goals

2017 wasn’t my year for blogging, my last post was from January of 2017 and here we are in January of 2018. While I’m not blogging as much, I’m not quite ready to leave this corner of the internet. After reading some blogs today I thought I would write my own thank you letter to 2017 presented as the top 5 of 2017.

5. Friends and Family- The picture above is from Savannah, GA where I had my bachelorette party. I was lucky enough to have five of my closest friends and my two sisters celebrate for a weekend with me in Savannah. Due partly to moving and getting married, the first part of this year involved lots of fun with friends and the whole year has included a lot more family fun than previous years.

4. Travelling- From our honeymoon in in Dubrovnik, Croatia to a weekend in Richmond, Virginia we have continued to put a priority on seeing the world and it’s been a lot of fun. I love experiencing how other people live whether its eating a fish with its eyes intact on a boat in the Adriatic sea or drinking sweet tea while shopping in Nashville.

3. National Parks- Our road trip this summer deserved its own number even though it could be filed under traveling. We took six weeks to drive around the United States checking out natural beauty. We visited 16 states, 12 National Parks, and 3 National Monuments. We hiked over 100 miles and camped in our tent 17 nights. We encountered a few bears and we had a fox run right up to our campsite. Some days the hikes kicked our butts, some days the drives between parks were long, and one day I may have picked a terrible hotel, but overall the trip was amazing. You can look at a map and look at pictures all day long, but you can’t grasp the grandness of the US till you drive and hike the miles.

2. Moving to KC- We took a big leap and decided to leave DC. I loved the friends I’d made there, but couldn’t shake the feeling that it wasn’t where I wanted to live forever. We both enjoyed our trips to KC and decided to give it a chance. After our road trip and a month of living in my parent’s basement we moved in to our new home. Moving from a junior one bedroom to a two story house with 3 bedrooms has been an adjustment. We are slowly filling the space and having fun decorating without worrying about landlords.

1. Getting Married- Planning a wedding was rougher than I expected, but the actual wedding was just what we wanted. We had our close friends and family, BBQ, beer, and dancing. All the things I worried about smoothed themselves out and I was surrounded by awesome ladies who helped with everything. We wrote our own vows and while I worried about reading them in front of a crowd, I saw Brian and everything was ok. Seven months in and we are basically marriage experts. haha. We’ve had a lot of change this year and I couldn’t ask for a better partner for it all.

I realize January is almost over, but while some people may have already given up on their goals I’m still making sure mine work! On my new board I listed some generic high level goals and then in my new bullet journal I’m trying out, I broke them down and got to business.

Be Happy- I bought those flowers last week on a whim. Flowers always seem like something you can’t buy yourself, but why? These were less than $5 and starting week two they are still making me happy.

Brian and I bought a new bed. A new frame and mattress. The day before the new bed came we cleaned out under our old bed. I hopped in bed and the bed collapsed, turns out the stuff we had stuffed underneath was keeping the bed together. Sometimes spending a little money can bring a lot of happiness.

Stress Less- Turns out wedding planning is as stressful as people say. It is just a lot of decisions and logistics, but also a lot of fun.

Run more- I got out of the routine, trying to get back in. Three times a week is the goal. I’m tracking it in the bullet journal, which keeps me more accountable. I’m focusing on shorter runs. The idea that 2 miles is worth it helps me fit in running at lunch or after a long day.

Get outside- I’m generally good with hanging outside, but in the winter time in the city… sometimes I like to just hibernate a little. But there is no bad weather, just bad clothing choices… right?

Take chances- I’m a classic over thinker. I would like to make choices/decisions a little quicker this year. And when I make a choice stick with it. Also worry a little less about what could go wrong and be a lot more optimistic about what could go right.