Have you made your resolutions?
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| Happy New Years! |
At the beginning of the year I declared it would be a year dedicated to health and happiness and I believe I succeeded with both. I joined a new gym that I've really been enjoying. I've learned a lot about what my body needs to be fit and healthy and this year will be spent focusing on keeping my eating habits clean to ensure my body stays as healthy as possible. This is always a struggle because people try to sabotage my good eating habits by trying to get me to eat or drink things I shouldn't be. I'm a fairly small person as it is so weight loss isn't a priority, but staying lean and strong and keeping my body free of junk/chemicals is what matters the most to me. A lot of people don't understand this, they tell me I don't need to diet, I don't need to lose weight but that's just not the point. It isn't all about how my body looks, but also how I feel. After working hard for 6 weeks to eat completely clean before my trip to Hawaii, I let myself go wild with what I was eating and quickly noticed how awful I was feeling. Less energy, more stomach aches and definitely less satisfaction when I look in the mirror. For someone that has been sick like clockwork for most of her life, staying healthy is important. I don't want to put an abundance of bad food into me anymore. I want to keep my foods fresh, whole and home cooked as much as possible.
I would also like to continue working on my fitness, running especially. I'm still eager to participate in a 5km run and hope to achieve that this summer. I am also going to attend more yoga classes to not only help my body, but bring peace and happiness to the mind as well. To keep myself on track this year, I'm keeping a journal of what I'm eating, what exercise I'm getting and how I'm feeling. This will be not only to keep myself accountable but also to look for trends in the effects of what I eat and what I do physically. I only get one body and I intend to keep myself as healthy and happy as possible through diet and fitness.
2010 saw me start school again, four years after graduating college. I was bored of my current job and decided to enroll in an online certificate program for Event Management. I completed two of the classes and am enrolled in my third for the beginning of February. Following that I will have 3 more classes and a final project to go, which should all be completed by early 2012. Going back to school has been a struggle to balance on top of a full time job, the gym, personal time and spending time with friends and family. But I'm enjoying what I'm learning and hope that someday I can put my knowledge to good use. Along with completing my classes this year I hope to find some volunteer opportunities so I can learn some hands on skills as well. Since starting school I started a new position that has opened up new opportunities for me making the need for new skills a little less necessary. I am enjoying my job once again and look forward to learning and growing in my new position to help move up in the company.
As usual, I attended a number of amazing concerts:
Tegan and Sarah
Daniel Wesley
Billy Talent with Alexisonfire and Against Me x 2
Muse with Silversun Pickup
Our Lady Peace
Thrice x 2
Rihanna with Kesha
Warped Tour
Lady Gaga
Sonic Boom
Alexisonfire x 2
LMFAO
I usually average about a concert a month each year, and 2010 was no different. With each concert I attend, I fall more in love with music. It's an expensive habit, but it's one of my biggest hobbies and what my life is based around. I want to keep up with my blog more and continue to write about music. I love hearing feedback on my writing and other people's opinions when it comes to musical preferences. I'm sad to report that I have zero concerts to look forward to in 2011 so far, but I know that will soon change. And if it doesn't perhaps my credit card will thank me!
One of my major goals for this year is learning to manage my money better. I've been preapproved to purchase my own condo and am excited to put my money towards an investment rather than throwing it away for rent. I have two major trips planned this year, one to Mexico for my best friends wedding which I was able to pay for completely with money I had saved already. Thankfully I still have enough in my Trip Savings Account to pay for a few nights in Vegas for my 25th birthday party in September. I want to create a budget for myself this year to maximize my savings and control my spending habits. After taking an introductory financial solutions course through work I've determined an emergency fund should be something to set up for myself and need to start putting money away for that, as well as those additional expenses that come with owning a home.
I would also like to be able to budget money to be able to spend on more clothing throughout the year. Since moving into an apartment without roommates my expenses have been high and I haven't been spending much on myself. I am feeling really down with the current state of my wardrobe and after reading Lauren Conrad's Style, I want to make more of an effort with both my work and casual clothes. I've been toying with the idea of starting my own clothing club, getting a bunch of girls together monthly, each contributing a set amount of money monthly. At every get together a name will be drawn to win the money pool for the month to which they can spend on clothing for themselves. It's kind of a like a monthly savings plan to be able to go on a shopping spree once a year, but also an excuse to get together with some girlfriends!
While I don't make resolutions come January 1st, I do make goals for myself. I achieved my goals from last year and have a brand new set to look forward to achieving for this year. On top of my health and fitness and budgeting, I hope to create new memories with my friends and family and perhaps even work towards crossing new things off my bucket list!
I wish you all the best for this upcoming year and hope you achieve your goals or resolutions, whatever they may be!
Great post Becky! Now I need to look back and determine if I met my goals, and get on some new ones for this year. It looks to be a great one!
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