Better! Fit! Expression!

Inspired by one of my oldest friends, I took part in a very thought-provoking writing exercise to look back at 2014 and set the foundation for 2015. It goes beyond the recent trend of choosing three words to define your New Years resolutions. It's a look back and a loom forward. And I can say that the words I chose at the end, we're not even close to what I thought they would be if I was just to come up with three words.

Accomplishments of 2014

1. Though it technically happened in the last 14 days of 2013, it was a big deal. I bought my first house.

2. I set up the above-mentioned house in record time, so that it felt -- almost immediately -- like home

3. Even with 15-pound gain from the previous year, the triumph is in maintaining at or below a weight I never had before.

4. I adopted a rescue dog. There were times I felt completely over my head but we've come a long way together in eight months and I can't imagine life without him.

5. I learned what I want, and more importantly what I won't compromise on, in a relationship

6. I got better at using my words.

7. I was able to see Derek in his last game in Baltimore, in the park that feels like my home park

8. I've built an amazing collection of friends in my new hometown.

9. While not perfect, I've gotten better at letting go of the small stuff...whether it's with friendships, changes in plans, getting everything crossed off my to do list

10. After enjoying more than my fair share of cookies and eating out and festivities since thanksgiving, I ended the year with a three-day refresh/detox so that I can start 2015 off on the right foot.

Disappointments of 2014

1. My brother's health scare and the amount of time and pain he had to endure until he was better.

2. Not saving as much as I should have

3. And though I got better at using my words, as I mentioned above, sometimes I didn't use them soon enough. I think I could have saved a few months of fooling myself into believing I was happier than I was if I had spoken up sooner and used my words.

4. Not blogging regularly enough

5. Always feeling rushed and not being able to fit everyone into my visit when I'm in ithaca

Three things I focused a majority of my energy on

1. My house

2. Bernie

3. Thinking about being serious with a health plan, lots of starting over and over and over again

Three things I intended to do but didn't

1. Lose those 15 pounds and get back to my August 2013 goal weight

2. Start running, consistently and consecutively, again

3. Start up my Etsy shop

4. Take a sewing class

My game changers in 2014 -- unexpected outcomes that made things different for you

1. Understanding the needs of not only a rescue dog, but also a breed that requires a lot of attention and exercise

2. Going through each step, virtually, of fertility treatment with a friend, and realizing that the pain would have come from a failure not a success (huge strides in my psyche)

How do these reflections inform my intentions for 2015?

I've learned, from a lot of the experiences of the past year, that I'm strong, that I can write my own story. I don't have to be the girl with the broken uterus, rather the friend with oodles of experience and wisdom, I'm not the former fat girl who feels fat once again, but rather the former 5Ker who has once again committed to the Bucks County 5K Series, with my first race in early March. 

What are my three words for 2015?

BETTER

I put a lot of pressure on myself to be perfect. My house, while comfortable and lived in, is always in order. I have lists. I have high expectations of myself. And when I don't meet them, it throws me off. I can't enjoy the process, I want the end result that I want. And so I will continually tell myself that I don't have to be perfect, I just have to be better.

FIT

As in, "fit is the new skinny." I will never be skinny, but I  ran a 5K in 33 minutes. I will do it again or better. Being healthy, making healthy choices when it comes to food, makes me feel strong, makes me remember all that I'm capable of. I have the power to say no to junk food, have the power to take the dog for an extra 10 minutes on our daily walks, I have the power to feel fit, however I want to define that.

EXPRESSION

As in, using my words, and writing it down. Journaling. Getting back to work on the book I've been working on on all my dating misadventures since being in Doylestown. Being creative, sewing more, restocking Etsy, learning new crafts.