Currently & Possibility

Trying out the "Currently" linky from Farley!

Listening - "The West Wing" is one of my all-time favorite TV shows, so I'm watching it again. On Season 1, Episode 2!

Loving - So amazing that we don't go back to school until January 7th!

Thinking - I get a brand new batch of students in all of my classes when the new semester begins (January 14th), so I'm thinking about what I want to do differently this time.

Wanting - Mmmm, hot cocoa.....

Needing - Gotta start the prezi for my grad school project! It's not due for another two weeks, but I better use the time I have now before work kicks back in.

OLW - POSSIBILITY!

I'll admit it, I love the beginning of a new year. A fresh start, a blank slate, a chance for anything to happen over the next twelve months... all the cliches. As a result, like my friend Kelly I love making all sorts of lists of resolutions and things I want to accomplish. Unfortunately, I also have the tendency to be over-ambitious with the length of my lists which usually translates into very few items, if any, actually being accomplished. So a few years ago I changed things up a bit: instead of making a list of resolutions I chose one specific behavior I wanted to work on every day. Then each year I added one more, while keeping the previous one. A look back:

2009 New Year's Resolution: Make my bed every morning. Seriously. ACCOMPLISHED! I actually did make my bed every single morning in 2009. It probably took about three months before it became automatic, but after that point it was just part of my routine. Since getting married things have changed a bit, since I usually leave for work before he's up, but I'm still pretty good about it on weekends and other days off.

2010 New Year's Resolution: Pray every morning. ACCOMPLISHED! While it sounds odd, I pray every morning while brushing my teeth (I trust that God can still understand me with a mouthful of toothpaste). In my medicine cabinet I have a list of "31 Ways to Praise" which is how I start out, then work my way from there. They aren't long prayers, but I still make at least that connection every day.

2011 New Year's Resolution: Set out work clothes the night before every work day. Makes my life much less hectic, and keeps me from accidentally awakening my sleeping prince. ACCOMPLISHED! Did not miss a day in 2011. The second half of 2012 was a little different. In our new house, our closet is actually in the master bathroom - because of the easy access to all of my clothes, I've become a bit lazy about this one. I will re-establish this habit this year!

2012 New Year's Resolution: Take a multi-vitamin every day. 99% ACCOMPLISHED! There were admittedly a couple of days I missed - usually on overnight getaways, when I didn't think to pack this particular item. But 99% is still pretty great!

So for 2013 I will work to continue these items, plus add the two that I blogged about in my first post. One is bi-monthly: donating blood six times this year. I am a huge supporter of blood donation, but unfortunately in the past living in a rural area and coaching was a combination that made giving blood as often as eligible not so possible. This year with no coaching and many more options for donations I should be able to do this easily. The second is daily, writing in my 10-year journal:

I absolutely love this! There is a page for each day, and on that day is a section for each year from 2013-2023. It's designed that way so you can start any day of the year and still get a full ten years, so by starting on January 1st I'll actually get eleven years into this book. After the first year, when I write on a day's page I'll be able to read what I was doing on that day every year since beginning the journal. Trying to imagine what will be in this book on December 31st, 2023 is an amazing thought - just think of the POSSIBILITY!