Monday, December 31, 2007

Not yet a new day...

...but almost time to take a jump into 2008. I'll have pictures tomorrow because we're still enjoying friends, food, more food, drinks, and games. Big turnout tonight - like eight couples.

Here's to everything in the new year.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

One full year coming to an end...

This has been one random, up + down, decision-making, creative, in-the-moment, thinking of the future, crazy year. I wouldn't have it any other way. I started to do a year in review, but it's really hard to narrow down the events of this year - so you can go back and read my archives if you're so inclined.

In January, I picked a word that I wanted to focus on in 2007: DECIDE. It was the perfect word and just what I needed to live and learn during the year. I'm still indecisive when it comes to most things, but the DECIDE mentality has caught me in the moment many times when my attitude is poor, or when I just need to make a decision and do something. Here is what I wrote about my word at the beginning of the year...

And it really means so much more than just making decisions in everyday life. I know that's going to be tough! It also includes attitude (Sheri, here's some COM 102 for ya) because deciding to have a better outlook and attitude about things can change your whole perspective. I want to have an awesome 2007, make myself a more positive person, to be more confident, have a better life, have better relationships, enrich my faith, get out and do more, and only I can decide to do those things. To wake up and decide that it's going to be a good day. To look at the mess that's around my apartment and decide that it's okay because we are blessed with food that dirties our dishes, clothes that clutter the bedroom and laundry basket, and kitties so full of life that they fling litter all over the bathroom floor. Just to decide means so much, and I love it.
Here are some of the major decisions of the year...

Deciding on a design for wedding invitations and all other things wedding
Deciding to marry a great guy and best friend
Deciding on how to be the best wife I can be
Deciding to start our business and follow our dreams
Deciding to make a list of 101 goals to complete in 1001 days
Deciding to challenge myself with various little things (like the current blog goal)
Deciding to look at situations and events more positively
Deciding to acknowledge the blessings in my/our life
Deciding to have DECIDE in the back of my mind daily
Deciding how to balance everything in my life (this is infinitely ongoing)
So many more decisions that came into play...

Just deciding... trying to figure out how I want things to be, how things need to be, how I should spend my time, the direction I want to go with my life, trying not to be a grump when things don't go my way - or any way, and working on being confident in my decisions. Even though I haven't gone back and read my paragraph from January until now, I think I've done a decent job striving for everything I wanted 2007 to stand for + teach me + inspire me to be.

And tonight: I'm deciding to work myself up for a good night with friends. Really, I would love nothing more than to relax at home and watch the ball drop on New Year's Eve. But Dan has a need to be social and I should probably do the same. It's always the things I don't want to do that end up being okay (and sometimes really fun) in the end.

Tomorrow: Is the first of the year. A new start - love the motivating, fresh feeling of a new year. I would like to finish cleaning and organizing the office, and set up some more organizational tools. There are a couple other things on my mind for the first of 2008, and tomorrow will be the day to DECIDE whether I want to tackle them or not. Also, I thought I had my word for 2008, but now I'm debating between a couple that could prove to be even better.

LOOK! My total next to 2007 says 50, just like 2006. I plan to post later and beat my goal to the ground (instead of just tying it). I WILL POST LATER SOMEHOW. Post #17 here I come - maybe even with a photo of the festivities.

Sunday, December 30, 2007

One day left...

in the month of December. One day left to top my number of posts from 2006 - and this is number FIFTEEN OF SEVENTEEN. One more post and I've totaled my number from last year, two more and I've trumped it. I know 2006 is laughing at me right now, mocking and making faces, saying that I won't reach my goal, but watch when I conquer and kick its butt BACK TO WHERE IT CAME FROM! I'm impressed that I've posted nearly every day for the second half of December. I'm even more impressed that Dan has cheered me on for this feat - he's so supportive of these crazy things I do.

I'd like to say that I'll post nearly every day from now on, because I want to. I'd like to create that habit for myself. We'll see. I think I document a lot more that way, rather than trying to remember things that I did over a weeks' or months' time.

Yesterday - Dan and I went over to a co-worker's house yesterday so they could both change the oil in my car. We also had lunch together, which was really great to get together and chat. This guy has been such a blessing in our lives, and totally helps and motivates us with our financial plans. And IF left to my own devices, my car probably wouldn't have the oil changed for another few thousand miles. Somehow I think when I say, "hey, my oil needs to be changed soon" that some oil changing genie will just pop out of the sky and change it right there - or at least make my appointment for me somewhere reputable. Since no genie has popped out of the sky yet (at least not while I'm watching), and we don't live near a money-sucking Dodge dealer like I used to go to before moving to Kentucky, I'm glad that Dan is looking out for me.

After my car was roaring to go, we ran a few errands. Hobby Lobby was one of our stops, and while we went to return something instead of shop, we ended up finding some note cards and envelopes made of kraft paper. SCORE. I already loved kraft paper before this whole business and packaging thing came along, but now I have a pure obsession.

Speaking of obsession, we also stopped at Starbuck's on the way back from our errands and I tried a gingerbread latte (with soy, half-caff... more adjectives than syllables in the drink). Mmmm, that stuff is like taking a little gingerbread man and drowning him in your coffee. Not that I'm into gingerbread men killing, but if I was that's what I would do. I also heard that Scott and Mary Ellen had their own coffee stop for a peppermint white mocha recently and enjoyed it. ;) Just delivering the good coffee news to the masses, and emptying your wallets, that's what I do.

Last night while I was half-caffed up, I got the idea to clean our office. I took 'before' shots, but I'm not going to show them until the office is finished. It's too embarrassing. I'm a pile-maker who's married a fellow pile-maker, and we make lovely piles together. You really could not see the floor in here, except from the doorway to the computer chairs. After my plow-through last night, we at least know that we have carpet in here and can see almost all of it. Just don't look in the living room because that's where the crap has been moved to until I can get the office in an organized state and start to move things back in.

Today I slept longer than I wanted to - no surprise. I made a quick breakfast (brunch) and we headed out to the older brother's house that couldn't come to dinner with us last week. I have two older brothers. We were there for a few hours and exchanged gifts, and shared a lot of laughs. We totaled my mom and dad, Dan and I, brother + SIL + their three kids, and my other SIL + her two kids. The other older brother that came to dinner with us last week was out of town today. Have I thoroughly confused you now? The younger brother was working today, so he couldn't make it either. We got a gift certificate to BB&B which will come in handy. The monogrammed canvases I made were well received - yay. I also decorated monograms for the two nieces, and may have mentioned them, but never posted pictures. Here are those:


M for Megan.


B for Brittany.


Here's a gift that I made for Dan to go along with the Call of Duty 4 game I gave him for Christmas. I was holding it last night and thought my legs would make a nice shelf to take pictures. It's just a simple jar filled with little sentiments that he can read each day.


This is the back of the jar, stating that he's only to enjoy one message per day - or else there could be consequences. Dun dun DUNNNN. So far it's been fun to see him so excited to pull out a message every day.

Still tonight - it's already midnight but I'm trucking through to finish up Mandy's invites now that I have my final detail, and they'll be in the mail tomorrow! I might clean the office more, or start making a cover for this project. I got the idea from Elise to make the round Christmas tags for my gifts, and now she's starting a prompted challenge in OH-EIGHT to document your life from week to week. There are so many weekly things I've TRIED to do and failed, and I should probably only document life right here on this blog, but I'm intrigued. We'll see...

Time for a late rock and roll session to get things done - and another night of butchering my sleep schedule. Oy.

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