MakingMine

Well folks, it’s that time of year again. The time to think about the year ahead and set goals and aspirations for ourselves. The time when no promises have been broken and we all get to start fresh. People across the globe set expectations for themselves for the upcoming year, and it turns out many of us identify the same areas for improvement within ourselves. Check out this list of the most popular New Year’s Resolutions. Unfortunately, the majority of resolutions are broken by February. FEBRUARY. Really?! Well not this year.

I have to admit, I’ve never really given much thought to New Year’s Resolutions, but this year I’m committing. Hopefully by broadcasting my goals to the web, you all will hold me accountable…

Joanna’s 2012 New Year’s Resolutions:

Mind

• Get a library card
• Read for *fun* for 1 hour (at least) 4 times a week
• Take a class on something I’ve wanted to learn, but didn’t have time for in undergrad

Body

• Exercise 5 days per week
• Complete Insanity
• Start a strength training program

Soul

• Try 1 new recipe per week
• *Create* something twice a month (craft, gift, DIY project for our home)
• Join a group/club/organization at Mt. Mary
• Blog twice a week
• Go to Mass every Sunday

And there you have it! If I’m able to keep even 1/2 of these resolutions (don’t worry, I’m aiming much, MUCH higher), 2012 is bound to be a top-notch year. Not to mention I’m getting married to an amazing guy!!!!! So what are you looking forward to in 2012? What are you going to create on your clean slate?

J turned me on to a great app for habits - building the good and breaking the bad. It’s the next latest love.

It’s called Way of Life, and the idea is simple: determine the habits you want to build or break and the track your lifestyle choices every day within the journal. When you do something positive (like drinking milk) the entry registers as green, but do something negative (like eat fast food) and the entry registers as red. You can then view your progress over time with a neat trend chart for each category. Tracking choices daily holds me accountable to my decisions. Some say habits take 21 days to make or break - we’ll see if that holds true for me!

Here are a few of the habits I’m working on building:

• Drinking more water
• Drinking milk
• Taking my vitamins (calcium and multi)
• Daily exercise

And some I’m trying to break:

• Drinking soda
• Too much television
• Drinking alcohol
• Stressed out