A New Year

I haven't really been sure what I want to do with this site -- I initially set it up mostly to encourage my sister in law and friend to start blogging, which they both did.  I don't have the drive to do a what-I-ate-for-lunch type of weblog (been there, done that, still love reading them but don't want to write one).  CP and I have spent a lot of time in the last few weeks discussing changes we want to make in our lives.  We've started implementing most of those changes already, so they're not exactly New Year's resolutions.  Most of them are more like goals.  Nevertheless, I've decided I'd like to basically use this space as a self-improvement journal.  That sounds cheesy to me when I write it out, but fear of sounding or looking cheesy has kept me from being open about, much less accomplishing, many of these goals for a very long time.  It's not a healthy or a productive attitude!  Maybe one of my resolutions should be to not worry about being cheesy. (Edited to add: I came across Erin's great entry on this very subject immediately after I wrote this post!)  There are a lot of things I'm unhappy about in my life right now, and they're all things that can change.  It's not as though I want to grow wings and fly to the rings of Saturn!  So, in spite of my hangups and neuroses, I'm going to give this a go.  I think I'll start by writing a dedicated entry about each resolution.  But first, the resolutions themselves:

Lose 22 pounds. 
Integrate physical fitness into my everyday life.
Go on dedicated, out-of-the-house dates with CP twice a month.
Improve my emotional/mental health.
Procrastinate less and accomplish more.
Submit writing to literary journals or other publications once a month.
Connect often with family and friends.
Improve my financial stewardship.
Simplify and streamline my cooking and eating and my house.
Finish the first draft of my first novel.
Get my goofy but promising new website idea up and running.
Revitalize my spiritual life.
Love myself.

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13