Resolutions

2010 was the first year that I actually made and wrote down New Year Resolutions. I have always said in my head things that I would like to do or change for the New Year, but never have I made it so permanent. Last year I went all out. I think Steve was a little worried that I was becoming a bit obsessed about it, but I needed to do that to make it stick for me. To make it real. I needed to mean it and really want it. I made a list of 10 things that I wanted to better in myself, I made a folder with a calendar to document my success, and really went for it.

So here we are, one year later, and I need to account for my resolutions. Did I do it? Did I succeed? Well, yes and no. I am pretty guarded about the things that I want. I don't know why. Maybe I'm afraid that if I don't achieve these things you will look at me differently. Or maybe you'll think less of me. Or maybe it will paint a different picture than you already have of me. I don't know. But what do I have to hide? I really want to write these things down, here, where it stays, and I print it. So try not to think badly of me. I'm going to write all of my resolutions from 2010 and give you an update of where I am today. Don't judge me;)!

2010 Goals

1 - Go on a vacation with just Steve and I. Minus the kiddo's.

- we totally did this! Steve and I went on a cruise in September. It was so fun and did exactly what I was hoping it would for us. I am so lucky to have such an amazing husband.

2 - Get a new Nikon D700 Camera and try to schedule 3 sessions a month for Sarah D Photography

- I did get this awesome camera! I LOVE it! Best purchase of the year. As for the 3 sessions a month, well, I had 37 sessions this year. They weren't all evenly dispersed throughout the year, but I would say that is pretty good none-the-less.

3 - Do something fun with my children every day

- this turned out to be more tricky than I thought it would be. I have to be honest and tell you that we didn't do something super fun every day. My thought behind this was that I would spend some quality time with them every day, plan an activity or something, and invest in our relationship. Although we didn't do something fun every day, I do feel like I have a fun relationship with my kids. We also did a lot of fun things that we probably wouldn't have done if it weren't for this goal.

4 - Stabilize my schedule - balance family, kids, photography & myself

- I really hoped I would have this down by the end of the year. That scheduling and time management would be second nature. Unfortunately that isn't the case. There were times when everything went just as I had planned and times when things were completely forgotten. I did get myself a planner and that has made a world of difference. Thank you planner.

5 - Be a size 8!

- that may seem like a silly goal to some of you. Who wants to be a size 8? I know that most of you would never dream of even getting that big, let alone try and lose weight to become that size, but that is not the case for me. I'm really putting myself out there, but I'll give it to you straight. Weight is not easy for me. Duh. Who is it easy for? In February of 2010 I had a baby. I gained more during this pregnancy than either of my other two. My doctor warned me that it gets harder and harder to lose with each baby, but I couldn't seem to keep it under control. So, I made this goal. I really wanted to reach this goal. It was probably my #1 resolution this year. At my six week mark after I had Cache, I stepped on the scale to see the damage.  I weighed 184 pounds and was a size 16. I can't believe I just wrote that down. It's true. I was not happy with myself. I was so distraught with the number on the scale that for a couple of months I couldn't get myself motivated to do anything about it. I thought my goal was out the window. How could I drop 8 sizes? Couldn't be done. But a friend of mine started to make changes in herself and started losing weight. She really went after it and you could see the difference. I was so happy for her. And I realized that I really wanted it for myself. So I recommitted myself and went for it. For 3 months I was rigid. I wanted to look good for the cruise and for myself. My hard work paid off! I was able to fit into a size 11 by the cruise and weighed 154 pounds. That was HUGE for me! I lost 30 pounds! I honestly couldn't believe it. Since the cruise I haven't been so dedicated. I wish I would have been. Today I am a size 10 and I weigh 151 pounds. Pretty good for me. I am sad to say that I am not a size 8 but so happy with what I have accomplished. I have been thinking about this goal a lot over the last couple of weeks and I think it may be on my 2011 resolution list, we'll see!

6 - Feel the Spirit regularly

- in 2009 I felt like I wasn't getting opening myself up to the Spirit like I wished I would have. So I was determined to make the Spirit a part of my very being. I wanted to feel it with me all the time. I know that might be impossible, but it is what I was striving for. I can't say that I feel the Spirit all of the time, but I can say that this year was incredibly better than 2009. Just thinking about this past year I can name a lot of times that I know the Lord touched my life. I love my Heavenly Father and hope that this is something I will work on every day for the rest of my life.

7 - Add $10,000 to our savings

- I didn't reach this goal. This is something that I really wanted but didn't take the necessary steps to make happen. I can say that we have more in our savings that we did last year, but we didn't hit the $10,000 mark.

8 - Craft all birthday gifts for family and friends

- Oh, I had ambitions to be crafty this year! I am so sad to say that I didn't craft all of my gifts. I did with some, but not all. The downside, I learned, is that it can cost a lot more to home make a gift than to buy one sometimes. That realization made me sad. I think I need to revisit this resolution and tweak and mold it into a more realistic and viable goal.

9 - Do 1 act of service every week.

-  this was a great goal for me. I find that I am happiest when I am thinking of others and this goal helped me to be more happy. I had a hard time coming up with something different to do every week, so when I couldn't think of something creative or didn't know anyone in particular that needed something I purchased little personal Simply Raspberry Lemonade's and delivered them to people. I would pray and ask who might need a pick me up or who I needed to focus on and I would take the lemonade to them. Sometimes I gave it to someone I had just seen or talked to, other times it would be someone I hardly knew. I don't know if anyone even cared about the lemonade's but I can tell you that it was fun and exciting for me and it forced me to open my ears and my heart to those around me and I was better for it.

10 - Have a clean home

- I had this vision in my mind of our home staying clean and fresh. With no toys in sight and nothing on the floor. Everything would have a place and nothing would ever be left out. I thought I would take control of this issue and make it happen. This is my saddest report of all. I just couldn't do it. There were days that were good but I am sure that was because my wonderful husband did the dirty work. Right now my desk is a mess. Stacks of paper everywhere. The room behind me has toys strewn about. This is something I wish I were better at. I somehow let life always get in the way of my perfect home. I hope to one day create this quality of great cleanliness in myself.

So this was my 2010. I wasn't perfect with my resolutions, but I am better than I was a year ago and I consider that an accomplishment. I am working on 2011 resolutions and plan on posting them here so I can hold myself to them. Goodbye 2010 hello 2011! Here's to a New Year!