New Year. New Goals.

I hate New Year resolutions.  They tend to be something we are passionate about for a week or two, maybe even a month, and then they fall by the wayside.  I am, however, a fan of goals.  Is there a difference?  Yes, in my opinion.  A resolution often times seems to be something that we expect instant gratification from (at least that's how I see it).  A goal requires work, determination and change.

In our first house as a married coupe.
Xmas 2013

That being said, I have a few goals for the year 2014.

1.  I have truly failed at maintaining this blog since our return from Dubai.  I want to remedy that.  My goal is to eventually be back to posting at least once a week.  There is no reason this goal cannot be met considering at some point during my weekends you can find my butt parked on the couch catching up on Grey's or watching some other movie/show that is taking away precious minutes of my life that I will never get back.  (Grey's is so worth it, though.)

2.  Ben and I have both agree to do the 52 week challenge this year.  This is where you have a money pot that you add to each week of the 52 week year.  Week 1 - you add $1.  Week 2 - $2.  Week 30 - $30.  So long as we remember to put the amount in each week, this is a completely reasonable goal and an easy and great way to save money.  Hawaii 2015 here we come!

3.  True to many peoples' New Year resolutions, I have a 'lose weight' want.  But this is a goal, remember?  Not a resolution.  My goal is to become more active, fit and healthy.  Since our return from Dubai we have struggled to find the room in our finances to cover the cost of the gym.  We have decided that this is something important to our health and happiness and a gym membership is a must.  We tried a couple gyms, made a decision and went with it.  Now we need to work on making going to the gym a habit as well as something we look forward to.  I'm excited to get back into shape, feel fit and sexy, and to be able to wear alllllllll of my jeans again!  

4.  As new home owners, Ben and I have man projects we want to complete.  A few that I would like to accomplish this year are as follows:

Organize the garage

Organize our storage closets

Organize our pantry

Paint our bedroom(s)

Print, frame, and hang wedding and engagement photos

Frame and hang prints/pictures we have purchased in our travels

New couch, area rug and TV stand for the living room

I'm sure the list could go on if I sat and thought about it, but these are where I would like to start.  I was able to pick up a few frames from Michael's during their 50% off frames sale AND I had an additional 15% off coupon, so I'm well on the way to completing that goal!

$180 worth of frames for $70!!!! O YEAH!

5.  As I have discussed before, I have only completed an AA, not a BA.  I won't be able to accomplish the goal of obtaining a BA this year, but I could at least start the process.  Not only would having my bachelor's make me a more desirable hire, but it will make me feel more accomplished.

6.  Since we are living back in the States, and in Iowa for that matter, you have to be willing to seek out new adventures.  They don't just plop down at your feel like they do if you are abroad.  Therefore, it is my goal to explore our State and country more, look for new adventures in the familiar.

Those are a few of the goals that I (we) have for the year.  We have also made a few goals between us as a couple that we will be working to accomplish.  All of our goals are attainable. All of our goals will help to make us happier, healthier and more rounded.

 It should be a wonderful year!