14 in 2014

Hey y'all,

I found out that I made some pretty lofty goals last year for my 13 in 13 goals but that's ok since I got close for some of them.Let's do a quick re-cap:

1. Grow in my faith and my relationship with God. 
2. Read 113 books. I changed my goal to 100 and I ended up reading 94 books so I think that is completely fine since only 8% of adult Americans on average read more than 50 books.
3. Try 113 new recipes. This was very lofty goal. I did challenge myself to try new recipes this year but 113 did not happen even with pinterest and checking out some cookbooks from the library.
4. Run a half marathon. I did run/walk a 5K this summer with my roommate but I haven't had the urge to begin training again. I have a half marathon on my 30 by 30 list so I think this will be on the back burner for a while. 
5. Lose 13lbs. Also something that didn't happen this year as I adjusted to living by myself I have since moved in with a roommate and got more active, I even have a dietitian but this is happening in 2014
6. Craft 13 things. 
7. Meet 13 new people.  Joining in with my church's young professional group, becoming a sorority advisor and new people at work I have extended my circle of friends in my postgrad life.
8. Keep a prayer journal for the entire year. Something I think of as a continuous goal, while I did not keep my goal for this year I did spend some time journaling my prayers but it was not throughout the entire year.
9. Buy a car.  You can read all about my car buying experience here and here.
10. Finish decorating my place. I have moved since last year but I have since begun decorating my current place and I am almost done decorating my room and the living spaces.
11. Go two months without unnecessary spending. I did limit some spending during the spring before getting my car but I have a friend who is currently not spending money on clothes for two years (except for gift cards) and she is helping me to challenge myself this year to cut off excess spending and focus on my financial savings. YAY for budgeting.
12. Send out cards.  While I didn't send out birthday cards to everyone I did send out my first year of Christmas cards. This next year though I have a handful of weddings, my baby sis graduates and more occasions for cute cards.
13. Have adventures. From beach trips, interesting times in downtown Raleigh, and many more I have tried to be open to saying yes to various adventures, which is hard for me since I love to be in 
    control. 

Now let's get onto my 14 goals for 2014:

1. Read the entire Bible. I have read a lot of the word of God but I really want to dig deep and read the entire thing.

2. Read 114 books. I know I fell short of my goal last year but I really think I will be able to accomplish this one.

3. Pay off 2 of my student loans. I have a couple small loans left that if I focus on saving and eliminating I will be able to pay off by the end of the year. It is just one more step towards becoming debt free by 28.

4. Blog at least 3 times a week. Work and life get crazy but I have already made a blog calendar for the month and I would love to focus some of my free time here to grow my little community.

5. Find joy in my job. I love my job but sometime you get so frustrated or bored you forget your blessings and all the great things you have going for you so I want to remain grateful and find joy in the little things especially my job.

6. Work on my health by reaching my happy weight. I have a particular BMI range I want to make it to an by working on the habits I began at the end of 2013 and sticking to my goal I hope to be confident, happy and feel beautiful in my body.

7.Keep up a daily devotional all year. I tend to have a short attention span with devotionals but this year I picked up Jesus Calling and plan to stick to it all year. So far so good.

8.Workout at least 3 times a week. This goes with the reaching my happy weight but I genuinely feel so much better after a great workout. To start the new year off I am participating in Tone It Up's Love Your Body challenge.

9. Cook at least 52 new recipes. This is one a week and I love pouring through cookbooks so I hope I can continue to use Pinterest and cookbooks to spice up my dinners.

10. Participate in the 52 Weeks savings plan. I know a lot of you have seen this on Pinterest but I need to focus my finances on saving not spending and this is an easy tool to save a lot of cash without feeling like all your money is going into savings.

via

11. Break from technology. I think we all in this day and age have a problem leaving social media and the rest of the internet but I want to remind myself to be present when with friends and unplug every night.
12. Run 2 5Ks. I want to challenge myself and a half-marathon is a lofty goal so let's start small.
13. No clothes shopping unless it's a necessity. After organizing my closet on New Year's I was reminded of all the blessings I have. I really do not need any more clothes and I will survive until I am at my happy weight when I am sure I will need a pantervention.

14. Remember to love fully, live simply and laugh often.

I think this song is my theme for the new year:

What are your goals/resolutions for this year?

13 in 2013

Hey y'all,

For those of you that believe that world is ending tomorrow thanks to the Mayan calendar, I guess I will never accomplish any of these goals but, since I believe that we still have one full week left in the year I thought it was time to start thinking of goals for the coming year. Instead of resolutions I think goals are more attainable and I have all of you to keep my accountable!

So here we go:

1. Grow in my faith and my relationship with God. This is one of my goals every year and it is one that I feel can never really end. I have already bought my new devotional for the new year and I am really excited about starting it soon!
2. Read 113 books. I am such a bookworm that I know that I can accomplish this goal and the number thirteen makes it festive. Plus, my GoodReads account really needs some help since my to-read list is almost 300 books and I always love suggestions.
3. Try 113 new recipes. Another festive number but with living on my own I have gone to the staples of pasta a lot. Time to spice things up and with the help of Pinterest, cookbooks & TV shows like The Chew, I know that I can accomplish this! It breaks down to only 3 new recipes a week and I count desserts and side dishes in the number.
4. Run a half marathon. 13.1 miles see a trend yet? I need to get back into running and since running a half marathon is on my 30 before 30 I thought why not tackle it this year. We shall see how this all goes but I know that I can do it since I have set my mind to it!!
5. Lose 13lbs. I know I want to get back to eating healthy and I have gained back some weight since moving out of my parent's house so I need to get back to eating lots of veggies and not eating so much sweets (my office's love of baked goods doesn't help) but the goal is one pound a month at least. Completely reasonable especially with drinking more water and getting active again!
6. Craft 13 things. My pinterest has a million ideas and I need to take the time and complete some crafts and feel accomplished. Not to mention goal #10.
7. Meet 13 new people. It is tough to meet new people now that I work a normal schedule and spend my evenings at home catching up on TV and reading it is hard to expand your friend circle and meet new people especially since I still have friends in the area.
8. Keep a prayer journal for the entire year. This is one that I want to start and continue for years since I know that I would love to look back on days and see the power of prayer and the blessings bestowed on me by God.
9. Buy a car. This is not merely a goal but a reality. It is in my 30 before 30 but I know that my parent's blessed me with borrowing their car this year and I have to return it this summer. But I am excited for this financial adventure.
10. Finish decorating my place. I still have a long way to go including a trip to Ikea but I am excited to finish decorating my place and making it feel like home. Plus I love crafting and I know that some Pinterest crafts need to be completed to finish off my place.
11. Go two months without unneccesary spending. I am thinking March and April. This will help my budgeting and help with saving up for my new car!
12. Send out cards. Whether Birthday, Graduations, Weddings, Christmas, Thank Yous, etc. I want to get back to the tradition of sending cards and best wishes.
13. Have adventures. I am leaving this one up in the air but I think that my Kate Spade idiom bangle from last year says it all "loose yourself in a good book...add a twist...play your cards right...make sparks fly...be as curious as a cat"

What are your goals for the new year?

Peace and Blessings,
jDl