Starting 2010 off right

This is something I haven't been doing...

Most people start off a new year with resolutions to eat healthier - the BF and I baked a cake last night and had a piece (or two) at 10 o'clock; start a workout plan - I did just find a new yoga studio on my side of town that I'm already loving, so one point there; or get more sleep - we've been up past midnight the last few night playing Wii or watching old episodes of The Office on Netflix (I got him hooked on my favorite sitcom, oops).

Then there's me. The girl who resolved to clean up her sailor mouth. Which, is going pretty well actually; aside from the moment when I woke up today and realized I'd slept an hour longer than I wanted to.

My attempts at starting work by 7 a.m. have been foiled by the late night Wii playing I suspect. Needless to say, the day started with a giant F bomb.

This morning the BF mentioned in passing that I should have made it a resolution to break my dependence on the snooze button and he's right...there are some things I seriously overlooked when making my resolutions.

Who cares if it's already the 6th. The point is, I'm acknowledging these weaknesses and intend to work on them in the coming months.

So there. *raspberry*

-Clearly, the first on the list is to stop hitting snooze. I'll allow myself one snooze per day from here on out.

-Drink more water - I feel like I've been dehydrated ever since New Years. The soda drinking has come to an abrupt halt as well, so that should help.

-Get out of debt - this is huge and really should have been at the top of my resolution list from the beginning. It's very doable.

-Be in the moment - and appreciate the moment. Even the not-so-great moments. We so often fall into the trap of looking ahead, and sometimes, dwelling on the past, when there are amazing things happening right under our noses in the present time. This is a piece of advice I recently received and it's a damn good one, if you ask me. So, I'm going to try to live by it!

-Actually stick to my to-do lists - I love making lists (as you can tell) but I often set them aside when I get busy. So, let's try this again. It certainly won't be happening with this list ;-)

There are a lot of current projects in the works so I need to make sure that I take care of myself and stay on the ball with these resolutions. Baby steps to improvement...

And, just for shits and giggles, here's a picture from NYE. It started out as a decent photo - then our friend Tim took a flying leap onto the BF.

How are your resolutions going so far?

Cheers!

-A

p.s. - by popular request, I'm starting to add a little more of myself back into this blog. So keep coming back to catch up on the shenanigans of my life.

2010 - Here I come!

Today I'm going to veer away from consumer reviews and take a look at everything 2009 brought. It certainly was a life-changing year for me, so much happened, so much changed and it's ended incredibly. It's safe to say I'm happier than I've ever been.

There have even been some recent circumstances that proved to me just how great things are now! But that's far from the point...

Today I'm looking back on some of those events that have brought me to where I am today and maybe I'll even put some of my resolutions out there for y'all to hold me to.

By the way, the inspiration for this post comes from a lost blogger buddy who I recently caught back up with on the 20SB network. He was missing my "old blog."

So, this one is for you Matt!

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I was thinking about going month by month here, but some months have nothing to report while others are jam packed with excitement. Then I contemplated numbering them, but I couldn't decide if I should go in order of importance or chronologically. So this is what you get. Deal with it.

• Spending 5 days in the Caribbean - This was in March/April last year. I learned that I shouldn't take trips during March Madness. I can't stand missing the games. I also learned that at least one full week vacation is needed every year, if for nothing else than my sanity.

• Making my first skydive - as y'all are probably acutely aware, this opened the biggest door of my life. Because of this tandem jump in Miami I have learned so much about what I'm capable of accomplishing. It also brought me so many new experiences: jumping from balloons and helicopters, meeting new friends, becoming a Skydiving Blogger, introducing me to the love of my life, giving me a community of people who encourage and support one another...the list goes on.

• Sticking to my vegetarianism - this is something I resolved to do last year and, aside from the occasional cheat, I've done a pretty good job. I'd like to get even better this year.

• Being a part of my big brother's wedding - this was an incredible weekend. I have a new sister and she's lovely! And Michigan State beat Michigan this day too.

• Getting a dog - and then doing the right thing and providing him with a better home. It wasn't an easy decision to make, but on the "trial weekend" Otis and I had, I learned that there was no way, what with my frequent travel and skydiving, that I could provide him the home he deserved.

• Going to Bridge Day - this year I was the personal photographer for my boyfriend at Bridge Day. There were some things that happened that will forever stay at Bridge Day, but needless to say it pumped me up for my first BASE next year. This was also the weekend of my first interview with Traventure Man - and the start of a new friendship.

• College reunion in Los Angeles - finally, the old college crew got together! We spent 5 days together in LA, where Chris and Jon moved after graduation. It was incredible. We even got to meet Josh Duhamel at the Dodgers game. We learned that none of us can drink the way we used to - some of us found that out the hard way. I hope we can do this again next year!

• Losing a friend - this year some of my friends and I went through the loss of a dear friend. Here's a little something about Dan. The community that came together to celebrate his life is incredible.

• Spending Labor Day at the Work Stinks Boogie - here's a great recap on that weekend.

• Moving in with the boyfriend - this is currently still in progress. Tomorrow is the final move in day and I couldn't be more excited.

So I have some lofty goals for 2010 - here's a snippet of what I'm looking to accomplish:

• Stop spending money during work hours - read: online purchases, trips to the snack shop. So much of my paycheck would be saved if I made my lunch at home and quit making trips to Starbucks. Office coffee is just fine - especially since it's free!

• Pull off a successful Jump for Diabetes - the BF hosted the Inaugural Jump for Diabetes last year and I sold a few raffle tickets. This year, we're partnering up to make it an even bigger success. Lots of planning to be done.

• Bring the cursing down to a minimum - my potty mouth has gotten bad. Really bad. It's not attractive and certainly something I'm not proud of. Naturally, there are moments where it is necessary, which is why I'm not resolving to quit altogether. Baby steps with this one - but I've been challenged, so bring it!

• Learn to snowboard - even if it's just enough to get myself down the hill for now.

• Grow exponentially as a skydiver - I'd like to become a better freeflyer, get my coach rating, dabble in freestyle, travel to as many boogies as possible, become a better freefly partner, gain strength, flexibility and control...so on and so forth. This also means growing my profile in the community as the Skydive Chick. Check me out on Twitter and over at my blog.

• Reconnect with my love for photography - I've just been plain bad about this. I'd really like to travel more, get some scenery. Maybe I'll head out to the slopes and take some pictures of the boy doing his thing.
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So tell me dear readers, what did you accomplish this year, and what are your goals for 2010?

Cheers!

-A