and finally, it’s the new year. tyler and i stayed up watching HIMYM on netflix (we’re almost to the end! ted mosby, hang in there!) and rang in the new year with a big smooch before we crawled from the couch to the bed. sexy, i know. :)

january is a wonderful month. my house is finally free of christmas (a holiday i’ve got a love/hate relationship with) and i can finally breathe again without all the clutter (aka festive decor) around the house. it’s refreshing to have a clean slate and a big list of goals. it’s exciting to look forward to the future and the wonderful plans it brings. i’ve noticed some people have words for the new year; themes they strive towards. i think that’s a fantastic idea.

so mine is simple, and it’s the first word that came to me. this year, alie, you’re all about renewal.

so step one, begin again. i’ve got to find the person deep down inside of me that tyler fell in love with. that fun-loving, crazy artist has been pushed to the back burner from all of last year’s crap (there, i said it!) and needs to resurface. last week i started painting again, have i told you? it’s really just little watercolor pictures and a few sketches here and there, but it’s lifted my spirits already. they are quite horrible but it’s my own fault for not practicing the past few years. i have plans for a trilogy of watercolored animals for jack’s room. here’s the first (and please don’t laugh):

in the spirit of renewal, here are my other goals, in no particular order:

-take my daily vitamins, especially 4g of folic acid, iron, and my super-B complex
-drink 64oz of water daily
-eat more leafy greens (kale, swiss chard, bok choy – i’m talking to you!)
-exercise 3x week (yoga, pilates, running)
-paint more often. draw more often. ART NEEDS TO HAPPEN.
-sew a quilt (especially excited about this one – i’ve already got the pattern thanks to a lovely Christmas present i received in the mail)
-buy a house (*possibly* – this one’s not set in stone because we don’t know where we want to be – east bay? in the city? stay in san jose? – but we’d love to buy a house by next Christmas. that is, if you can drag me out of our current home first. i do love it here so much!)
-expand our family (you read right. after a lot of horrible internal struggles and cryings and renewing, i DO want another baby. not yet, but soon.)
-be happier (this should come as a result of the above)

Here’s last year’s goals … did I accomplish them? Not sure.

” I’m not much into new year’s resolutions, but I have resolved to enjoy life more and to be happier with who I am as an individual. I’m trying really hard to embrace the imperfections and focus on being the best wife and mother I can possibly be. I want Tyler to look at me and know I am happy, and I want Jack to see me as a role model. If I’m not confident in my own skin, how can he be confident in his?”

what are your goals? does anyone else even make goals anymore?