Fresh Start...

Source: pinkofperfection.com via jennifer on Pinterest

Happy New Year!  I hope you all rang in the new year just the way you wanted.  We spent ours with good friends eating apps, playing board games in our comfy clothes.  It was awesome!

Yesterday, I found myself getting a little sentimental about 2012.  It will forever be one of my favorite years, I'm sure of it.  When I look at the ways God blessed us during the last year, I am overwhelmed with gratitude.  It was a good year.

That being said, I'm not sure I've ever entered in to a new year with as much excitement as this one.  2013 holds so much promise to be just as good, or better than 2012.  I'm beyond excited to experience it!

In recent years, I've stopped making resolutions, and started setting goals.  I try to set my goals with the following in mind:

1.  Make them attainable, but challenging.  I have a tendency to want to hold back a little, to make my goals a little easier to accomplish.  However, I've found that if I set my sights on things that feel just a little out of reach, it helps me get out of my comfort zone and stretch myself to levels I didn't know possible.  For example, a couple years ago when I set my goal to run a half marathon.  I was more than a little nervous to set my sights on that one, but I did it, and it will always be one of my proudest accomplishments.

2. Write them down!  It's not real unless you commit to it in writing!  It also helps to keep them someplace where you will see them regularly.  {this I completely failed at in 2012...I have no idea where my list went! Whoops!}

3. Be specific.  I find that saying things like "Work out 5 days a week" is way more likely to happen than if I say "Get in Shape".  I need specific actions to strive for.

I'm not going to share all my goals here.  Some of them aren't ready for the world yet, but I will tell you that one of my goals is to get back to blogging regularly.  I've missed it.  It was never that I wanted to slow down, but life just got in the way!  I'm determined to make room for blogging, because I love having a record of my life, and now that Isaac is here, I don't want to forget a single day!

I'll be sharing other snippets of my goals as they start to unfold...stay tuned!

Are you a goal setter?  Or do you make resolutions?  Tell me what you're striving for in 2013!

If you want to get excited about goal setting, go read Nancy Ray's post.  It got me all fired up, and I think it will you too.

Four for '12...

Pomegranate by jdavissquared  {see #3 below}

 
The interweb seems to be all a flutter with goals and resolutions as of late. I guess that can be expected. 

This year, I set alot of goals.  I'm expecting 2012 to be a pretty epic year!  I won't bore you with them all, but I thought I'd share four with you here.

1. Lose some weight {I know, original, right?}  It's no secret that I've been struggling with about 20-30 pounds for quite some time.  I am determined to see it go.  I had my fun with Christmas goodies and now it's time to talk business.  I downloaded the Lose It app and absolutely love it!  {If you're on Lose It too and want to be friends, let me know!}  I've had luck with counting calories in the past, and this just makes it 1000 times easier than my old notebook log. 

2. Record my debit card receipts once a week.  I always stick my receipts in my wallet and end up holding onto them for a month.  This means I have ALOT to record at once and it always takes forever and makes me crabby.  Plus, I'm pretty sure if I could see how much I'm spending, I'd probably make better choices. 

3. Take one Instagram photo per day.  {Which I still haven't done today....whoops!}  You can find me on Instagram as, you guessed it, jdavissquared.  Let's photo stalk each other, what do you say?

4. Observe the Sabbath.  One thing that became incredibly clear to me over my break is my need for down time.  Besides, who do I think I am?  If God himself needed a day of rest, why shouldn't I?  I want Sundays to be days of relaxation and family time.  I'm gonna make that happen this year. 

What's on your list?  Do you make lots of goals/resolutions, or do you stick to one? 

A Guest Post by AP from I Love You More Than Carrots....

Well, hello there! I’m AP, the voice behind the self-proclaimed sassy and snarky “Mom” blog, I Love You More Than Carrots. I’m absolutely honored, albeit a tad green with envy, to be guest posting for Jen while she enjoys a fabulous Girl’s Weekend Away. Just the sound of that makes me salivate and go weak in the knees for something bubbly and preferably alcoholic.
For those of you who don’t know, I’m the proud Mama of a beautiful 11 month old boy and 103lb. Old English Sheepdog. Throw Husband into the mix and needless to say, there is never a dull moment in our house!
See? Here’s The M Family, minus “Sheepie.”

