Happy New Year: Reflecting on 2012

Happy New Year!

Hope your New Year's Eve was fun and eventful. The hubs and I went out for dinner with some friends and then stayed in playing games and sharing stories. It was a fun time :) I'm ringing in the New Year with a new calendar, as always. Probably one of my favorite Christmas gifts is a calendar. I've always gotten one as a Christmas gift, and since my husband knows I love them, he got me this lovely Paris calendar. I am, without a doubt, obsessed with all-things-Paris. I won't grow tired of looking at this all year long.

Reflecting on 2012 

Anyway, I'd like to do some reflecting on 2012 before I let it completely get away from me. 2012 was an amazing year. I would say 2012 was without a doubt the best year of my life yet. Why was it so great? Here's some fun things I did this year that made it spectacular.

Beans

I started the year getting my now-best furry friend, Beans. I had never owned a dog before Beans. He was my birthday present in March. And he has turned my world upside-down in such a good way! I am smitten with him every day. He's changed my heart, warmed my life, and overall made me a happier, better person.

Getting Married! 

The single most important/awesome/life-changing thing that I did this year was marry my very best friend. Our wedding day was Saturday, June 16th. It was the day I had always dreamed of - but even better. We had a small wedding with very close family and friends at my in-laws beautiful home. I couldn't have asked for a better day, a better mate, or better weather (as it was outside!). It was the most special day of my life! 

So happy! 

Beans all ready in his bow tie!

Self-Discovery 

Something I had been wrestling with a while before I started this blog was the fact that I'm a perfectionist. 2012 was the year that I truly addressed this part of my personality and tried to learn more about how to overcome perfectionism. A big help in understanding this was reading the book The Relief of Imperfection. This book helped shape my views about understanding imperfection and begin to embrace them. 

I also worked toward deepening my faith this year like never before. Last January, my church has something called the ask, where we were to ask for something big over the course of a year. I asked to be free of anxiety and worry. While I am not there yet, God has shown me so much, drawn me close to Him in a state of dependency, and absolutely lessened my worry and anxiety. 

Fitness 

Another biggie for me this year was running my first half-marathon! Before 2012, I was not a runner at all. I typically hated running and wasn't "good" at it. I never thought I could run as far as 13.1 miles, but I did and I  hope to do it again this year! Along with the half-marathon, I also completed two rounds of the Insanity Workout. My fitness endevours were really through the roof in 2012 compared to any other year. 2012 was the year that I truly fell in love with fitness and pushing myself harder than I thought I could go. 

Last but not least, I also started this blog! I had been wanting to blog for a while, and in July 2012, I took the plunge. I'm so glad I did because blogging is truly what I love, what inspires me to keep going, and I love the community that I am becoming a part of. Although my blog is small-scale now, I truly appreciate each and every one of you that ever reads my crazy writing and leaves me comments. I have big plans for the blog for 2013, and I can't wait to keep on bloggin'! 

Overall, 2012 was a year all about progression. I learned so much about myself and what I am capable of. I have come so far from where I had been in terms of fitness, my relationship with the Lord, my personal relationships, and my overall well-being. Although it's hard work, everything I worked toward in 2012 was beyond worth it. I am so ready to tackle big things in 2013 because 2012 was such a success in my eyes. I can't wait to keep working toward a better me. Happy New Year & have a blessed 2013! 

• Question for you: What was the highlight(s) of your year in 2012? 

Home for the Holidays!

Good afternoon :)

I went on vacation to spend Christmas with my in-laws and it was a fantastic time! I was gone for over a week and I enjoyed a much-needed vacation. I just got back Friday night, so the whole weekend has been a sort of catch-up-on-life-before-it-starts-again kind of weekend. I think I did five loads of laundry yesterday? Yeah, madness. Anyway, here's some fun photos of my trip.

Me and Beans, snuggling on the couch, as usual.

My in-laws have a Great Dane named Tank, and yes, he is quite the tank. But this doesn't stop Beans from being best friends with him. They love each other. It's the oddest couple I've ever seen!

