2011 - An Amazing Year

Throughout the timeline of my life, I will always look back on 2011 as a major milestone year. It was the year I committed myself to my partner for life and became a Nation! Every New Year's I always say, 'wow this year went by so fast. I can't believe it's already over!'  But that really could not be more true this year! Getting engaged in February, planning the wedding over the spring and summer, starting a new job in May, getting married and going on the honeymoon in August, and then before I knew it the holidays were here and the year is coming to an end. What an exciting year!

I am thrilled to see what the future holds for me and Chris, but I'm not in a hurry and I hope to just enjoy each day and count my blessings that continue to overflow. God is so great!

So for 2012, do any of you have resolutions? I like to make resolutions, but I call them goals instead. Chris and I wrote down our goals last new year's during a Barnes and Noble date. One of them was "Get Married." Ha! Guess we can check that one off our list!  Here are a few goals that I have for the upcoming year.

1. Become more involved at church.
Chris and I attend church on Sunday mornings. But that is about it. Before we started dating, both of us were heavily involved with both of our churches. I was helping with the youth group, attending Sunday School and Sunday and Wednesday night services. He was in the praise and worship band and also attending Bible studies. We both know that we need to re-prioritize and get more focused on becoming connected in our church. There are several young couples that attend, but Chris and I haven't really made that many friends. Actually, my best friend at church is the lady who sits on our row. Her name is Nancy and she is the sweetest grandmotherly lady I've ever met. After just a few weeks of sitting by her, she started telling me she loved me! I love seeing her every Sunday.

2. Be more health conscience.
We are actually pretty good at this one....most of the time. We cook healthy and lean most nights, but we both have a little bit of a sweet tooth. So after our grilled chicken and veggies, we are usually back in the kitchen looking for cookies! Lately, we've been fixing a hot tea after dinner and this seems to satisfy our craving for an after-dinner treat. Yeah I know, we're grandma and grandpa -- at least that is what my sister calls us!
We also need to do better with our exercise. My gym attendance is strong one week, non-existent the next! I hope to buckle down and get some exercise into my daily regime.

3. Save and pay off debt.
I can't wait til the day when we can scream 'We're Debt Free!' And thankfully, this goal is very close within our reach. I was going strong on my debt snowball (any Dave fans out there know what I'm talking about!), but this little thing called the wedding kind of put an abrupt halt on my progress. It may have even reversed the progress a little! But now that the wedding is behind us and the holidays are over, I am certain that we will focus on paying off the remaining debt and then build up our savings. I'm so ready for that!

4. Organizing and maintaining a clutter-free house.
Most of you know I'm pretty obsessed with things being neat and put-together. If my desk at work were covered in loose papers, I would probably break out in hives. I just like things being put away neatly where they are supposed to be. For some reason, at home, I am a little more lenient on my neatness. Don't get me wrong, our house is neat and clean... in the rooms that guests can see!....but sometimes I get lazy and let things behind closed doors (like the closets and garage) pile up chaotically! Hey, out of sight out of mind right? Well, hopefully that won't be my attitude this year. I'm working on organizing things while I'm on break and hope to maintain that organization throughout the year.

Those are my big goals/resolutions for 2012. Wish me luck! And good luck to you with your goals!