Water Bug

One of Harper's New Year's resolutions was to learn to swim without her floatie. To that end, she has been taking swimming lessons every day for the past 2 weeks. Last night was her last class. 

with her certificate and t-shirt

Coach Kate

She can't quite swim on her own yet, but she's really close. I think one more set of lessons and she'll be doing laps in no time!

The Year Of Self Discipline Part 2

Ok, back to my New Year's resolutions. The above picture has nothing to do with my resolutions. I took it this morning at Flagler Beach. It was a nice way to spend the last morning of 2009.

Resolution #2 (click here to see Resolution #1): Like practically everyone else, I resolve to exercise more in 2010. In the past, the amount I exercise has been directly related to my self-esteem. When I start to feel bad about myself, I go to the gym, lose 10 pounds, feel better about myself, and promptly stop going to the gym. This is not a good cycle. I don't want my self image to dictate the regularity of my exercise. In 2010, I want being healthy to become a habit. This entails eating better and exercising on a regular basis - like at least 3 times a week. I owe it to myself to be healthy (mentally and physically). In addition, being disciplined about when I exercise will hopefully set a good example of an active healthy lifestyle and good self esteem for Harper.

Resolution #3: I want to learn how to knit. I don't know why. I think I might just want to make cute hats for my kid to wear. Learning a new skill always takes discipline. I hope I have the patience to make good on this one.

Resolution #4: This is something that has been on my mind for several years. I don't talk about it much. Actually, I don't talk about it at all. There are 2 reasons for this. It's not a pleasant subject. It's the exact opposite of pleasant. Secondly, pretty much every time I think about this, my eyes well up with tears. I'm afraid that if I talk about this subject, I'll end up crying and I HATE crying in front of people. Watch this video. It explains it better than I can.

Love146 History from LOVE146 on Vimeo.

This subject defines then phrase holy discontent for me. I can't think of a worse evil in the world. This year I resolve to get involved with an organization committed to ending child sex slavery and exploitation. I don't really know where to start on this one. I don't just want to give money. I'm sure these types of organizations could use my money, but just giving money would not be fulfilling to me. If anyone has experience in this area, please let me know. God is stretching me with this one. Being obedient to Him is going to take a lot of discipline on my part.

Ok, so that's it. Well, not really. I have a couple more. But these are the major ones. I'll try to keep you updated on my progress. And like I said before, I'm going to need a lot of help and encouragement this year. So, if you want to partner with me in any or all of these resolutions, let me know! Happy new year to everyone reading this. I am glad that I can share my life with you and I am thankful that you share yours with me.

The Year Of Self Discipline

It's that time again. Time for self reflection and self evaluation. I love making New Year's resolutions. But before I tell you about this year's resolutions, I'll update you on how I did on last year's.

My first resolution last year was to read at least 2 books. Crazy ambitious, I know. And guess what? I accomplished this one! Go me.

Next, I resolved to watch less TV. I didn't do so well on this one. I still watch way too much TV.

Next, I resolved to dress more professionally at work. Again, not so much. I just can't justify dressing up for the kind of work I do. It's just not part of the culture. I will say that whenever I have to teach a class or give a seminar, I do make an effort to dress up (but I always did this, so I can't really count it as an improvement). Oh well. Maybe some day.

Finally, I resolved to be more physically fit. I kind of made progress in this area. I did in fact join a gym, I just haven't gone very often.

Now onto my resolutions for this year. I am proclaiming 2010 as my Year of Self Discipline. I know, I know, sounds like a lot of fun. But, you know what? Self discipline is exactly what I need. I think I'm getting about 40% out of my life right now. This is probably because I'm only putting about 40% effort into most areas of my life - some areas are getting more (like Harper is probably getting around 95%), but some are getting even less (don't make me mention these ones). So...in order to rectify this situation and ultimately enjoy my life more, I am making several resolutions that all revolve around me being more self disciplined in one way or another. I'm writing these down for you to read for a reason. I need to be held accountable for these things. I give you, all of you, permission to check up on me.

Ok, here's my first one: I resolve to spend quiet time with God first thing every morning. I wake up a good hour before my alarm goes off in the morning. And guess what I've been doing with that hour. I lay in bed and worry about and dwell on things. Little things, big things - it doesn't matter. I worry and dwell about lots of things which is absolutely the biggest waste of time in the world. I know better. So, instead of beginning my days like this, I resolve to get up and spend time with the Lord. I don't have an agenda for this time. Some days I'll probably read, some days I'll probably just pray, some days I might sing a song. But, I do intend to keep a journal of my mornings. I feel like God has been trying to talk to me for a long time and I just don't make time to listen to what He is saying. Quieting my own voice is hard for me. But, as an act of worship, I resolve to be more disciplined in this area.

I have other resolutions too. I'm going to break them up into several posts. So stay tuned. As I go along, please let me know if you are resolving some of the same things or if you have had success in a particular area. I think I'm going to need all of the help and encouragement I can get this year.

New Year's Resolutions - Part 2

I really like making New Year's resolutions. I enjoy the self examination. I like envisioning the newer, better, shinier me. So what if I hardly ever keep them past March. Every little bit of self improvement helps, right? You already know about my plan to read more books. Here are a couple of other things that I would like to accomplish.

1. I resolve to watch less TV. This one is going to be a hard one for me. The TV is my friend. But it does get in the way of more meaningful activities (like reading). So, I am going to put some serious limits on how much TV I watch.

2. I resolve to dress more professionally. My job is such that I can wear jeans and a t-shirt everyday if I want to. And until now, I have taken full advantage of that perk (as do most of my co-workers). However, now that I am beginning to think about the next stage of my career, I think that I need to upgrade my wardrobe a little bit. I have already started to make room in my closet (I have a big bag of clothes ready to be dropped off at Goodwill). Now all I have to do is find the change to buy some new clothes. I don't know. Maybe this is just a phase. But I'm pretty sure that I can find some sort of a middle ground between being comfortable, professional, and resistant to mouse guts. 

3. I resolve to be more physically active. I know. Everybody has this on their list. But it really is something that I would like to do. On a regular basis. In fact, I would actually like to find a way to get some of my girlfriends in on the action. I'm convinced that if we could come up with something fun and heart healthy, we could all really commit to following through. Any suggestions?

Ok, I probably have a few more resolutions on my list. However, in an effort to protect my fragile ego, I just can't bring myself to share the things that I really need to work on. Hopefully, I'll make good on those unspoken resolutions and you'll notice without me having to tell you what they are... 

Happy self-examining. Happy following through. Good night and good luck.

New Year's Resolutions - Part 1

So I'm starting to think about my New Year's resolutions. While I don't have a complete list yet, one thing I would like to accomplish is to read more books. I am not a reader. But I will say that I have genuinely liked (loved, even) every single book I have ever read. I'm not quite sure why I don't read more. Maybe it's because I'm a slow reader. I figure that if the author took the time to choose each word carefully, I should take the time to read each word with intention. Nice thought, but it takes forever. Which brings me to my next point... reading makes me sleepy. I'm lucky if I get through one chapter before I need to take a nap. That being said, I do like to read. Fiction, non-fiction - I like it all. My daughter is even named after the author of my all time favorite book. So, this year I resolve to read more (and by more I mean at least 2 books - hey, I'm trying to be realistic). Stay tuned for the rest of my New Year's resolutions. And if anyone has any suggestions for what I should read, let me know.