I almost didn't get these, but the crazy dog lady in me just had to get these Christmas pajamas for Beans. Here he is as "Santa's Helper." Worth it? Yes. 

Here is my awesome gift basket full of goodies from my in-laws. They are too good to me!

Anyway, the trip was great. I love going to my in-laws and escaping on a long holiday. I finished my book, ate way too much good food, and enjoyed time with family. What more could I ask for on a holiday? It's hard to believe the year is almost over (I feel like I've said that a lot before...), so some serious reflecting/planning is in order on my part. I've got a new workout routine for January and I have a whole slew of goals I want to set for 2013. I hope your holiday's were a blast and that your New Year starts off with a bang! 

An Early Christmas!

Yikes, was I busy the last week or so! Working nonstop, getting ready to go on vacation, and preparing for our early Christmas! I wanted to write this post the day we had our early Christmas, but life seemed to have kept me from blogging away. Better late than never! Anyway, because the hubs and I were leaving our place before Christmas day to spend it with my in-laws, we had to open our gifts to each other early. Don't mind if I do! We had our very own little mini-Christmas, and it was quite lovely if I say so myself. I wasn't really keen on the idea because I was concerned it wouldn't "feel" like Christmas. But we did everything we traditionally do: open stocking first, take turns opening presents, and then have a traditional breakfast afterwards. It definitely "felt" like Christmas, and for that I'm thankful.

It's funny because I stocked the Christmas tree full of presents all month until our Christmas, slowly adding more to the hub's pile of goodies. However, two days before we were supposedly supposed to open our presents, I still had nothing under the tree with my name on it. Grew me a little worrisome? Yes. Should I have worried if "Santa" would come for me? No way! Here's what lay under the tree to surprise me the day before we opened gifts:

Whoa! I couldn't stop asking," What's in the box?!?!" As soon as I opened it, I found out it was our fake tree's box and all my presents lay inside. Look how good Santa was to me! Thank youuu, hubby!

Pictured is... 

- two sweaters 

- Christmas kitchen towels

- my favorite bath bombs

- tons of my favorite foodie items 

- a Paris-themed journal

- a Beatles book called A Hard Day's Write 

- a travel size skin care set from Dermalogica 

- a new travel mug 

So many goodies! My favorite of all is my new running outfit: 

I am soooo excited about this outfit! I was seriously lacking some winter running wear, so this will come in handy for a brisk winter running season. The jacket is a VSX Sport jacket - lightweight but very warm. The running tights and shorts are C9 brand from Target. I love the C9 brand. It's just as nice as more expensive athletic wear for a more wallet-friendly price :) Anyway, I'm absolutely thrilled to have this outfit. Hopefully I won't let the cold be an excuse for not running anymore. 

To end our early gift exchange, the hubs and I made some of my family's tradition aebleskiver: 

 

More on that later! 

• Question for you: Have you ever opened Christmas presents early, and if so, why? Does is still feel like Christmas to you? 

Mulling Over New Year's Resolutions

Since the year is *gasp* almost over, I've already begun thinking about some New Year's Resolutions and goals for the coming year. 2012 was an awesome year, and I can only hope that 2013 is even better in terms of personal growth. I don't typically "believe" in New Year's resolutions, per say, but I feel as if a lot of things in my life are coming to a close now and I am moving onto a new chapter soon. So why not make some goals while I'm moving from one phase to the next? The New Year is always an excuse to make new goals because the New Year just brings a fresh breath of air to our lives. A new start. Ahh...

