Sporadically Sandra

So, it's January 1st, 2012. It's a brand new year which means I have to do last years taxes, my vacation time has been refilled and it's time for me to figure out what I want to make of 2012.

Resolutions, goals, whatever you want to call them, I enjoy making them every year. I enjoy trying to better myself It annoys me when people get so negative on how stupid it is to make a resolution because no one ever succeeds, because it's such a negative viewpoint. Sure, I might mess or give up, but that doesn't mean even just trying to be better, isn't positive in its own right.

My goals for this year:

I want to be more fit then I ever have. Which, granted, won't be too hard since I've never really focused much of overall fitness even when I used to dance (great legs, weak arms). But I truly want to work on my overall fitness. I want to run, do yoga, strength train, jump rope, play, if it is movement I want to do it.

I want to get a handle of this whole food thing. I swing from being such a great eater to eating like total crap with no real happy medium. I really want to learn how to enjoy my food without having to over indulge in. I want to have a healthy relationship with food and not an obsessive one.

I want to do a better job of housekeeping. I want my house to be able to be company ready in 15 minutes or less. I don't have children to clean up after, so I don't have any real excuses. I feel like having a clean, organized and neat home will really help focus my life to be more organized in all areas.

I want to focus more on sticking to the budget. Although Joseph and I always get our bills paid, and always pay extra on whatever we might owe, after that, it can be sort of a mess. I really want to get true control over all of our money and not just what we use to pay bills.

4 Goals, that's what I want for this year. Those are the ways I want to better myself. I don't have to do it all myself, in fact the last two are things that Joseph has to help with and have a say with, but he also influences the first two because, well, I'm married to him and his attitude motivates me. I'm sure I will mess up, want to give up, and fall so under the bar, but that doesn't mean I won't better myself through the next year. I'm not looking to be perfect, I'm not looking to make a complete 180 from who I am now. I simply want to find a balance, a happy medium. I want to even out these areas of my life.

February Goals and Conclusions:

Make the bed every day of the month
This was definitely a team effort. Joseph helped or made the bed himself more than once in the past month. Often times we made it right before getting in bed just so we can say we made it. Although technically, yes, this goal was met; it was fudged a little.

Do something super special for Joseph once a week
I don’t know if I did something super special for him every week, but I did make an effort. I helped out with the dishes more than once. I made his favorite flavor of cupcakes. I made him a great Valentine’s present and cake. And I discussed on here how much he means to me.

Work out 14 out of 28 days
I think I actually worked out 15 days this month. I’m sure that is a new record for me.

Cook 1 New Recipe a Week
I didn’t really keep track of this. But, considering how much I cooked and the variety we had, I’m pretty sure this was completed. We had 2 different mac and cheese recipes, chicken spaghetti, cupcakes, cake, random thrown together and made up foods.

Do 1 day of C25K outside (Weather Permitting)
Joe and I did this together yesterday. It was a beautiful, sunny, chilly morning; perfect for a nice jog. We ran to a little park that is near us and back again.

Complete weeks 1-3 in C25K
Done! I finished the last day of week 3 outside with real hills and stuff. I was really surprised and proud that I was able to do it. It’s amazing that in just three weeks I can go from feeling like I was dying for running 1 minute to flying through three minutes of running. I’m not going to lie though, I’m already nervous about

March Goals

Workout 16 out of 31 Days
I’ve really come to enjoy working out. I enjoy the feeling of accomplishment. I enjoy becoming strong, bettering my endurance and knowing that I’m making myself better.

Make the Bed in the Morning
Although I would love to do this every day, I don’t want to be so focused on fulfilling the goal that I miss feeling accomplished if I miss a day. So, I would just like to make a concentrated effort to make the bed every morning, but if I forget, I’m not a failure.

Continue with C25K
Now that I am progressing into the harder weeks, I don’t want to set a goal of finish week 7 by the end of March, because I might need to repeat a day or so. But I want to continue pushing forward with it and I want to progress.

Move to Level 2 of 30 Day Shred.
This is a great DVD for working on strength training. It has a lot of classic moves and it does push me to work harder. Although it is not strictly strength training only, it’s probably the closest I will be getting.

Hike a Local Park *weather permitting*
Ideally I would like to explore Sweetwater or a park similar. Something to just get outside and have fun with Joseph.

Enjoy my anniversary!
Joseph and I have our 2nd anniversary on March 21, but we are celebrating the Saturday prior. Melting Pot and a hotel room!

Make it to Church 2 out of 4 Sundays
This is pretty self explanatory

I think it is normal for people to always strive to better themselves. Whether it be with what you eat, how you move or the things you think, there is always a way to better round yourself out. I think it is why year after year people still make resolutions considering the failure rate. The same logic is behind why someone would set monthly goals.


I’ve never set monthly goals before, but I have some for February!

1. Get through week 3 of C25K

I’m pretty sure I have never actually completed week 3 of Couch to 5K. Completing week three would not only give me a sense of accomplishment, it is also something I can realistically hit.

2. Do a day of C25K outside (Weather permitting)

Especially considering the beautiful weather Georgia had this weekend, I would love to actually complete a run outside. It’s been years since I’ve bothered to run outside and since I know I can get my husband to go with me, that will make it more enjoyable.

3. Cook 1 new recipe a week

Sometimes my menus can become rather redundant. This way I will be a little adventurous each week with what we eat. Hopefully we will be lucky and have lots of delicious food.

4. Work out 14 days in February

I figure aiming to workout half the days in the month is manageable and something I should be able to accomplish without feeling overwhelmed.

5. Do something super special for Joseph once a week

I have a super great husband. Like, super, duper great. He does so much for me and he does so much to take care of me that I could brag about it all day. I know sometimes I can take it for granted so I want to make a real effort to do something every week so he knows how much I appreciate him.

6. Make the bed every day of the month.

There is something about climbing into a freshly made bed that is fabulous. Joseph and I got in the habit of making it every morning and sliding into the bed each night, under the crisp blankets, is just pure heaven. It is a quick and easy way that makes the whole bedroom look more put together.

The new year is approaching quite quickly and I have yet to set any resolutions for the coming year.Things I would like to accomplish and work towards:

1. Have a closer relationship with God. It is something I have struggled with recently, not because of any reason besides just feeling disconnected. I would like to personally commit to spending more time in the word, on a hopefully daily basis, but any additional time I spend in it would be great.

2. Have an exercise regime. I would really like to exercise more and find exercise I enjoy. I like to run but right now I feel so big and heavy that it is hard. I found that I actually like doing the eliptical so in the coming year I would like to exercise more so I can feel like a more fit and healthy person.

3. Better eating habits. I have horrible eating habits and I would really like to gain better control over what I eat and not letting food control my life. I would like to find a balance between eating what I want to eat and eating what is proper.

4. Get debt free. I do not know if this is actually possible for us this year, but I'm going to try really hard. Currently we put an additional $600 a month into debt after minimum due and we are big Dave Ramsey fans. I would really like to be debt free (except the house) by the end of 2010.

I think 4 is a good number to end at. Who knows what I will want to add as the year continues!