in this new role.*
7) Celebrate my 30th birthday party in a fun way.
8) Read at least 100 books and see and review at least 30 plays.
9) Get rid of at least 30 items of clothing.
10) Do one Pay It Forward act each month (buy someone's coffee in the drive thru, pay extra on someone's meter, etc.)


*P.S. I got a new job! I accepted a new job offer to become the editor of a monthly publication. I'm excited and looking forward to starting on January 15th! It was a quick turn around and I'm so grateful for all the encouragement that was sent my way when I wasn't sure what was next. 

Do you guys have any goals/resolutions this year?

New Year's Resolutions for 2012

I love lists and I love attempting to improve my life, so I'm all about New Year's resolutions. I'm going to try to do the following things for at least 100 days. We'll see how it goes (especially the exercising part).

1) Make re-reading a major priority this year.

2) 10 Frugality tips to stick to:
• Go to the grocery store with cash and a calculator instead of using your debit card.
• Take inventory before going to the grocery store to avoid buying repeat items.
• Consolidate errands into one trip to save on gas.
• Look for used 1st - If you need something try to find it used before buying it new.
• Eat out less
• Use a 30-day list - When you want to buy something, (not a necessity), put it on a list with the date you added it, reevaluate the list after 30 days to see if you still want/need to buy it.
• Find free entertainment
• Alcohol in moderation.
• Eat less meat
• Don’t go shopping unless you NEED something

3) Don’t buy anything that you don’t absolutely need for 100 days. Attempt to not buy clothes at all this year (I'm in a wedding in May and anything for that will be an exception).

4) Choose one food that constantly sabotages your efforts to eat healthier and go cold turkey for the next 100 days. – (Lays Potato Chips and Pretzel M&Ms)

5) Eat from a smaller plate to help control portion size.

6) Get at least 20 min. of exercise at least 3 times a week.

7) Actively look for something positive in your partner every day, and write it down.

8) Practice active listening

9) Keep reminding yourself that everyone is doing the best that they can.

10) Drink more water/tea every day

Obviously on top of this list I'm planning on completing all of my reading challenges and participating in as many read-alongs as possible. I'm also hoping to host my very first read-along this year, Cloud Atlas in March, even though I'm nervous no one else will join in.

Here's to a fantastic 2012!

Photo by moi.