The only problem with deciding on a resolution is just that: deciding. I am terribly indecisive (probably because I worry I'd make a mistake and then things wouldn't be perfect). I can hardly decide what sweater to wear in the morning sometimes! Deciding what life goal I want for an entire year? That's another story! I've given this a lot of thought so that I can make up my mind... sort of. I'm thinking of coming up with a resolution (I really dislike that word) goal for each month of the year. Before the year starts, I can outline 12 different goals that I want to achieve throughout the year. My plan will be to focus on one goal each month, so as not to overwhelm myself. I feel that this method would be good and bad. It'd be good because I could actually take the time to focus on one thing at a time, esuring that it actually gets done. Sometimes, I get so goal-happy and want to do so many things at once that really none of them end up getting done. You know what I mean? So this method would force me to focus. But that's also a downside for me because I am such a motivated person when I set my mind on something that I think it would be hard to wait to do each goal. I would personally want to try and carry out each goal all at once because, once I know I want to do it, I think "Why not start now?" So this whole thing is kind of a catch-22 for me, but in my head, I know this method is the probable way I could accomplish 12 goals in a year for real.

I do like the idea of having goals throughout the year, though, so that I have the chance to work on different goals and so that I don't forget about that one goal I made months ago like most resolutions. Overall, I think it will be a fun way to challenge myself and be intentional with progress.

I haven't come up with a full list of goals yet, but some goals that I think will make my list are:

• Drink more water. This might sound silly to some of you who've heard this as a resolution by others, but I truly mean it. I used to be good about drinking a lot of water, but I'm not anymore and I desire to have that back. 

• Have a nighttime routine. I am a routine person, but my night routine is all over the place. I usually have to force myself to stop something that I'm doing and go to bed. I want bedtime to be a relaxing transition for me, not an abrupt stop to my day. I'm often on my computer late at night (um, like now...) before I go to bed, which is not relaxing! I would like to incorporate some reflection time in a journal, have a cup of tea, prayer time, or something blissful-sounding like that.

• Follow a prayer schedule. Another thing out of whack in my life right now is my prayer time. I do pray and often, but not necessarily about the things I know I want to/need to pray about. I tried to implement a prayer schedule in the past, but it didn't last. I'd really like to see myself get into a better routine with prayer so that I know Monday's, I pray about my family; Tuesday's, I pray about my marriage, etc. 

• Do a cleanse diet. The hubs and I have been talking this over for a while. I'd love to clean out my cupboards and start over. I don't think my diet is completely horrible by any means, but I'd like to try eating clean for real for at least 2 months. 

• Read more. Obviously, I'd have to come up with a better actual goal than just "read more," as that's a little ambiguous. But I do want to read more! This month, I'm doing Peanut Butter Fingers' book club and we're reading What Alice Forgot (which is so good!). Reading totally inspires me, relaxes me, and makes me a better me. In 2012, I did a lot of self-help reading, which is good to a certain extend, but as I started What Alice Forgot, I realized I hadn't read a fiction book in ages! I want to read a good balance of fiction and non-fiction in 2013. 

• Run another half-marathon. Yes, I wanna do another one. I will do one, and I can't wait! 

Anyway, those are just some of my thoughts for my New Year's Goals plan (I'm going to stop saying resolutions!). I'm going to mull it over more over my Christmas vacation and come up with a difinitive plan for the New Year soon!

[Thanks to Free Pretty Things for You for the banner] 

• Question for you: Are you making any New Year's Resolutions, and if so, what? Do you believe in them or think it's silly? 

Peanut Butter Cherrios & A Special Package!

Good Afternoon!

I've had a slow, but overall good day so far. I woke up not feeling my best at all. Everyone at work is sick/getting sick right now, so I thought for sure I would be next. I seriously struggled through my Insanity workout today and was thinking about quitting the whole time because I was just so sure I was coming down with something. But after a shower and some lunch, I felt a whole lot better. Today was one of my call in shifts, but I didn't end up having to work. So thankful! I really needed to go grocery shopping and having the day off when while I'm not feeling too well just sounded divine.

After I got back from the store, I was rushing to put all my groceries away so I could try the Peanut Butter Cherrios I got as a snack. But while I was rushing, I dropped my whole carton of eggs :( Oops! At least none of them completely broke open. They're all still useable.