 

I really admire J for completing her 31 before 31 challenge and it got me thinking. Sure, I have a few years before I turn 30 but I’m terrible at staying ahead of the game, so it doesn’t really make sense for me to make a list now. Chances are I’d start out strong and likely lose the list before too long. That’s pretty much the story of my life.
So after a bit of thought, I figured, “heck, how about a write a list of all the things I’d like to accomplish before the end of the week?” Clearly this is more my speed.
Without further a ‘do, here they are in no particular order:

1. Try at all costs not to lose my s@#$t. Well, I knew it wouldn’t be long before I cursed on J’s blog. {Sorry, Jen!} If you know me at all, s@#t-losing is an all-too-common occurrence. Here you can read all about what constitutes the losing of one’s well, you get it.
2. Try not to lose my child. Sure, you laugh now, but let me just tell you. This is highly possible and/or likely to happen. With a mobile babe running  amuck through the house and plenty of nooks and crannies just desperate for little bodies to sneak into, I may or may not have “lost” C behind the couch a time or two.
3. Cook something for dinner that doesn’t involve the Crock Pot. It’s a shame , really, that someone already beat me to the punch and created a 365 Days of Crock Pot Meals cookbook. They totally stole my thunder.
4. Try and wait until 5:00pm every day for that much coveted, much warranted and most delicious glass of wine. Okay, fine. Try and wait until at least after 2pm.
5. Steer clear of Etsy at all costs. With C’s First Birthday less than three weeks away, Etsy has been my best friend and enabler when it comes to party décor. For those of you wondering, C’s party theme is Vintage Carnival with a dash of Circus thrown in.
6. Make a valid attempt at changing out of my standard Daily Mom-iform. This typically consists of black yoga pants of the cropped variety and a solid color tank. On a special day, one of Husband’s old fraternity T’s may make an appearance. If this is not an ascertainable goal, at the very least, put on a clean pair of yoga pants.
7. Fold a load of laundry fresh out of the dryer. Not one that’s been cycled roughly 14 times.
8. And because I couldn’t just leave on an odd number, after letting Sheepie outside to do his business, remember to let him in. In a timely fashion.  

There you have it. Just a small list, right? For those of you who aren’t laughing, I’m only mildly serious.
A big thanks to Jen for letting me corrupt just a small slice of her beautiful blog with my senseless meanderings! Wish me luck as I tackle that list this weekend. We hope you had a fabulous time and can’t wait to hear all about it!

Dreams Versus Goals - How Their Differences Make Them Similar {A Guest Post by Ashley from After Nine to Five}

For a long time I considered myself goal-oriented. I thought I had enough goals that would get me through the end of time. Things like wanting to move someplace warm, working for myself, or finish college with at least a Bachelor's Degree to my name were my long-term goals that always stuck with me. But after a while, I realized my so-called "goals" were nothing more than dreams.

Some would say they are interchangeable - that they are both an objective that you hope to reach at some point in time. But over time, I realized there was a fine line for me. Goals had action plans attached to them. I had a clearly defined path of achieving it and steps to ensure I stayed on track to the best of my ability. My dreams were just that - thoughts of things I hoped to some day do, but had no idea of when or where. They brought me away from reality when I needed a break, but never did much more.

As soon as I realized the difference, I made a lot of my dreams into my goals. I plotted out my journey to move to someplace with a warmer climate and the courses I needed to take to obtain that degree. I marked milestones that I reached along the way to remind myself of the end goal and that it was no longer something I just dreamt about. And while these two goals have yet to be marked as complete, I did something monumental for myself. I made the dream of working for myself become a goal with a clearly lit path, just waiting for me to find the open door. I found it when I was ready with the help of many small goals along the way and can proudly say that I did it: I made a dream into my reality.

