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"Jeffrey was fed up" by Marc Johns

I don't know how I feel about New Year's resolutions. Every year, I make one or six and I'm motivated... at the beginning. I plan everything; I eat better, move better, get more things done. By February or March, things teeter off and I'm lucky if I've kept any weight off or finished a single one of the 5 books I started. It always makes me nervous going into another year of resolutions, knowing how easily I lose sight of what I want. Yet despite having broken so many promises to myself over the years, I always try again.

But that's necessary, right?

This time, though, I think I will be less specific. Specificity is maybe the key to my failure. Sure, I want to lose 40 lbs (an absolute necessity after this gluttonous holiday season -- 20 lbs gained.... seriously), but that kind of resolution doesn't do anything for improvement of life; it's just a number. Plus, if I don't meet that exact goal, I'll feel as though I failed. Then what?

Making major improvements to my life is all I really want for myself, and what this year will be about. So with this list, I hope to guide myself into a 2012 full of health, happiness, productivity, and fun. This means focusing on the positive things, and doing more of them, and putting less energy into all of the negative things that get me down come December.

Stacy's 2012 Enrichment Goals

More walking with my dogs
More vegetables / water / tea
More experimenting in the kitchen
More reading
More writing / blog posts
More crafts / home improvement projects / building
More organization
More investing in beautiful clothing
More letter writing
More date nights
More early mornings
More gardening
More traveling
More museums
More money saved
More photography
More friends and family
More balance

So far, I've started my "diet" and am down a few pounds in just two days. (Seriously, people, it got bad this holiday season for me and my relationship with carbs. The temporary restraining order was necessary.) But I still have lots of changes to make in order to get out of my post-move funk, and it'll require a lot of inner motivation. Plus, working from home means there's always work I could be doing, which means my brain is always flipped to "work mode"... even when I'm not. This means getting more done during the day and leaving less to do in the evening.

Staying productive while being surrounded by distraction is still a learning process for me.

With that, I bid adieu to 2011 -- a year that was so good to me and proved to be a learning process beyond anything I could have imagined. Here's hoping that 2012 is a year of growth, love, and adventure!

::clink!::