I had been wanting to try Peanut Butter Cherrios for a while since a friend said they were sooo good. I love peanut butter anything, so I decided to treat myself (normally, I don't buy cereal with BHT in it, so this considered a "treat"). Unfortunately, I am not that impressed with them, though! I thought it would be love at first bite, but I kept eating and eating thinking, "Where's the peanut butter?!" I feel like they have more pb flavor dry versus in milk, so I munched on some more just dry to try and get my fix but was still left feeling like I needed a scoop of pb. Maybe I just had too high of expectations? Either way, I actually found them to be addicting and I wanted to eat more, probably just because of the crunch though.
So since I have those broken eggs and I am still craving peanut butter, I'm going to whip up a batch of peanut butter blossoms tonight. My Christmas Survey from earlier also reminded me that it's not really Christmas until you make peanut butter blossoms. I love those cookies!

On a fun note, I got my Christmas package from my mom today! Isn't it cute?

My mom is the most thoughtful gift-giver ever. Gifts from her are the best, especially when sent from far away. I opened the box, and look what was inside!

So many goodies! I can't wait to open them! And if you're thinking it's a little soon for a Christmas package, I'm opening everything early this year since I'm travelling. More about that later :)

Off to turn up the Christmas tunes and make those peanut butter blossoms!

• Question for you: What's your favorite holiday cookie? Everyone seems to have one! Share the recipe below :)

Fun Christmas Survey

I've seen this Christmas Survey floating around on some blog's I read, so I thought I'd give it a go as well. The original survey is from The Hungry Runner Girl.

1.  Favorite Christmas Album/CD/Song?

I was never into Christmas music until this year, but I admittedly love "Last Christmas." While some newer versions are good, I like Wham's version the best. 

2.  Run on Christmas morning or take the day off?

I've never worked out on Christmas. Thanksgiving, yes. Christmas, no. Christmas is for pajamas! 

3.  What do you usually eat on Christmas morning?

Aebleskiver! I'll blog more about this family tradition soon, but basically they are Danish pancakes. And they are amazing. It's not Christmas without them! 

4.  Favorite holiday or Christmas tradition?

Favorite Christmas tradition is opening a present on Christmas Eve and opening our stockings first. My sister and I also used to stay up all night on Christmas Eve together talking and being excited. Sometimes we'd wake up at 5 in the morning on Christmas and just go downstairs and look at all the presents before my parents got up (or before we begged them to get up really early). 

5.  Real tree, fake tree or no tree?

Fake. Easier, saves trees, less mess. And you can move the branches! My tree this year: 

6.  Christmas pajamas… yay or nay?

I've never had super Christmas-y pajamas, but I would not be opposed to having some. The closest thing I have are these gumdrop pajamas that were a Christmas present one year. 

7.  Where do you spend the holidays?  Your own house, your parents’ house, extended family, in-laws, friends?

When I lived with my family in Colorado, I always spen the holidays with them, just the four of us. We never travelled or anything. But now that I live in the North East with my hubby, we go to his parents' house in Tennessee for the holidays. 

8.  Food that you always have during the holiday season?  Favorite Christmas food/treat?

Aebleskiver makes this list, but besides that: hot chocolate, lots of cookies (especially peanut butter blossoms... mmm, I should make some of those soon), candy canes, and Sees candy. 

9. Open presents all at once or take turns?  Stockings… yes or no?

My family always takes turns. My dad always had to get a photo of us opening each gift, so turn taking was the only way to go. And of course, stockings! Beans even has his own stocking this year! :)

10.  Favorite Christmas(ish) movie?

I have to watch How the Grinch Stole Christmas every year. I just love it! 

I can't believe Christmas is less than two weeks away! So excited now! 

Your turn: go ahead and answer any or all of these questions in the comments or on your own blog with a link back! 

Daily Imperfection: To Work or Not to Work?

Happy Friday!

