Happy New Year!

Happy New Resolutions!

I recently saw a joke about how New Year's Resolutions are merely a to-do list for the first week of January.  ;-)

And, honestly, that has typically been what I've experienced with resolutions.  I'm so bad with them.  My intent is good, my spirit is willing...  then, I get half way through January, the shine and shimmer of the New Year has already begun to dull, and I'm back to my same old ways.  And my "resolutions" become just one more thing I didn't get to.  And, of course, THEN I feel guilty and unproductive for the rest of the year.  Stop The Insanity!!

SO!
I'm going to put it On The Line.  I'm putting it out there for all to see.  I'm going to put my goals, or resolutions if you will, on the blog.  Now, I will some accountability.  Hopefully, I haven't added undue pressure on myself.  We'll have to see how that pans out.  :-)  And, I'm going to blog more often, so that we can all keep up!

Whoops.  I guess the blogging more thing counts as a resolution, huh?  Hmmm.  Didn't think that one all the way through.  Well, this might mean blogs without pictures, because that tends to be what hangs me up.  I feel like every post should have some pictures to keep things interesting.  But I can't always get around to getting interesting pictures on there.  So I don't blog.  Turrible cycle, that.  Of course, blogging more than I did LAST year won't be hard.  I wasn't around much, eh?

So, my primary personal goal for 2012 pretty much revolves around improved health.  Here goes:
1)  Lose weight.

I know!!!  Stop yawning.  We ALL say it.  Every flippin' year, we say it.  And we really do mean it.  There are plenty of people who might recommend that I set a specific goal of X number of pounds.  Ehhh.  Maybe.  But I'm concerned that if I do that, I will get hung up on a number and won't focus on size.  Or, I will stop when I reach a certain number instead of continuing on.  OR, I will get disheartened because I slip up or plateau.  So, this time, next year, I will weigh less than I do now, which will be better for my joints and my spine and my overall energy level.  How much less isn't the issue.  I'm not going to have some enormous transformation by June or anything like that.  I'm just going to weigh less.

Y'all, I weigh more now than I ever have in my LIFE, except for when I was pregnant.  And, a great portion of that comes from a lack of the type of exercise that works for me.  Sooo.....

2)  Exercise more.

Yeah, you're yawning again.  That's okay.  This resolution glides very nicely right into the next one:

3)  Be able to do side splits and have at least a 90 degree arabesque again.

Ah HA!!  Now we're talking!  Now I'm getting specific.  It may take me a whole year, but I will get at least that much flexibility and strength back.  I will do different things to get to this point.  Stretching, exercise tapes, just doing barre exercises as I'm cooking tacos.  WhatEVer I can fit in around my particular schedule and needs.  I will do the best I can!

4)  Finally finish the Couch to 5K program.  I have started that program either 2 or 3 times, and I have stopped somewhere around week 4 almost every stinkin' time.  Why?  Am I scared of week 5?  Well..., yes.  Yes, I am.  But that's not why I stopped.  I let life get in the way every time.  Now, I will admit that it might take me all year to finish this 9 week program.  And that's okay.  I intend to have finished the program by this time next year.  That's all.

5)  Feel like I could dance with my brother at his wedding again.

No, no, my brother is very happily married and fully intends on staying that way.  But, if it WERE 2010, and he WAS getting married, I want to feel like I could manage to get through a swing with him without feeling like I needed to pass out just to feel better.  The C25K will help, but so will just dancing more.  I'm not entirely sure how I'm going to do that, but again, I'm going to work the details out as I go through the year.

One of the things that stops me in this typical January List Making is that I try to accommodate all the possible scenarios regarding planning exercise time around family, school, activities, etc.  It is impossible, my friends!  Not that I haven't tried to overplan in the past.  I have.  It's what I do.  So, I don't know how or when some of my exercising will happen, but I will figure something out.  No stress, no guilt, no beating myself up.  (That would be a great change for me right there!)

As much as I'd like to join the Y (and Jmk would be all behind it if I said we needed to), I really am unsure of the child care situation.  I'm not going to lie.  I'm worried about germs.  I'm not a germaphobe, really.  But, y'all, those places are breeding grounds for every single virus that is going around.  And when a kid gets sick around here, lots more than my "free time" gets put on hold.  Schooling tends to get put on hold.  And that throws all kinds of things off.  Bleh.  As flexible as homeschooling is, it also requires that I make decisions that support the home education lifestyle.  Right now, sick little kids would disrupt things in a significant way.  Sick older kids - not as much of a disruption.  But my babies are still little.  :-)  ::hug them!!::

So, ANYway, I really don't have concrete plans for dance related exercise right at this minute.  If I had access to a Mary Poppins, I'd go take (or maybe even start!) some adult ballet classes.  But I don't, so I won't.  However, now is not forever, and I don't know what kind of fun things the next year will hold!  As far as a diet plan goes, Jmk and I have decided to go with the well proven ELF diet.  Eat Less Food.  It works every time.  And, y'all, when you see me at a holiday function or one of my kids' birthdays and I'm having cake AND ice cream, remember that I said LESS food.  Not NO food.  ::grin::  Important, crucial difference.

Are there other resolutions that one would expect to be on a well rounded list?  Like, more time spent in God's Word, or building a photography portfolio, or learning a new language, or cleaning out clutter from the house, etc?  Well, of course, all those things (except the language thing - I'm so ambivalent about that for some reason.  Charlotte Mason would NOT be impressed with me) are certainly things that I strive to improve upon.  But, I've reached a point in my life where I feel like my health is important.  For me, yes.  But also for my husband.  For my children.  And it will be easier now to improve my eating habits, exercise habits, and strengthening habits than it will be even 5 years from now.  Thus, I'm going to focus on personal health for the next year.

As we travel through 2012, I hope to be more loving, more open, and more like the kid I used to be.  And, hopefully, there will be less of me in the process.

Oh, and apparently I'm going to be blogging more.  Fingers crossed on that one!