2012 Goals

It's that time of year again! I actually love reading other people's goals, so I have decided to continue sharing mine. (In case you missed it, I followed up on how I did with last year's goals in the previous post!)

There are some big things going on in 2012 (ahem, our wedding!) so I tried to make this list not too overwhelming..."tried" being the operative word.

Let's start with the big stuff and work our way down, shall we?

Have fun getting married! - I really, really, really don't want to be stressed about our wedding. I know that might seem impossible considering everything we're planning to do ourselves (have I mentioned that we're catering our own wedding? No?? Yeah...), but I'm planning to try. There is definitely a level of stress that is acceptable - I like to organize details and I'm not ok with just putting our wedding in someone else's hands - but I just never ever want to get to the point where I'm moved to say things like "I don't even want to get married anymore!" or "Why are we even doing this?!" Is that too much to ask?

Find a new job. - Gulp. After a failed attempt to find myself something more rewarding in my current position last year, I determined that I needed stronger language to get me moving. I was tempted to write "quit my job," but that means I could succeed at that goal by just sitting at home on my duff making $0. Which, Kate tells me, is not an option.

Go to Turkey. - My good friends Mine and Colin are celebrating their "big" wedding in Turkey this summer! (You may remember when I went to LA last spring for their "little" wedding.) We are planning to make this trip our honeymoon, and I'm very excited about it. Putting a vacation on a resolution list may seem like a cheap trick (I mean, who wouldn't want to travel abroad?), but there are some budgetary issues and a giant to-do list that need to be worked through. I guess I don't consider it a done deal until tickets are purchased, passports are renewed, vacation time has been cleared, hotels have been booked, and dog-sitting has been arranged. Phew.

Set a PR at the Lincoln Marathon/Half Marathon in May. - Luckily I had the forethought to register for this race early when I kept hearing buzz about it filling up quickly. Turns out the 10,000 registrant mark was hit on Sunday, which is months earlier than last year! I have run the Lincoln Half Marathon twice, and it is probably my favorite race. It served as my first half marathon and my current PR! But this year I actually registered for the full marathon. I've never run a spring marathon, and I think training during the winter is going to be super challenging. However, I kinda like the idea of running a marathon a month before the wedding. Training will (hopefully) provide stress relief and (let's be honest) weight management before the big day. And if things just don't seem to be going well, Lincoln offers the option to drop to the half marathon at no charge/with no notice.

Learn to use my camera (before going to Turkey.) - I bought an amazing camera last year, but still have yet to learn how to use it. I've looked up a few things online and have gotten tips from some photography-adept friends, but I really need a head-to-toe tutorial. Luckily, when I purchased my camera (from Rockbrook Camera), I was given the opportunitiy to take one of their classes for free! (They offer this to anyone that purchases a new camera from their store.) Now I just need to check out the calendar and make an appointment. Yes, before going to Turkey.

Have one extragavent "this is my ideal Lizz" day per month. - I am a creature of habit...and I'm worried it's making me boring. I realized lately that sometimes I'll see something that I like, and then immediately feel like I'm not "cool" enough for it. Dumb. I want to explore these curiousties, excentuate the quirks in my personality, build up some confidence, and spoil myself a bit. This might include going to a movie and Film Streams and staying for the discussion, it might be trying a new style of clothing that I'd love to be able to pull off, it might be doing a detox day at the spa, it might be going dancing at a club. It will be doing something I'm attracted to but am afraid of for whatever reason. And it will reflect the girl I dream of being.

Do an adventure race with Kate. - There has been lots of talk about the Tough Mudder in our house lately. We recently found out that it will be coming to Omaha this year for the first time! Kate is all but signed up (they haven't actually set a date yet), but I have put up every resistance, as usual. I don't like jumping into something without knowing I can succeed at it, which is my complete source of hesitation. And it's something I'd like to work on. Why pass up an opportunity to try something new/fun/challenging just because I'm scared I won't be good at it? I've decided to commit myself to doing at least one adventure race with Kate in 2012. I can't say for sure that it will be the Tough Mudder because if it falls on, say, our wedding day or while we're planning to be in Turkey, I will not rearrange things for it. But it's still the most likely contender.

Wear a skirt or dress at least once a week. - I have definitely entered Schlumpville in regards to work attire. I have 2 pairs of brown pants, 2 pairs of black pants, and sweaters in every color that just rotate. I don't wear any makeup to work and I "style" my hair by either a) brushing it or b) putting it in a ponytail. I tend to say I'd rather spend the extra time sleeping than "dolling myself up" before work. But the truth is, I actually feel much better about myself and my potential when I put a little effort into how I look. So I thought taking a small step - like wearing a skirt or dress once a week - could possibly help me transition into taking more pride in my appearance.

So, there you have it! I think this makes for an exciting and fun year. Here's to 2012!