Ahh...A New Year

2012.  How the heck did this happen????  Doesn't it seem like just yesterday we were all freaking out that the computer programmers had "forgotten" to write code for the computers to switch from 1999 to 2000s and the power would go off, the banks would lose all their money, and the world was going to end??  Time goes by in the blink of an eye...

New Year for me always makes me look back at the year past, and look at things I would like to do differently moving forward.  I wouldn't call them "resolutions" per say, but rather, lifestyle changes I would like to make. If I call it a resolution I feel like there is a greater chance of failure, while if I am making changes, I just might not have made them fully yet.

2011 was a pretty intense year for me.  Without going into too much detail, the hospitalization of one of my kids, and two funerals for friends my age made me look at life from a different perspective.  Things that you think matter vs things that really don't.  In 2012 I want to spend more time doing things that MATTER. 

What does that mean?  Right now it means I have piles of laundry on my bed, because it matters to me more that I am going to take my kids roller skating, instead of folding laundry.  No one ever looked back at their life and said "I really wish that I had spent more time folding laundry."  The clothes are clean, and that will have to be good enough for now.

It means that I will drive myself CRAZY on the weekends getting my kids to their sporting events, because they enjoy playing team sports. They are doing things that are building life skills for later.  I will put up with "daddy ball" and unearned trophies, because my kids love to play.  I may even fork over another $20 for bobblehead trophies that will be broken within minutes of receiving them, just to avoid starting the conversation with the other parents about how this sets unrealistic expectations for life.

 It means that I will deal with annoying parents who criticize my every move, so that the kids at school will get better opportunities and experiences.  Most of the parents at our school are fabulous, so I can just focus on them, and push the wack jobs to the spam folder.


It means that YET AGAIN I will make the decision to eat healthier, and exercise more.  This is the "resolution" that never changes. No matter what, I want to make sure that I am around for years to come for the kids, and that they pick up healthy habits for life from me. (Of course, they could always pick up the habit of eating like crap from Christmas to New Years because they know come January the crispers fill up with veggies and the pantry is devoid of items without expiration dates.)

And I will continue to focus on my bucket list that I didn't finish last year.  Why should 40 be the end of it?  You know what they say......Life BEGINS at 40!!!