Resolutions & Goals: 2013 Edition
Well, today is the day. January 1, 2014. I guess this post was more appropriate for yesterday, but if you've ever read my blog, you know I'm not the best at deadlines. So without further ado, here's a wrap up of how I did with my resolutions and goals for the year. (yeah yeah yeah, so I didn't update you for the last two months- that's what makes today even more exciting!)
1. Blog More- I started out strong... really strong actually. Overall, I've had more blog posts in 2013 than in any of the years past, which was the general goal. There were a couple of months that outshone the rest, and a couple who were more the strong-silent type. I've faded as the Fall came around, and I've recently begun to think more about why I blog and what I want this space to look like. I started blogging to keep my faraway family up-to-date with the activities of my (collegiate) life, but since my activities have slowed as I've settled down, I'm not sure what the next year holds. I've loved being able to look back over the years and see what matters to me at any given time, and it's been an interesting way to see growth as a person. I've even had a few people tell me that they felt encouraged by some of my blog posts which is far beyond anything I ever intended, but also keeps me motivated to continue writing. I haven't begun to think of goals and resolutions for 2014 yet, but I'm excited to see what this space looks like in a year.
2. Buy a House- check! This was near the top of my list of 2013 highlights, if not the very top. It certainly shaped my year, and now that I've been in my house for more than 6 months and I've finally purchased all of the big furniture items, it is really starting to feel like home. I had a really great time decorating for Christmas this year, and it was fun to think about how my holiday decorations would transform over the years. I mentioned on instagram that when I purchased my house, I dreamed of seeing it full of people learning more about Jesus, and when I hosted our Missional Community mid-December, I had a nice moment where I stepped back and gave myself a figurative pat on the back for working hard to fulfill the dream. I'm hoping that over the next year I get better at keeping it clean enough to have an open door policy, and my hospitality skills see some serious growth.
3. Stop Buying New Clothes- this is another one of the areas that I'm really proud of- I've almost completely stopped spending money on new clothes, and my mentality about spending money has completely changed over the year. I ended up getting the dress I had shipping issues with a few months ago, so that was another $50 spent. I spent another $20 on Christmas sweaters for various parties throughout December, and treated myself to a mini-shopping spree after my birthday. I managed to only spend about $75, which is a fraction of what I spent on former shopping sprees, especially where my birthday is concerned. All of these items mean I spent another $145 in the last couple of months, which is certainly the most I've spent in a long time. That brings my overall yearly budget down to $212, which is only about $85 over the original goal of $500 for the year. I also managed to donate 2 more bags of clothes in the last couple of months, which was also part this goal, and even though it means I get to "add" to my budget, since the year is over, I'm not too concerned about the overall numbers. I haven't set a budget for 2014 yet, and I'm not sure that I will have a finite number like I did last year, but I'm glad that my overall spending habits have changed.
4. Finish Projects- This is easily the goal that I made the least progress on over the year. Even with the addition of a house and all of the projects that went along with it, I haven't done a great job of starting and completing anything in a decent amount of time. Even my Christmas decorations took a couple of weeks to put up. I don't really know what kind of "projects" 2014 has in store, but hopefully I'll do a better job of organizing a timeline for completion.
5. Go Back to School- Even though my original plan was to start classes in the Fall, I'm glad I took the extra time off to get settled into my house before I added the stress of school into the mix. I was accepted to the University of Maryland's Master's in Nursing program, and am scheduled to start my classes at the end of January. I'm excited and nervous to go back to school- it's been almost 4 years since I wrote any kind of paper, but I'm looking forward to exercising my brain in a different way than I do in my current every-day life.
Overall, it's been a busy year full of changes and I'm excited to see what 2014 has in store for me! #samethingeveryoneelsesaysattheendoftheyear
until next time...
1. Blog More- I started out strong... really strong actually. Overall, I've had more blog posts in 2013 than in any of the years past, which was the general goal. There were a couple of months that outshone the rest, and a couple who were more the strong-silent type. I've faded as the Fall came around, and I've recently begun to think more about why I blog and what I want this space to look like. I started blogging to keep my faraway family up-to-date with the activities of my (collegiate) life, but since my activities have slowed as I've settled down, I'm not sure what the next year holds. I've loved being able to look back over the years and see what matters to me at any given time, and it's been an interesting way to see growth as a person. I've even had a few people tell me that they felt encouraged by some of my blog posts which is far beyond anything I ever intended, but also keeps me motivated to continue writing. I haven't begun to think of goals and resolutions for 2014 yet, but I'm excited to see what this space looks like in a year.
2. Buy a House- check! This was near the top of my list of 2013 highlights, if not the very top. It certainly shaped my year, and now that I've been in my house for more than 6 months and I've finally purchased all of the big furniture items, it is really starting to feel like home. I had a really great time decorating for Christmas this year, and it was fun to think about how my holiday decorations would transform over the years. I mentioned on instagram that when I purchased my house, I dreamed of seeing it full of people learning more about Jesus, and when I hosted our Missional Community mid-December, I had a nice moment where I stepped back and gave myself a figurative pat on the back for working hard to fulfill the dream. I'm hoping that over the next year I get better at keeping it clean enough to have an open door policy, and my hospitality skills see some serious growth.
3. Stop Buying New Clothes- this is another one of the areas that I'm really proud of- I've almost completely stopped spending money on new clothes, and my mentality about spending money has completely changed over the year. I ended up getting the dress I had shipping issues with a few months ago, so that was another $50 spent. I spent another $20 on Christmas sweaters for various parties throughout December, and treated myself to a mini-shopping spree after my birthday. I managed to only spend about $75, which is a fraction of what I spent on former shopping sprees, especially where my birthday is concerned. All of these items mean I spent another $145 in the last couple of months, which is certainly the most I've spent in a long time. That brings my overall yearly budget down to $212, which is only about $85 over the original goal of $500 for the year. I also managed to donate 2 more bags of clothes in the last couple of months, which was also part this goal, and even though it means I get to "add" to my budget, since the year is over, I'm not too concerned about the overall numbers. I haven't set a budget for 2014 yet, and I'm not sure that I will have a finite number like I did last year, but I'm glad that my overall spending habits have changed.
4. Finish Projects- This is easily the goal that I made the least progress on over the year. Even with the addition of a house and all of the projects that went along with it, I haven't done a great job of starting and completing anything in a decent amount of time. Even my Christmas decorations took a couple of weeks to put up. I don't really know what kind of "projects" 2014 has in store, but hopefully I'll do a better job of organizing a timeline for completion.
5. Go Back to School- Even though my original plan was to start classes in the Fall, I'm glad I took the extra time off to get settled into my house before I added the stress of school into the mix. I was accepted to the University of Maryland's Master's in Nursing program, and am scheduled to start my classes at the end of January. I'm excited and nervous to go back to school- it's been almost 4 years since I wrote any kind of paper, but I'm looking forward to exercising my brain in a different way than I do in my current every-day life.
Overall, it's been a busy year full of changes and I'm excited to see what 2014 has in store for me! #samethingeveryoneelsesaysattheendoftheyear
until next time...
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