This has been quite a busy week for me. Lots of work, plenty of holiday errands to run, as well my "regular" errands too. My apartment is a bit out of whack - haven't vacuum in who knows how long, got some presents torn open by Mr. Beans. It all makes for a lovely sight! No idea why I thought I could get away with leaving presents wrapped in paper (Beans' favorite thing to destroy) under the tree! Here is the evidence:

Daily Imperfection: A Late Start

Happy Monday! It's a beautiful sunny day here in New England, and yet I have had the slowest morning/day ever! Today's daily imperfection is just that: a ridiculously slow morning. Some days, I cannot get into the swing of things for the life of me. I don't know what it is, but it's like I'm just not prepared for a new week. Thankfully, I have the day off, so I wasn't pressured to do anything by a certain time - or anything at all for that matter!

Today started off with me getting up with the hubs. I sleepily drifted through our morning routine to get him out the door, but as soon as he left, I took a nap with Beans on the couch. I know, I know - this is such a terrible habit! I hate going back to bed after I get up! I really do, but I did wake up with more energy so maybe I needed the rest after all? Either way, that throws off my whole morning because instead of starting at 7, I was starting out at 9, and then the morning just whizzes by.

I had the itch to redo the layout of the blog. That itch is pretty much relentless, so I decided to do it right then when I got up. This, of course, took quite a while. I took a basic layout but edited everything to my own color preferences and made a new header, etc. My eyes do not want to look at any more code for a while now! Whatcha think of the new layout?

Anyway, after that, I finally got around to my workout at 11:30! I always feel like such a slug when I don't whip out a workout first thing in the morning. I have the tendency to beat myself up about that. If I don't do something when I expected to, then it's "not as good" somehow. But in reality, I know it doesn't matter what time I do a workout or any activity - as long as I get it done and do it well, which I did. I'm on my last two weeks of Insanity - love it! More on that later :)

But here it is - almost 2 pm and what have I done? Redid the layout, did a workout, got showered and dressed, and ate lunch. Doesn't seem like much in my head, but when I put into words I realize hey, I did do something at least! Lately, I seem to let action dictate my self-worth or mood. If I've done a lot, I'm pleased with myself and at ease, but if I slack up (even for half a day) I tend to feel bad about myself and have less self-worth, which is so not cool! This is definitely not a daily imperfection that is easy for me to embrace or just get over, but by at least being aware of my tendency to feel/think like this, I can take steps toward freedom.

Lunch 

I don't blog about my food all that much, and the last few weeks of eating have been terrible for me (hello, Christmas cookies!), but this week I'm trying to really keep myself in line before I go on vacation for Christmas and have less control over my diet. Here's today's spread: Trader Joe's Black Bean soup topped with some Mexican cheese, leftover fruit salad (bananas, clementines, & strawberries), some unpictured corn chips, and some lemon water to stay hydrated. It's hard to tell, but you can see my candy cane straw in the Starbucks cup - finally got to break it out again :)

Now off to clean the apartment and get to Manicure Monday before the day escapes me! 

Is there anything that you want to become more aware about yourself? What are you attempting to change about your own attitude? 

A Lazy Sunday & Happy Weekend!

This has been a great, fun, and relaxing weekend in New England so far. Friday night started out with Christmas music, cranberry white chocolate cookies, and setting up our tree! I absolutely love setting up the tree. I've collected ornaments of my own since I was a kid, so I already had enough ornaments to fill most of me & the hubs large tree for our first Christmas last year. The tree is up now and the glow of the white lights is just magical to me on a cold night :)

It finally decided to snow here already! For days last week it was trying to snow with no luck. Just wasn't cold enough I guess. But it's no fun being inside dreaming of snow when it's cold out with no fluffy flakes. Yesterday morning I woke up to it snowing. I love the snowfall and when the flakes get huge. It snowed on and off all day yesterday. It didn't accumulate much, but was a pretty sight.

The hubs and I went up to Portland, Maine for the day - a super cute port city on the water that we'd never visited before. We went to a brewery, a famous restaunt called Duckfat. Apparently Duckfat was featured on CNN as one of the best places to get fries in America. They fry everything there in duck fat, hence the name. This sounded kind of weird to me, but it was great! I got some creamy tomato bisque soup and a grilled cheese. The fries were good, but fries just aren't my thing.

