My New Years Resolution 2013: Constant Improvement

I love making New Years Resolutions. I love the blank pages of a new calendar year and I love to declare "Yes! This year will be different! This year is the one that I will be thinner/healthier/more successful". I usually have my new resolutions ready come January 1st and will happily declare them on the social media sites that I belong to. "I vow to lose 20 pounds!" "I will quit smoking!" "I will save money!".


This year has truly been a banner year for me. Granted, it started out rough. On January 15th of 2012 our former landlords came over for a "friendly chat" to inform us that their son and his family would be moving into our home of six years in less than two months time. I am already resistant to change and the fact that not only would I have to move but I would have to change jobs and my children would have to change schools paralyzed me. I was a mess for a while, I will admit that. However that rough start to 2012 ended up being a blessing in disguise for our family. In March 2012 my family and I took possession of our new home- the first home that we have ever purchased. The kids love their new school even more than their old one. Somehow I managed to stay smoke-free for all of 2012 and I have now been a non-smoker for more than a year. And even though it has nothing at all to do with resolutions that I have made, I was blessed with a new niece and a new nephew in 2012. Both of my younger brothers and their wives have become new parents and I couldn't be more thrilled for them!!

Taking all of that into consideration it took me a while to come up with a New Years Resolution for this year. Granted, I would like to learn to live a healthier lifestyle this year. After losing more than 25 pounds a year and a half ago and feeling fantastic I have unfortunately gained all of those back and am feeling sluggish and unhealthy. But that didn't seem like "the" resolution that I wanted to make. In setting goals for myself I was hoping for something more, and then it hit me. Last year when my husband and I were discussing a promotion that he was going for at work he told me that it was all about 'constant improvement'. Those two words, seemingly insignificant on their own, have stuck with me through all of these months and they have been playing on a loop in my head.

'Constant Improvement'. My resolution for 2013. Instead of pinpointing one area of my life that I would most like to improve I vow to try to improve all areas of my life. I will try to be a better mother, a better wife, a better daughter, and a better friend. I will aim to be more caring and less judgemental. I will try to help others. I will learn how to cook new recipes and I will read new books and I will become a better blogger. I will exercise patience. I will try not to be so short tempered. I will try to be more fit and I will try to make healthier food choices. I will make time for myself and I will do the things that I love to do. I will try to save money and I will improve my job situation. In short, I hope to be the best me that I can be at the end of 2013. The improvements that I make may not be that tangible. I may not get to the end of this year and be able to say that I lost 20 pounds or I have more savings in the bank or my life is drastically different but I hope that I can say, with confidence, that I consistently refused to take the path of least resistance and that I am on my way to being a better me as a result.