Kristie, as you may or may not know, is off on a road trip of sorts, and she has asked me to fill in for her today. And I am Jennie of She Likes Purple, but, what's more, I'm a friend of Kristie's. Not just in the blogosphere -- although those friends are invaluable, I can attest -- but in "real life", as well. I came to know Kristie in a rather unconventional way and you can read about that here or here, but no matter how we came to be friends, I am honored to know her, and she's one of the most fantastic people you could ever hope to meet.
So, I wanted to come here today to talk a little bit about resolutions. I'm torn on how I feel about this new years tradition because on the one, ambitious hand, I like the idea of putting out into the universe either through a blog post or a hand-written list or just a verbal acknowledgment how you'd like to improve yourself and your life in the new year but on the other, more pessimistic hand, I never, ever keep my resolutions. Just never. And why continue on with something with such a pathetic track record. Isn't that one such definition of insanity? Going about doing the same things expecting brand-new results? Each and every year I make "lose the weight!" resolutions and each year wraps up with me shaking my head and declaring "now, next year will be the year!" When will I learn, right? But I still kind of like the tradition, and I've been moved to make a few resolutions for 2009. I thought I'd share them here today and you could share yours with me.
1. Lose the weight! -- Oh, I kill myself. But, really, this year is slightly different than any other because I won't just be shedding those pesky 10 lingering pounds, I'll be (attempting to) shed the pounds I've packed on since getting pregnant mid-2008. My (first) baby is due this February (wow, next month) and once he's out, all those Reese's peanut butter cups can no longer be blamed on the growing boy in my belly. I have spent the better part of this pregnancy feeling rather uncomfortable in my skin, watching everything just grow and stretch and sigh under the newly-put-on weight, and I'm officially ready to be in shape, with a defined waist. Sure, I may end up disappointing myself yet again, but I hope not. I'm crossing my sausage-like fingers.
2. Maintain some sort of personal identity -- So, I mentioned I'm having a baby, right? Right. And he's my first (other than one very spoiled vizsla), and I have absolutely no idea how I'm going to do as a first-time mother. I have visions of doing it coolly and calmly and I have visions of curling up in a ball in the corner of our house begging for mercy. I imagine I'll be a mix of both, and I'm not all that concerned, really, but I do know I don't want to lose myself in the role. This baby is a gift I prayed for, wanted, tried for, but there are still many things I want to be aside from his mom. I hope when 2009 wraps up, I'll be able to be proud of the way I maintained some semblance of hobbies, interests, desires of my own. We shall see.
3. Embrace that not everyone will or should like me -- This is something we all should learn as early as possible. I'll be 27 in just two days, and I struggle with this daily -- hourly, even! You do not have to like me, and I do not have to do anything differently in order to convince you I'm likable. So easy to type out, right, but so much harder to incorporate into my daily life. I spend too much time worrying about what so-and-so is saying/thinking about me, and it's a curse, really. That stress does nothing for me, and it's about time I let it all go. I don't think it'll be easy, but I do think it'll make me a better wife, friend and mother.
4. Read more -- I work in publishing, I have a degree in English, I own hundreds of books. Yet, given the choice between a night with my DVR and a night curled up with a good book, I have to admit the book rarely wins. I want my son to enjoy reading, and I think the only way to really pass that passion on is to turn the TV off.
So, tell me, what do you hope 2009 brings? What do you want to be proud of when the ball drops on 2010?
Regardless, I hope it's a fantastic year for you and yours. I hope it's your best year yet, in fact.
2 comments:
Great post, Jennie! Good luck with your goals - 2009 is going to be great!
I love reading and seem to tell myself that reading blogs doesn't count as 'reading' but reading blogs leads to so much self reflection and as a whole the blog world that I roll in is so positive. Coule your blog reading get credit for being 'reading'? :)
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