Happy New Year!

I hope everyone is rested after staying up past midnight last night!  Why is it that I have NO problem staying up until 1 or 2 most nights, but on NYE, I'm wiped out by 10?  Ethan and Charley and I had a nice quiet evening at home, ate dinner by fireplace-and-candlelight and toasted with sparkling white grape juice at midnight... a wonderful, cozy way to start a year :-)

LOVE these boys so MUCH!!

I have never been big on New Year's resolutions, personally.  Partially because it's a LOT of pressure, and I like to start my years contentedly and joyfully, instead of looking for all of the things that are wrong in my life and resolving that this year, I will somehow make them all better ;-)  

But mostly, I think it's because resolutions tend to be too abstract for my taste. 

According to the University of Scranton (does anyone else immediately think of Dunder Mifflin when you read that?), these are the top 10 resolutions this year:

• Lose weight

• Get organized

• Spend less, save more

• Enjoy life to the fullest

• Stay fit and healthy

• Learn something exciting

• Quit smoking

• Help others in their dreams

• Fall in love

• Spend more time with family

See how many of them are not measurable or definable?  Like "Enjoy life to the fullest"... nice idea, but how do you know when you've succeeded?  I know this kind of resolution works really well for some people, it gives them direction and focus, and acts almost as a mantra for how they make decisions in daily life... but for me... the nebulous nature and the big-picture scope stress me out!  

I like to make bite-size goals for myself.  They are reasonably small and manageable, and allow me to check items off of a list, which makes me feel productive and motivated. (I LOVE to do lists... they keep my ADHD brain on track and sane.)  ;-)  Instead of "lose weight," I might say, "weigh X pounds."  Instead of "spend more time with family," I might say, "institute family game night once a week."  Instead of "save more, spend less,"  I might say, "set a budget and stick to it" and "put X% of every paycheck straight into savings."  

On that note, I have made a brand new to do list for myself and posted it in its own tab at the top.  I will be marking out items as I finish them, and adding new things as I think of them or as next steps after other items.  Some of the items are home improvement, some are an attempt to help the household run smoothly while the primary homemaker (me) is temporarily working full time, some are health-related, some are for fun, some are business-related... all are, I believe, achievable in the next 12 months.  

I would love it if you shared some of your resolutions for the year!  Are you someone who works well with an idea as a resolution, or do you also need concrete, step-by-step goals? :-) I'll be praying your 2014 is peaceful, healthy, joyful and blessed!