#Reverb13, Day 29: List It – Review of 2013 Goals

Throughout the month of December, I’ll be participating in #reverb13: Reverb is a way to reflect on the past year and project into the next year with a prompt a day for 31 days.  December is the perfect time to reflect on 2013 and start to create intentions for 2014.

Day 29: List It

List it | List posts are everywhere.  Top 10 Ways to be Happier Today.  Three Tips for More Energy.  Seven Ideas to Stay Focused.  Give us a list.  Of anything.  Your to-do list for the day.  Your grocery list.  A Buzzfeed inspired list.  Anything.

This post is actually perfect, because it’s time to review the goals I set for myself for 2013. Let’s see how I did:

1. Qualify for WLS. I met this goal in mid-March, just as I’d hoped.  I had my WLS on May 20th, and life has gotten better with each passing day.
2. Read 35 books. I did terrible on this goal.  I’ve only read 11 books in 2013, which is pathetic, especially for someone who loves to read as much as I do.  I blame this on social media, because I’ve gotten in the bad habit of watching YouTube videos before bed, instead of reading.  Definitely something to improve for 2014.

#3 and #4 were a way for me to fit working out into my school days:
3. A Days: gym (elliptical, bike, swimming).
4. B Days: grade until 4pm, one Group exercise class per weekday.
I did great on hitting the gym on my early A days.  I wasn’t so good about going to the one group X class, though.  Still I’m happy with the way I met this goal.

5. Saturday: Zumba, then 2 hours grading. I went to Zumba up until my surgery, and then haven’t been going since.  I just got out of the habit and replaced it with other exercises.  I also wasn’t good about going to grade regularly on Saturdays.  This is a good goal to revisit in 2014
6. Sundays: Lululemon yoga. I didn’t do this one very often.  I went to the free Lululemon classes a few times, but then fell out of the habit.
7. Try 6 Pinterest crafts; learn to art journal. I didn’t do this goal at all.  Although I did start scrapbooking, so I think that’s a decent start. Another one to revisit in 2014, because I really want to.
8. Keep up with Google Reader/blogs. I wasn’t great about this at all, which is upsetting.  I get so many supportive comments from my blogging buddies, and I need to be better about reciprocating.
9. Do something fun with other people every other weekend. I did great on this goal, especially beginning in the summer and continuing all the way through the rest of the year.  I think part of this is feeling more comfortable in my own skin, and how I look in clothes, so I’ve been more apt to want to go out and be seen.
10. Go to bed by 10pm. Didn’t do this at all. Maybe for one week in early January.  I’m such a nightowl, and going to bed late is a hard habit to break.  I don’t know if I even want to try to do this one in 2014, because I don’t think I can change.
11. Begin researching becoming a health educator. I didn’t do any research on this at all.  I’m still very interested in it, though, and will spend time this summer looking into it.
12. Take monthly progress photos, begin measurements. Another thing I didn’t really follow up on.  It’s difficult to find time to take the pictures because my sis is so busy. I have no excuse for not taking measurements, because I can do that on my own.  I need to do this in 2014.

And now, for #13, the big, scary, outside-the-comfort-zone goal…
13. Sign up Match.com in the fall; go on dates by December.  I signed up for Match.com in December with a Groupon that I’d purchased.  I got plenty of emails, winks, etc., but no one asked me out, so no dates as of yet.  There haven’t been many guys I’m interested in, maybe 2-3.  Everything seems to move really slowly on Match.  It’s been alright, but I’d much rather meet someone in real life and let it happen naturally.  I am ready to date, so hopefully 2014 brings some love my way.

Not too shabby.  I have a long way to go on some of them, but I did well with others.  When I make my goals for 2014, I’m going to keep things a bit simpler, because I think I set too many goals for myself that weren’t enough of a priority.  Something to work on.

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#Reverb13, Day 28: Tears

Throughout the month of December, I’ll be participating in #reverb13: Reverb is a way to reflect on the past year and project into the next year with a prompt a day for 31 days.  December is the perfect time to reflect on 2013 and start to create intentions for 2014.

Day 28: Tears

Cry it out | What moment in 2013 brought tears to your eyes?  Are you usually a crier?  Or did tearing up take you by surprise?

I’m definitely an emotional person, and there were tons of times this year that I found myself with tears in my eyes.  Most of them were tears of happiness or pride in the things I was accomplishing:

• I hit the 100 pounds lost mark
• I completed the Santa Run 5K at my personal PR of 48 minutes.
• I made it to Onederland

Other times they were because I was so moved by a story someone else was telling me, which happens all the time in my WLS support group that I attend the third Wednesday of the month.  Hearing about how WLS has changed other people’s lives for the better in amazing ways always gets me, especially if they get emotional, too.

Of course, there were plenty of times when I was watching a show on TV and got teary-eyed.  I don’t think I’ve ever made it through an episode of Biggest Loser without tearing up.  LOL.  What can I say, I’m a sap?

I’m happy to say that there were very few times when I cried tears of sadness, but even those moments are necessary in the course of a year.  Crying is a release, and we all need to release our feelings from time to time.  I’m not one to bottle up any of my emotions, so if that means having a good cry from time to time, I think it’s healthy.

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#Reverb13, Day 27: Laugh

Throughout the month of December, I’ll be participating in #reverb13: Reverb is a way to reflect on the past year and project into the next year with a prompt a day for 31 days.  December is the perfect time to reflect on 2013 and start to create intentions for 2014.

Day 27: Laugh
Pee your pants funny | What was the funniest thing that happened this year?  Was it funny when it happened?  Or was it one of those things you laughed about later?

When I think of this prompt, no specific event comes to mind, but when I look back at 2013, there were lots of small moments filled with smile and laughter.

• Sofi does things on a daily basis that make me chuckle to myself
• My nieces are full of life and they constantly make me giggle
• My family and I get along so well with each other, and we’ve been through so much.  We can die laughing recalling an old story.
• My students are hilarious and I love how often they make me laugh out loud.
• My friends and I are constantly cracking each other up.

I’m so lucky to have laughter in my life all the time.

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So silly that it’s ridiculous

Ok, you guys, I’m not sure what has been going on… call it a senior moment (except I’m only going to be 38 next week), call it a blonde moment (except my hair is black), call it being oblivious and stoopid (yes I know that’s spelled wrong – this mistake warrants misspelling).

For the past 3 weeks, or however long I’ve had the Wii Fit, I’ve been doing it backwards!

How is that possible, you ask? Well, when my dad and I were setting it up, I assumed that the power button on the balance board needed to face the t.v. so that it could “connect” to the Wii system. Seems logical enough, right?

Never did it cross my mind when I was doing step aerobics and it wasn’t registering my feet correctly, unless I missed a step and did the wrong foot.  It didn’t dawn on me when I was trying to do the balance bubble game and I kept having to shift my weight in the opposite direction from the way I wanted my Mii to go (almost like a mirror).  Not even when I was doing the EA Sports inline skating and had to lift the opposite leg whenever I wanted to avoid hay bails.

Ugh!

I’m not sure how or why, but all of a sudden, this morning at 7am, it occurred to me that maybe I had the balance board backwards!

All of this time I never noticed the little “Wii” that was imprinted on the board (and facing the wrong direction). I can’t begin to tell you how much of a fool I feel like.  But I guess I just did, didn’t I?

The good news?  I’m doing WAY better on all of the games now.  My balance wasn’t as bad as the Wii thought, now that I’m facing the right direction.

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