The Great Getaway

That is what I have lovingly named this weekend…The Great Getaway (cue vacation music).

Since starting my job back in August, I really haven't gotten a chance to stop and take a moment to breathe. Things kicked into full gear with work, then the holidays hit, and it's been busy ever since.  I don't say that to complain, because truly I've enjoyed every minute, but I have found myself feeling a little run down the last couple of weeks.  I've taken on some extra responsibilities at work, and even though we've had a couple of snow days recently, I haven't really had a full day off since Christmas. I've also noticed that the introvert in me has been screaming for some solitude lately, and well….being the front line person of contact in an office and living with your parents doesn't give much solitude :).

So, that being said, I decided a couple of weeks ago that I needed a weekend away.  A weekend alone, with no work, no responsibilities, and the freedom to just relax and refocus. I decided I'd come up to Greensboro, one of my favorite cities, stay in a nice hotel, sleep in way too late, watch way too many movies, order a little room service, read a good book, maybe go get a pedicure, dig into the Word, and just get away for the weekend.

And that my friends, is where I'll be until Sunday afternoon.  If you need me…don't call.  I'm safe, I promise! And, if anything happens I'll call mom...But really, I just need the weekend to myself.

Now I think I'll put the "do not disturb" sign out, draw the black out curtains, turn my fan on high, and crawl into this massive king size bed for the next 10-12 hours :). Goodnight!

Sunday fun-day

how's that for a cheesy title?  ha!

As the world watches the Super Bowl tonight, I'm sitting here with it playing it the background trying to figure out what this blog post should be about. Because lets be honest, I'm only watching for the commercials, half time, and the last few minutes. I've got to do something to pass the time in between commercials!  I'm such a girl :).


In other news…life is going pretty darn well (knock on wood).  I have to say I'm loving life right now.  My job is incredible.  I've been blessed immensely by this position, and every day I'm reminded by how perfect this job is for me.  Oh, and the perks of my job: incredible!!!  I got to meet Laverne Cox, from Orange is the New Black, last week, we've got ESPN Game Day coming in for the UNC/Duke game, and I almost got to meet Emmitt Smith last semester.  I'd say the perks are pretty sweet. But seriously, I love my job.  I couldn't ask for a better position, staff, supervisors, or work environment.  I absolutely love it.

I'm also doing pretty well on my goals for the year.  I've been keeping up with my weight watchers, and have lost about 5 pounds so far!!  It's been a slow start, but I'm progressing and that's what counts!  My doctor is happy with my progress too, and is also helping me keep up with my goal for the year.  I've been sick quite a bit over the last two months which has decreased the amount I've been able to get to the pool, but I'm hoping this is the last couple of days of sickness for the year!!  Mom and I will be getting back into the pool tomorrow and making it a point to go 3x/week this month.  Here's to hoping I'm done with sinus infections/the flu for the year!!

I'm also one paycheck away from paying off my first student loan!!!!!!! Can I get an amen?!?!  I'm so stinking excited I can't even tell you!  More to come on that soon!!!!!!!!!  I also did really well last month with decreasing my shopping and was able to start adding to my savings which will set me up for success on paying off my second student loan by the end of the year.  This is such a huge step for me, and one that I'm really excited to accomplish!!

I also think I'll be able to get an apartment early next year!!  I've been looking into some options in the area/looking into my budget, and if I can get some of these loans paid off these year it will really be an option!!

Other than that, life has been carrying on as usual.  No big news, or major announcements, which is why I guess I've been a little quiet lately, but life really is going well.  Let me know in the comments if there's anything specific you'd like me to blog about!

Enjoy the Super Bowl.  I'm gonna go watch some more commercials now :)

2015 Goals

As I was looking back over my goals last year and all that was (or wasn't) accomplished, I realized that overall having some concrete goals to obtain was really helpful for me throughout the year.  Last year was the first time I'd ever written out goals, let alone shared them with anyone, but I found that it kept me motivated and for the most part on track throughout the year.  Having some added accountability in place really did wonders for me last year.

With that in mind, I've decided to make written goals a tradition with the hopes that this year will prove to be even more successful!  Some of this year's goals are bigger, some are more specific, and some are broader than last year, but overall I think they help touch each part of my life that I'd like to make some changes in.

So here goes nothing....for 2015, my goals are as follows: (Items that are underlined & bold are my top goals for this year).

Health:

• Lose 50 pounds (no surgery plans this year so I want to get back on track!).
• Work out at least 3x/week - swimming, walking more, and starting some in-home exercises.
• Strengthen my core and upper body. 
• Make it a point to not eat out at all at least 1 week every month.

Finances:

• Pay off two loans completely.  
• This is a BIG goal, but one of my top goals for 2015.  Other goals throughout this post will be going to help make this one a reality! 
• Decrease areas of my budget as much as possible where I can (i.e. - money spent on going out, clothing, entertainment, etc).
• Implement the "Save the Extra" method.  
• Instead of rolling over extra cash from items in my budget at the end of the month, my goal is to now take that money and put it straight into savings so I can start saving up for my own apartment, trips, etc.
• Plan now for Christmas.
• My goal is to start putting a little aside each month for Christmas so that the "gifting frenzy" won't be as bad this year.

Home:

• Re-organize!
• This is an easy goal for me, but we all need those right?  My goal is to re-organize my closet, desk, and dresser to be more functional this week.
• Get tax items in order.
• I want to scan all of my receipts from Haiti last year into my digital system, and de-clutter that area of my life.  Yay for less clutter!
• Get all of my items for 2014 taxes in order, scanned, and ready to be filed come February.
• Gather all of my items stored upstairs and down at home, inventory them, and have Dad store them all together in one place.
• This may be wishful thinking, but having my stuff strewn about 100 places makes me anxious, so this would be a huge weight lifted!  Plus it'd be nice to know what all I have whenever the day comes that an apartment is an option :).

Personal:

• Contentment Challenge. 
• After all of the buzz of the Holiday's, I keep finding myself feeling very discontent and it's been tugging at my heart.  So, I've decided to make contentment one of my major goals this year.   Some ways I'll be doing that are:
• Digging into God's word.
• De-cluttering my inbox and social media sites by removing/unsubscribing from all unnecessary shopping ads.  There are very few that I actually shop at regularly and the rest are just constant temptations that need to be removed.
• Limiting online shopping.
• Limiting my non-essential shopping trips.
• Eating at home vs going out.

• Read more.
• Read at least 6 books this year (one every other month).
• Continue to decrease my time on social media.
• Invest more time into local missions and volunteer work.
• Help youth at Church with their fundraising efforts.
• Father's day/Christmas project.
• Take some "me" time - away from work.
• Trip to the beach, lake, something for myself!
• Be more intentional about hanging out with friends - especially with those who live further away!
• Take an ID5 trip
• Have a girl's weekend with local friends
• Beach trip

This is a lofty list, but I'm really excited about the possibility of making it all a reality!  Here's to kicking off 2015 with a strong start!  What are your top goals this year??