The Obligatory January 1 Post~

2008 was a mixed bag for me - it ended on a high note, but had one of the lowest notes of my life. My dear BFF died in September. She was my anchor and I'm learning to live without her guiding voice each day. One of our closest couple friends divorced. That rocked our world and totally blind-sided us.

I completed a long-time goal of getting a graduate degree. It's not for myself that I'm most proud, but for the example that it set for my children. I hope they take from this experience that we went through together that education is valuable, perseverance pays off, high goals are attainable with hard work, and it feels good to sacrifice for someone else's benefit. My oldest told me with a wink and smile - that what he learned was to get your graduate degree or degrees as early as possible because it's a lot harder when you're old. That's a good lesson, I think?!

One of my other dearest friend's son was diagnosed with a scary life-threatening disease. He is also a dear friend of my youngest. They'll need and get lots of support from us this year.

My mother blew through lung cancer like a hurricane. She came out the other side healthier and happier. She busted a 60-year smoking habit and hasn't coughed in months. I'm SO proud of her.

Tom's nephew made a perfect 36 on the ACT and is waiting for early decision at MIT. We're proud of him and all of his accomplishments - it seems unreal that he is a senior.

My nephew announced his engagement to his long-time girlfriend. We're so happy for them and can't wait to start the festivities.

My niece got married this year and is expecting her third child.

Both our boys made it through the first half of this school year with all "A" averages. At the little one's counseling session, I learned that he has perfect "A" end-of-year averages since he's received grades. I didn't realize they did yearly averages - I knew he'd never made a "C" but that was beautiful to see, but not as fun as seeing his face light up! Dang, I can't believe we set up his Junior High schedule. Time is passing by.

The passing of time brings me to 2009.

Any one who knows me knows that I am a goal-oriented person. I have to have concrete and specific goals and objectives. I rarely set resolutions on Jan. 1, but turns out that this is a good time for me to do just that.

I always look at my family and see how the three of them are fairing before I set any goals for myself. They need better nutritional habits. I hope to make more fruits and vegetables available. Santa already put vitamin supplements in their stockings. They are all three very active and in excellent shape. The youngest could use some extra emotional support while navigating the perils of seventh grade. I'll make sure he stays high on my radar this year. The oldest is putting too much pressure on himself and I'm having what I call "shorts" with him a lot lately. "Shorts" are quick but meaningful discussions. I've found that if I talk too much, it's less effective.

Tom's research and advancement is in full bloom and he's glowing in it. I'm proud of him and always look to him for encouragement and a good example for time management and work ethic. We're working together to find more time for each other and using it to keep the fires burning.

When I decided in 2001 to get a graduate degree, I stopped several other activities. I quit quilt guild, my vestry term ended, I stopped volunteering for PTA, I missed several study club meetings (they wouldn't hear of my resignation), and I stopped going to ECW. I hope to re-connect with some of these people with the goal of renewing their friendships. I miss them.

The goal that I'm most excited about is quilting. I hope to complete at least a quilt a month, maybe more. I've been making some connections with my quilting buddies and feel their compassion and enthusiasm seeping in already. I'm re-joining the guild in January, and have already joined the evening birthday group. I smile thinking about it.

~A goal here was deleted. I decided not to make it public afterall.~

Meditation and calming thoughts are skills that I hope to better develop this year. I know that I feel better when I practice centering prayer and calming techniques.

I want to join the beginners biking group. My objective is to work toward a goal of a more healthy lifestyle and I know that means being involved and connected to people with the same goal.

I want to continue with my online self-help course "Shrink Yourself." It's helped me recognize and work through my emotional eating habits. I highly recommend it to anyone who feels they have that issue.

I want to continue to focus on my weight as a source of unhealthiness, however I'm going to rethink how to do that. Right now I plan to use resources and challenges available to me to help set short-term goals. I'm changing my focus from weight loss to lifestyle change. Most importantly, I'm going to seek out supportive people who have healthy lifestyles to hang with.

Other things that I'd like to do, but am not setting as concrete goals - start or join a book group, start or join a meditation/prayer group, plan a regular girl's night out, plant more perennials, take a photography class, learn to swing dance, join the scooter club

AND spend more time condensing and rewriting my blogs so that they don't go on so~

Happy 2009! It's a good year.