2018 is on a roll already – we are 10 days in and I’m finally pulling it together and working on moving forward.

This is a big year for us. Probably first, and foremost, is the impending high school graduation for the girl. People really meant it when they kept saying the time with your children flies by – honestly, I don’t feel old enough to be teetering on the brink of empty nester syndrome! With high school graduation comes college. YIKES! The girl is planning on going to Portland State University in Portland,OR.

Portland, an uber-hip (in a really good way) city, seems like it will be a nice fit for the girl. PSU seems like an awesome school. I was sold after we toured the campus back in October. It made me wish I was a college kid again. The dorm rooms seemed amazing – but maybe they only show the best on the tours?? Only 2 kids to a room, bathroom in the room, kitchen (in this one particular dorm) and laundry on every other floor. The only thing that didn’t occur to us was to go check out the cafeteria to see what kind of vegan offerings they have. My guess is that they have it covered.

OK, back to me and the post!

January goals – plan and calendar workouts, meals, volunteer time and fun!

So, these goals are a little broad but I have to start at the 30, 000 foot view and work my way down. I am using my Google calendar and a wall calendar to satisfy the visual part of me (I gotta see it, or it doesn’t exist).

The workout part is super easy for me. I enjoy my workouts and I know that I want to be strong for our trip to Steamboat in February. I am hitting my Kaia workouts 3x per week and then adding in weight training via TRX and Body Pump classes at the Y. I also schedule in one flow/yoga class per week along with at least one rest day. Some weeks I need 2 or 3 rest days but most weeks the one works great for me.

The meal planning piece is a tad harder for me. I make the plan (that’s the easy part) it’s the sticking to the plan and/or plugging in the meals to certain days and the sticking with that. It is definitely a work in progress but one that I am determined to master this year. I have learned the joy of meal prep and bulk cooking. Cooking for me also means experimenting. I do love trying new recipes and techniques. I am not expert home cook but I do ok and nothing is more satisfying the making and sharing a tasty, healthy meal.

My goal is to increase my volunteer time from one day a week to two days (or more depending on the opportunity). I am attending the info session for the enrichment committee at the zoo and signed up to volunteer with the Land Trust of the Treasure Valley.

Fun wise, we are going to McCall and Brundage to snowboard before hitting the slope in Steamboat next month. I haven’t snowboarded in well over a year and I am a little intimidated hitting the slopes again since my stroke and brain surgery. I will be wearing a helmet to protect my head! We also have a few outings with friends planned throughout this month.

Learning how to stay busy and engaged while being a stay at home mom/person is the biggest challenge I’ve had to undertake. It’s been over a year of time off between jobs and recovery and I am finally starting to embrace this time. I feel incredibly lucky to have the luxury to be at home. Now, to make the most of it. Here’s to action in 2018!!

All the best,