For me, my dreams will never be accomplished unless they turn into a goal. Unless they become that well-defined, thought out objective that I intend to follow from start to finish to see it through. So I'm sure to keep plenty of both goals and dreams - short-term and long-term. The goals keep me busy, leaving something to strive for and something I'm yearned to complete. But the dreams leave me wanting more from a world that I can't seem to get enough of.

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Jen here...I just wanted to say, that I love this way of looking at things!  Really, the only way to make your dreams a reality is to turn them into goals....totally makes sense!

Ashley and I stumbled on each other through the blogging network, and became fast friends.  I'm so lucky to call this lovely lady my friend.  Thanks so much, Ashley!

And readers, please go show Ashley some love:
Read her amazing blog.
Browse through her adorable shop.  {I dare you not to find something you want!}
Follow her on twitter.

Five things to make this week healthy and happy...

                 Source: thedecodetective.blogspot.com via jennifer on Pinterest

Happy Monday all!  I hope you had a wonderful weekend!

Sorry for bailing on you guys for the giveaway last Thursday.  I promise it will go up this week.  I just got caught up in Jon's surgery, and "real life" took priority.  I'm sure you understand. 

I never like Jon to be sick or hurting, but I have to admit, I feel so good knowing that I was able to take care of him this weekend.  There's something so rewarding when my inner nurturer gets to do her job.  I love my husband.

I was also able to pretty much step away from the computer for a few days.  I hopped on about once a day, but only spent a few minutes online.  It was so nice to get away!  I feel more refreshed this morning than I have in a long time.

That being said, I want to make sure I maintain my motivation and the good attitude I have going on right now, so I've set some "goals" for this week.  It's my hope that they'll help make this week healthy and happy:

1. Be in bed by 9:30pm every night this week.  I'm just a happier person when I'm rested.
2. Run 3 miles Tuesday and Thursday morning.  Not 2, but three.
3. Follow my cleaning schedule.  A little every night goes a long way.
4. Spend 30-45 minutes every night working on "business" stuff.  Including a tutorial for February.
5. Eat a salad with dinner every night.  I <3 salads, and they're good for me.

How was your weekend?  When was the last time you took a break from your computer? 

p.s. thanks again for all your well wishes and prayers for Jon.  He's doing well!  Getting better every day.

Happy New Year!

via on Pinterest

Happy New Year!  I hope you rang it in just the way you wanted. 

We had a quiet evening at home with some Jason's Deli take out and Eat Pray Love.  I read the book a couple years ago, and now I can't wait to read it again.  Jon was a little hesitant, with it being a "chick flick" and all, but I think he enjoyed it.  I know I did.  Absolutely perfect movie for New Years Eve!  I was already feeling the excitement of a new year, a fresh beginning, the promise of tomorrow, but it just ramped it up another notch. 

I woke up this morning ready to challenge my comfort zone.  Bring it 2011.  Let's dance.

We sat down yesterday and wrote out our goals for this year.  I'm always careful to make my goals realistic, but I think it's important to make them a challenge as well.  They're in the notebook now, in ink, so there's no turning back.  We have big plans for this year, both personally and professionally.  I can't wait to watch this year unfold.

I'm not going to share all my goals here in this place, but I will let you in on a couple of blog related ones.

1. I'd like to continue to bring you reviews and giveaways of products I think you'd like.  
{If you own a business, big or small, and would like to sponsor a review and/or giveaway here on jdavissquared, shoot me an email at jennifer(dot)mae(dot)davis(at)gmail(dot)com, I'd love to discuss it with you!} 

2. Once a month, I'd like to share a DIY project or tutorial with you. 
{This will double to help me find a creative outlet for myself that's not based on Etsy sales.  If one of them evolves into something, great, if not, I'll just have fun!}

3. I'd like to cultivate my relationship with you all!  I've been blessed with such amazing readers, and I want to get to know you!  Let's connect! {This is social media, after all.}  It's my hope that none of you would ever feel shy about commenting here on this blog.  Other ways we can connect:  Facebook, Twitter, Formspring, Pinterest.  Let's get to know each other this year!  ;)

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Have you written out your goals for 2011?  If so, I'd love to hear what some of them are!