A New Year

Following in the footsteps of my friend Hillary, I'm writing down my goals in order to hold me accountable. I love that January stands for a fresh start and I am all about that these days.

1. More date nights. I saw this beautiful post on one of my favorite blogs, and it really spoke to me. When I was pregnant, Brian and I tried to go on as many dates as possible because we knew we would never have that kind of freedom again. Look at this picture of us back in early 2004 when we didn't have a care in the world! We were in Athens, GA.

Babies!

My dad sent this to me a few months ago, with the subject "cute." Maybe he was subliminally telling me something with this picture! When you become parents, the world suddenly revolves around your new roles and less around your old role of husband and wife. Sitting here thinking about it, in 2011, I am pretty sure Brian and I went on seven dates. SEVEN. In an entire year. Yikes. We've got to work on that. I want Preston to see his parents having fun together. 

2. Find something for me. This is another one of those things that is hard once you become a mom. I used to take time for myself all the time - an occasional pedicure, shopping, running errands, dinner with my girlfriends, etc. I swore that becoming a mom wouldn't change that. Boy, was I wrong! Now, I struggle with guilt... this is my thought process, "well, I really don't need that pedicure. I'd rather spend that on clothes for P. Or maybe on framing stuff for the foyer...." etc., etc., etc. Or  "I really don't need to go to dinner out tonight. P's laundry needs to get done, I need to spend time with him because I've been working all day, I need get Brian's dinner taken care of, the bathrooms need to get cleaned"... etc., etc. etc. I am constantly caring for others... time to take care of ME! I am REALLY interested in Pure Barre and thinking of going regularly. Or I may do something else. We'll see :)

3. Go somewhere fun. While P is under two, he can fly for free. This summer, we plan on taking advantage of that. We are looking for some fun destinations in the U.S. for us to go. Some of our research has lead us to explore some pretty random places. We'll see where 2012 takes us! Suggestions welcome! (Oh, and we want some water... and not California, cause that was our last big trip).

Portland, Maine

Virginia Beach, VA

Lake Michigan - Traverse City

San Juan, Puerto Rico

As a side note, traveling with kids is so funny. In doing research, we have to find a place with a balcony, so that Preston can still go to bed at 8 and we can have some time to talk and hang out without waking him. Oh, the things you have to think about!

4. Utilize the freezer. Because I don't get home on weeknights until after 5, and my husband and child have to eat (yes, they are in the same category!), I am going to fully utilize my freezer.

Just seeing this picture made me giddy. I purchased this book, and it has already taught me the basics. I have been pretty good about it over the past few months, but I want to get REALLY good. It saves so much time (and money), and that means everything to me, since I want to spend every minute I can with my adorable little boy. 

5. Work on my photo editing skills. Now, that I've gotten a better grasp on my Canon 40D and my lenses, I am really going to work on my editing skills. Might have to buy some software to accomplish this goal and stop relying on iPhoto :)

I have a few other more personal ones, that I know I need to work on. A lot of them revolve around the kind of mom and wife I want to be, and how I want our home to feel. Here's to 2012 and the start of all things NEW!