One Little Word for 2014

Serenity. My one little word for 2013 was Fearless. Every time I was faced with a decision to try something new, I always tried to take it. Sometimes I failed miserably, but I also had some of the best times of my life. I made new friends and laughed harder than I ever have before. 2013 was a pretty incredible year for me, but if I could change one thing about the year, it would have been the amount I worried. I worried about every little thing, including things I had no control over. So this year, my word is Serenity. This year, I want to stress less about the things I can’t change. Stress less about what people think of me, worry less about the things I can’t change and change the things I can. I want peace and calm. I want to feel free to be me.

Here are my goals for 2013 and what I accomplished.

1. Read 50 books. I read 110. 


2. Journal Every Week. – I completely failed at this. Utterly and completely. Anyone have great journaling techniques? 


3. Finish the novel I am working on. I made lots of progress, but alas did not finish. I actually ended up starting over. 


4. Visit a new place! I went to Denver twice this year. 


5. Finish my two quilts. Both completed!


6. Learn to crochet. Yeah…. no. 


7. Learn to use my New Cricut and my Cricut Cake. I worked with both my Cricut and my Silhouette a lot this year, but I still haven’t used the Cricut Cake. 


8. Create at least 50 projects. Done!


9. Teach my four-year-old to read. She is up to about 50 words, but not quite reading by herself yet. 


10. Exercise at least four days every week. I did excellent… until I got pregnant. Oh well. I am happy with the state I am at right now. 


11. See my pre-baby weight on the scale. I did it! Probably one of the things I am most proud of from 2013 because it was so much hard work. 


12. Get rid of 6 garbage bags of items. Declutter and organize. I did pretty good, but I look forward to nesting. 


13. Make and use a budget for me personally. Actually move money into our savings account. I did pretty well, but would love to do better. 


14. Photograph my daughter in at least four sessions, take a family picture on every major holiday. Lots of pictures of my little girl, I wish I had more of our family. 


15. Spoil my husband with notes and lunches he doesn’t have to make.
16. Finally blog the story of my illness in hopes that it might help somebody who is suffering like I did. I still need to get up the guts for this. 


17. Make at least one particularly fabulous cake. I LOVED the Dalek cake I made for my daughter’s birthday. 


18. Grow my blog. Grow my Facebook Page and My Pinterest. I am really happy with my blog’s growth this year. 


19. Be more open. Be more personal. Write more personal blog posts. I think I did better. This is still something I strive for. 


20. Be Kinder, More Thoughtful. This will always be something I strive for. 


21. Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose, Recycle! – I want to spend less money buying things I could have repurposed. I did really well here, but sometimes got carried away with repurposing as well. 


22. Do something amazing! Can I count growing a baby? 

My goals for 2014

1. Read 30 Books- I am really hoping to read at least 50, but I am going to be conservative because I am not sure how our lives will change with baby number 2. 

2. Journal Every Week. I really need to write some sort of family journal. My husband is fabulous at journaling, but we remember events so differently. 

3. Do more creative writing. Write at least one short story. 

4. Finish my projects for baby. (Wall Hanging and Mobile)
5. Make a baby quilt for the new baby. 

6. Declutter and Organize. Go through all closets, drawers and get rid of items. 

7. Destash my craft room. Make projects with what I have on hand. 

8. Create at least 50 projects.

9. Create at least 25 new recipes. 

10. Try something new. 

11. See my pre-baby weight on the scale, after this baby is born. 

12. Become debt free. I am not sure that this is actually possible this year, but we should be able to get pretty darn close if we can’t get all our debt all the way to 0. 

13. Save money consistently. We save money, but I would like to make sure it happens more frequently instead of just when we remember.  

14. Photograph my daughter and new baby in at least four sessions, take a family picture on every major holiday.

15. Be more consistent in my daily routine. 

16. Be more focused when working on my blog or Facebook Page. Plan out time to work and time to be screen free. 

17. Be more open. Be more personal. Write more personal blog posts. 

18.  Come up with a electronics balance that works for my 5-year-old. 

19.  Visit a new place. 

20. Make sure my family is always first. 

Here is to a year of serenity… Do you have a word for the year?