Happy New Year

Happy New Year!

Even now that it's here - I am still having a hard time grasping the fact that it is now 2012.

Ca-razy.

We didn't get too wild last night.  Shocking, I know.

We had a nice dinner with friends, and then welcomed the new year at our house with games and lots of belly laughter.

Ringing in the New Year - Peters style

So, I've come up with a list of New Year's Resolutions and New Year's Goals.  And I thought if I wrote them out like this (versus just keeping them as a note in my iPhone) I may hold myself a little more accountable.

I made them two separate lists because I feel that while all resolutions are goals, not all goals are resolutions.  Hopefully that makes the same sense to you as it does me.  If not, whatev.

2012 New Year's Resolutions

- Walk the puppies at least 4 days per week

- Drink more water

- Drink less soda

- Attend newlife church services as regularly as possible

- Plan meals for each week prior to grocery shopping on Sundays

- Take more photographs/pictures

- Take advantage of hiking in the area

- Take vitamins everyday

- Paint fingernails

(I painted my nails red (Ruby Ruby) last night for NYE and loved/love it.  I can't help but feel a little sassy with red fingernails!)

- Make the most of each day

- Be thankful/grateful every day

- Make sure Ryan feels loved and appreciated each day

2012 New Year's Goals

- Start a family

- Complete two semesters (three classes) of graduate program so I will then be 90% finished

- Put a certain (to be determined) amount of moo-la each month into savings

- Accomplish a major-ish renovation on our house (i.e. new roof, new counter-tops and cabinets)

We'll see how these all pan out.

At church this morning, while writing out our prayer requests on our information card, I was a little stumped.  So, I wrote out some brief (and broad) statements:

- Start our family

- Make smart financial decisions

- Love and respect each other

- Health and safety of us and family/friends

Ryan whispered that he had a "good" one to write down.  He doesn't usually write anything down so I was very curious what this request may be.  I half expected him to write down, "I pray that Albert Pujols will be the worst mistake the Anaheim Angels ever made!"  But, when he gave me back the card, it said:

"I need to make eye contact with my Wife when we are having discussions."

How sweet and honest was that?  More honest than sweet, but still!

Before putting our card in the bucket, I wrote (Amen!) after Ryan's addition.

******

Did you make any New Years resolutions or goals this year?

Take Luck,

LP

Day 3: Hopeful

Day 3: Discuss how you hope your future will be.

The future.

I think about our future every day.

I really love saying our future.

When I think about our future, I think about a lot of things.  But in hopes of not producing another 30-something list... I can lump it all into five groups:

 family, happiness, success, health and love.

[Family]

It is no secret that we want a family.  It's also no secret that we want to start a family soon.  Ryan would become a Daddy like, yesterday (which I must admit just melts my heart) if it was up to him.  Even though I have serious baby fever, I am the one that is putting the brakes on the cherub creating.

I want to make sure that we have enough we time, before we make the commitment to raising a child.  I know there is no perfect time to create and raise kids.  I just don't want it to happen, have our life change (I've heard that happens...) and Ryan say (or worse, feels), "I wish we would have waited longer."

My hope is that whenever that time comes for us, I want our kiddos to have fantastic relationships with their grandparents, like I had with my Grammy.  I want to raise our kids to know discipline, know love, be respectful, and quite possibly above all - have some darn manners.

[Happiness]

I am a happy lady.  I hope to make the most of each day - even the bad ones.  The bad days make you appreciate the good days.

[Success]

I don't mean I want to be successful and make lots of money in my future.  Money and wealth doesn't define my happiness, or success.  Success in my future would mean continuing to grow as an individual, while growing in my marriage to Ryan.  It would mean starting a family and raising our kids to be humble and self-respecting people.  It would mean having a career and along with Ryan, being a provider for our family.

[Health]

It seems today that it's not a matter of if you will become seriously ill in your lifetime, but a matter of when and what the problem will be.  I have some health problems, but in the big scheme of things - they are small potatoes.  My hope would be that Ryan and I continue to be active and make our health and wellness a priority - and pass those priorities onto our kids.  I figure - control the parts of your life you actually have control over.

finally, [Love]

I hope love is always apart of my life.

Take Luck,

LP

Day 2: All About LP

Day 2: Share 30 "interesting" things about yourself.

Interesting?  

Totally debatable.

But I accepted this challenge - so list, I shall!

When I first started blogging, I produced a similar list, but will try again - and try for no repeats.

I make no guarantees.

Here goes nothing...

[1] I do not like talking about myself.

[2] I love musicals.

[3] I am fascinated by what people name their babies.  Sometimes I am more excited to hear the name than I am to see the kid.

[4] I get nervous and anxious around a lot of people.  Sometimes even a few is a lot.

[5] I am a list maker and planner.

[6] Growing up (and even now) I imagined ordinary cars transforming into police vehicles and catching speeders and bad guys.  It could happen.

[7] I am the kind/type of person who will tell you if you have food (or something) on your face.

[8] I hate traveling for work, but really enjoy traveling leisurely.

[9] I have an auto-immune disease; ITP (idiopathic thrombocytopenia purpura).

[10] I am a tell it like it is kinda gal.

[11] I am a movie quoter.

[12] I love singing in the car and in the shower.  They are the two places that I sound good.  Or it sounds good in my head.

[13] I like to zumba.  Even though I almost cried during my first class because I couldn't keep up with the instructor. 

[14] When I first started following blogs, I was apprehensive to follow the blogs of people I don't know.  I felt like a major creeper.  After awhile I figured some of them have hundreds of followers - what's one more?

[15] I should have never watched "I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant" on TLC.  That show = Paranoia.

[16] My lifelong dream of appearing on Saturday Night Live still remains.

[17] I try to think of fun/creative ways to tell Ryan and our families that we're expecting/pregnant (when that time comes), but I am afraid that when it does happen - I will be too excited and just blurt it out in a totally uncool and uncreative way.

[18] I am afraid of the dark.

[19] Pair my fear of the dark with my super-sonic hearing and sometimes I can really freak myself out.

[20] I love Target.  It can get dangerous if I am left alone in there unsupervised.

[21] Unlike most women, I have a really hard time spending any amount of money on purses and wallets.  I just can't justify (even to myself!) spending money on the things that hold my money.

[22] I really hope our kids get Ryan's teeth.

[23] I am pigeon toed.  It really stands out when I am tired.

[24] I cannot stand to eat or drink anything grape flavored.  But I love grapes.

[25] I am generally a very happy, positive and upbeat person.  Unless you call me honey.

[26] I avoid confrontation whenever possible.

[27] I love Christmas time.  Christmas trees + Christmas lights + Christmas music + gift buying = Happy Lauren

[28] I have never seen my Dad without a mustache.

[29] I love to bake.  Especially chocolate chip cookies, banana bread and monkey bread.  Those are the extent of my baking repertoire.

and [30] I wear size 10 shoes.  Sometimes I wonder if shoe makers/designers think that ladies with big feet don't want cute shoes like everyone else.

Well, there you have it.

30 "interesting" facts about, your's truly.

Take Luck,

LP