This Year I Hope To...

January 02, 2011

1. Get fit, stay fit
2. Keep a gratitude journal daily
3. Write a" that would be fun to-do" aka bucket list
4. Read more
5. Start a God Box <----click
6. Be present
7. Finish this list  <----click
8. .....

I started drafting posts daily after the 1st of the year and I SWEAR there are several still in the queue.  So I've decided to finish writing and get them posted.  There are a couple items of note.  I've been doing some housekeeping on my blog.  Lately I've been changing the "look" with the season.  It's a bit cumbersome and time-consuming but I thought it would be really fun.  So come on over and take a peak.  Right now I just have a pink florally-theme going on.  I was trying to do something with a Valentine theme but that didn't work out.

Also, I've added some tabs.

One is called "FIT" <----click and this is going to be an area where I record my progress for the year.  To help me stay focused on my one-word for the year a sort of one-stop shop to record my stats. My intention is to make it a daily journal BUT I have to back fill already.  Stay tuned for that because I have a lot of stuff I want to share. 

The next new tab is called P.A.D. <----click I've seen others participate in this and have always wanted to give it a try.  This is where you take a Picture-a-Day (hence the PAD part).  So far so good I have all of my pictures loaded here and am current with this project.  YAY.

A couple of others things that I really really like on my blog.  In the right sidebar ----> I have an area of all of my shared "links" <----click.  It's really worth checking out sometime.  Its blog articles I've favorite'd and shared from all of the blogs that I read through Google Reader.  While I am web-surfing if I see an inspirational idea, a color combo, a great sketch or even some decorating and fashion ideas... I will click on the "share" function and it populates in the right sidebar of my blog.  That way if I want to go back and revisit the article I was reading I can do so quickly.  It also gives a good feel of what me likey's if anybody's interested.

Well that's all for now folks.  All text post today.

A Year in Review

Write it on your heart
that every day is the best day in the year.
He is rich who owns the day, and no one owns the day
who allows it to be invaded with fret and anxiety.

Finish every day and be done with it.
You have done what you could.
Some blunders and absurdities, no doubt crept in.
Forget them as soon as you can, tomorrow is a new day;
begin it well and serenely, with too high a spirit
to be cumbered with your old nonsense.

This new day is too dear,
with its hopes and invitations,
to waste a moment on the yesterdays.

ralph waldo emerson

Well how exciting... its that time of year again and I get to pick my word for the year. I have to admit I have a bit of of a problem with this. Last year I waffled between the word "Focus" and back to "Simplify". Ironic because I didn't keep my first choice "Focus" because I couldn't stay focused on that word to save my life. I found out about doing this "one little word" exercise over here. Anyway, I went back to and kept the my word "Simplify" which I had been using for seven years. I really liked that word and it was fitting for the changes that I was going through in my life at the time. I had pulled up stakes and made a major move out to where I live now.... California and unintentionally had a lot of baggage to go a long with this move both literally and figuratively. It has taken me a good several years to go through said baggage and simplify IT. Good golly what a mess. But what a ride it has been too. I am happy to report I feel that I have scratched the surface and at least attained a modicum of simplicity (thanks to my family who helped (threw stuff out when I wasn't looking) me sort through most of my crap).

Good golly I still haven't settled on my word for this year yet EITHER. Here are the contenders

• Gratitude
• Fitness
• Grace
• Faith
• Optimism
• Allowing
• Do It (but that's two words and that would bug me all year and I would probably switch back)
• Believe
• Imagination
  

Every year about this time I embark on a whole new set of intentions for the upcoming year. I don't call them resolutions anymore because we all know we never keep any of those past the first two weeks of the New Year. At least I haven't. Intention is just a more fitting word... it seems to me... I downloaded yet another eBook to try regarding a formula for achieving BIG goals. The first exercise it suggests we try, is to review our previous year. Grrrrr. Already hating the exercise. But I'm a good sport so I push on. After all I am trying to set a good intention. Not so great starting off with my hateful attitude as usual. ROFL. Anyway, so I adjust my bad attitude and push through all of my major resistance. So I start here's the short list:

10 great happenings from last year...

I didn't get run over by a yellow bus
That tree didn't fall from the sky and hit me

OH I'm quite sure that's not what the guy meant and no matter how hard I willed death it didn't ever happen. Only the good die young... God must not be finished punishing me yet. Snap out of it

Ok rose colored glasses have been affixed. Pollyanna has arrived

lemme see, licking the tip of my pencil, lets try this AGAIN

Seriously I'd rather have a root canal than figure this list out. But it's supposed to help me FOCUS on great things to come. There's that word I was totally unable to do last year too.

Back to the assignment

10 great happenings

1. My faith
2. Simplicity
3. Designer Pottery Barn bedroom furniture (hey it was big for me since it was my first ever bedroom set that wasn't a hand me down or shabby chic cast off from someone else)
4. I had hot and cold running water
5. A roof over my head
6. I ate 3 square meals a day
7. I discovered a new papercrafting store
8. We all had our health
9. Great jobs
10. I live in paradise (hello)

I think its a lot that we take for granted and when you spell it out they are GREAT things.

Next part of the assignment..

List 5 lessons learned:

Stay tuned I am still working on my "year in review" grrr this stuff is so hard for me.

Then you move on to your intentions and alas those are also in the drafting stage.

I'm getting there

do it do it do it....

Coming up...

Wow I just thought about how quickly this year has flown by? It seems like just yesterday we were picking our "One Little Word" for the year ahead as found on Allie Edwards blog, "Capture, Create" scrapbooker extraordinaire. It goes something like this....

one little word

A single word can be a powerful thing. It can be the ripple in the pond that changes everything. It can be sharp and biting or rich and soft and slow.

Mine switched around A LOT from the word "Focus" (see this post) to "Simplify" and back again, and again, and again. I ended up reverting back to the word "Simplify" because obviously "Focus" wasn't working for me. I guess mine was of the rich and soft and slow genre' because I have had the word "Simplify" as my intention every year, for the past seven years now. It was rolled over each year because I felt like hadn't quite gotten "it" yet and felt I must obtained at least some semblance of "it" before moving on. The word "Simplify" equals clarity to me and if I wasn't clear that I could move on then I didn't want to. I dunno for whatever reason in my scheme of logical or illogical things I couldn't or wouldn't choose another word yet.... but this year.........YES I am happy to report I am "there". I am ready to move on. I've gotten things to a point where they are "Simplified" to my liking and to my tastes. It feels so good to say and "mean" it. I think it took on a life of it's own and it truly did ripple out on the pond and change so many things this year. They say...what you "Focus" on you attract.... whoa that's deep...there's that word "Focus" again. Maybe I was "Focusing" and just didn't know it. Yay. Anyway, this post took on a life of its own too because the original intention of this post was to remark upon how much inspiration is out there and how much I am enjoying it. Here are some blogs of note: Anyway, I like these (scroll down to the holiday planner) and these. One is Pine Feather, Poppy Paperie and Posy (scroll to approx 10/11 pic) I need those little houses. I am working on some projects that include elements from each of these posts and will upload photo's when complete. I am super excited about being back in my "art therapy" studio again. WOW I really really needed that. The lesson in contrast says to me ...balance and I should really really try and find time everyday to have a little art therapy and not wait so long next time.

Broad Spectrum

Ok I do believe my laser beam F O C U S (my word for the year) is more like a broad spectrum light all over the place or a FLOOD lamp. Everytime I see my F O C U S like a laser beam reminder it reminds me how fickle the mind is. Just thoughts.