Today has been quite a lazy Sunday. Did some shopping, laundry, making a crock pot chicken and rice dish for dinner later, but also have done a lot of laying around. It's so perfect to me just to hang out in pj's (flannel pink ones at that!) when the weather is cold and it looks frosty out. But watch, come January when the weather is still frosty but the Christmas charm is gone, I'll be complaining!

Daily Imperfection: Bad Chocolate?

A random imperfection about today was this lovely advent calendar from Trader Joe's. I love, love, love Trader Joe's. This advent calendar was cheap and much more fun to look at than a fat santa or funky snowman for all of December, which is why I opted for this one over ones at other stores. And because it's from Trader Joe's, it's just better, right? Wrong! I know advent calendar chocolate is not the best and is sometimes pretty low quality. This chocolate however is terrible. I was so excited to open this (as I forgot to break it out yesterday). I let the hubs eat the first one, and before I could get to today's chocolate, he was already telling me how gross it was. I don't know what is up with this chocolate, but it's terrible! It tasted so off and like it wasn't even made of chocolate. It's so bad that I'd consider returning it, but I think it was only a dollar or two. So, with that said, we probably won't be using this advent calendar and I'll probably buy one of the "ugly" ones just so we don't have to eat disgusting chocolate all month!

Do you use any kind of advent calendar or have an advent tradition? 

Holidays, Reflecting, and Life Update

Well, hello there! I feel like I have been in a whirlwind since last week from the holiday! I don't know what exactly happened, but everything in my apartment was a disaster, I had no food, all my laundry was dirty, and yet I didn't have a lot of time to catch up so I was going crazy. Holidays tend to do that, don't they? With that said, despite all attempts to fit it in, Manicure Monday was a miss. My nails were left absolutely obliterated from work last week anyway. The long squared edge I was rocking is gone since all my nails broke. I'll take this non-mani week as a time for recovery for my poor tips and start fresh next week.

Despite all the busyness, I unexpectedly had yesterday day off, which was such a blessing. I grocery shopped, cleaned my whole apartment, did laundry, and a ton more. Love when that happens! And I did it all while listening to Christmas music! This is so random, but never in my life have I enjoyed Christmas music. I didn't grow up with Christmas music really, and so I guess it's just been kind of foreign to me. I don't know what got into me, but I decided to listen to some on iHeart Radio as they were advertising the channel, and well - now I'm hooked! I don't usually even feel "in the Christmas spirit," but this year is totally different. Maybe it's because I'm working in retail this year? I don't know, but I like it!

Anywho, during my day off yesterday, I did some reflecting. There's only 28 days until Christmas and not many more days left for 2012. Once the year starts wrapping up, I get the itch to reflect. Basically all of 2012 has been a year of spiritual growing and maturing for me. I've discovered so much of who I am and what I believe. I've also done a ton of exercising and really realized my love for exercise and running. And if you knew me say, five years ago, or even three - that statement would shock you. There has been so much change, growth, and progress for me this year. It's just neat to see a year coming to a close and to realize that it was a year truly well spent. I've also documented a lot of what I've done this year through photos and journaling so it's really easy for me to actually see all the progress instead of just relying on memory. A 2012 reflection post to elaborate is definitely in order!

As for blogging, I literally always have about a hundred blog post ideas in my head at once. I tend to write a few down and I'm lucky if I get to one. But then time passes, and all those ideas are usually not timely enough or would be odd writing about after the fact, so the go unwritten (oh, my writer's heart aches!). But I think sometimes I just completely forget to write personal posts, like this one. This post really has no overarching theme. It's just my life. And I forget that people not only post that on their blogs too, but that people want to read this kind of thing because, after all, I am a real person with a life. Something I did get done today was taking a new head shot for all my profiles and the blog. My old photo was over a year old and I wasn't a huge fan anyway. So there's one thing off my long blog to do list! What do you think?

Look for a very special blog post tomorrow! :)