7 Quick Takes: Goals for the New Year

It’s Friday, which means it’s time for my (semi-regular) Quick Takes.  This week, we’ve got a theme, courtesy of the fact that I happen to have seven New Years Resolutions.

1 – Have a baby

Starting off with ambition here, listing the one thing that is certain to happen.  It’s also the first thing that’ll get crossed off this list, and everything else kinda depends on its aftermath, so I feel okay giving it top billing.  We went to our first childbirth class yesterday, and thanks to a scale diagram in the workbook, January 8, 2015 will go down in history as the day Johnny discovered how big 10 cm actually is.  It was at that point that he looked at me and whispered, “I’m really sorry.”

This is not the same diagram, just the first thing that came up on Google Images. I’m never eating another bagel.

2 – Establish a good housekeeping routine

Will this be the year I finally stop auto-deleting my daily FlyLady emails?  Just maybe.

It was really nice to spend my Christmas break getting things done and feeling a little more on top of the housekeeping.  I was less stressed about things, and I know Johnny appreciated coming home to a house where dinner was usually ready and *something* had been accomplished.  It felt like a much more complete fulfillment of a vocation when I was putting forth a little effort to make a home rather than dealing with piles of chores only when they got too tall and fell over (figuratively and literally).

This goal is going to take a while with a new baby, and I’m okay with that.  Once I’m home from work all the time, though, I’d like to start with at least a one-item checklist of chores each day.  For my own sanity, I need to get in the habit of doing all the dishes before bed, and its high time someone started making the bed regularly.

3 – Read at least 15 books

15 is a low estimate for me, given that the last four years have seen totals of 23, 26, 25, and 22, respectively.  I’m building in some room for a tired brain, though.  So far, I’m off to a good start, with an emerging theme of Memoirs/Biographies.  It wasn’t a conscious choice, but I’m enjoying them all.

4 – Go to Confession at least once a month

This has been my resolution for several years, and it’s a good one.  Somehow, it still hasn’t become a habit, but I usually make at least 10 out of 12 times.  I don’t get any more specific about what time of the month or anything, so all I have to remember is, “Did I go to Confession yet this month?”  It’s also handy to know I’m correct just saying, “Bless me Father, for I have sinned; it’s been about a month since my last Confession.”

5 – Improve my food photography skills

This one should be fun.  I like to think I’m a pretty decent cook, and a good photographer, but I have never been able to get those two skills to work in harmony.  I know that part of the problem is our yellow dishes, which are cheerful and lovely but don’t compliment too many foods.  One of my first steps will be to purchase just one set of neutral dishes for photography.

I’ve also got a couple of food photography books on my to-read list (this one and that one, specifically).  I’m really looking forward to devoting some time and effort to this project – I can’t wait to look back at the end of the year and cringe over my old photos!

6 – Run a 5K

Well, I ran one last year, so I know it’s theoretically possible. I have this vague idea that my desire to start being more active will coincide with warmer weather, and I’ll bust out the Couch to 5K plan again (possibly starting at whatever comes before “Couch”).  Bonus points for doing it with a stroller.

Getting Mom a Fitbit for Christmas may have been a genius terrible idea, because I’m just competitive enough to feel the need to make a respectable showing.  The weather has made it tough to get any outdoor exercise, so I’ve been getting creative.  One night this week, I tried snaking through every aisle of our local library, but the aisles are so short that I just got dizzy.  Now, I’ve devoted myself to finding the longest, most inefficient route through my building at work, and then going to the gym after work and walking for 45 minutes or so.  It’s pretty much like this:

7 – Write at least 50 blog posts

Hopefully all of these resolutions will give me plenty of writing material, because I’m also hoping to write at least 50 blog posts this year.  Posting less than once a week doesn’t seem like much, but 2014 saw a paltry 24 posts (due in part to the Lost Summer of Sickness, but still).  Hopefully I won’t resort to wordless baby photo dumps (or wordless photos of baby dumps, for that matter), but I make no promises.

Here’s to a year filled with food, baby, reading, and blogging!

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