Mid Year, Here We Are

Like everybody else and their mother I'm having a hard time believing we are already mid year. What made it even harder to believe was looking through pictures from last Fall and feeling like it was yesterday. Nashville, it's always a wild ride, I swear.

I looked back a couple of posts, because I've become quite negligent with this blog, to see if I had posted a 2017 goals anything, and I don't think I did. So I guess we'll just start here with a little look over what's happened so far and then go into what I will be working on until 12/31/17.

So far this year I have -

+ Saved up for and gone to CA for my brother's wedding
+ Saved up for and completed an apartment move
+ Attempted a Low FODMAP Diet and threw in the towel quite fast
+ Read some really awesome books
+ Stressed out about and redefined some really tough goals I had from the beginning of the year
+ Pulled out of a spiral from said goals and redefinition
+ Deleted, redownloaded, and deleted again the Bumble app several times, as well as tinder, and also tried Zoosk for a month
+ moved the blog over here
+ made a new instagram handle and then, more recently, shut the old one down. Pictures are still there, not following anyone, not doing anything with it.
+ Finished the Swiss Cross blanket, it's gorgeous (and incredibly heavy)
+ Went on a roadtrip for my birthday to Knoxville and surrounding areas
+ worked out 4 times a week for three months
+ was sick 3 times in 4 months
+ transferred remainder of cc debt to no interest card! getting closer and closer to no cc debt!
+ treated myself to a meeting with a mentor about my resume
+ Had the crisis many woman seem to have (or media says we have) about turning 30 when I turned 31. I may still be pulling out of it.

At the beginning of the year I decided my word was Proud. My goal is to end 2017 really proud of myself for the work I have done. With that in mind, here's what I will spend the next six months working on:

+ Press handstands
meaning, work on core, and rehab shoulders in PT, and work on back strength
+ Be on schedule to completely pay off CC debt by 6/30/18
this means planning for possible big expenses and saving for them while also paying off card
+ further develop my skills in conjunction with my career
+ deepen friendships and family relationships
+ see a dermatologist -yay being of super pale skin
+ try a breathwork class

If I happen to come into extra money/resources I also wouldn't mind also:
+ starting retirement fund
+ having a base amount in my travel savings
+ opening savings account specifically for emergency savings only that is hard to access
+ start a puppy fund for eventual puppy friend
+ Lasik fund - want to get these eyes to see without contacts
+ start seeing naturopath about stomach and stick to plan

There they are, and here we go.

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May and June In Review

The two things I’m most proud of from May & June are:
1. Going to CA for 9 days, being in a wedding, and then coming home and moving (with movers) without putting anything on credit to pay off later. I had some help with this definitely, but even then, June has been crazy expensive and because I've been working on my money management for months and months and maybe even years at this point, I had enough saved up.
2. Completed my swiss cross blanket. It was a labor I kept avoiding but I eventually buckled down and I finished it at the end of May!
The two things I’m most grateful for from May & June are:
1. Being a part of the most amazing wedding. My brother married his best friend, my now sister-in-law, who is such an incredible person, and the whole weekend was so great.
2. All the privileges that I've had and grown up with that have made my life relatively comfortable. This is not a gloat, it's a real recognition. Humbling recognition. Just the beginning I think.

The lesson I learned and am carrying forward with me from May &/or June is: There was a line in some show I watched a couple episodes of and to paraphrase the character said that Adult children are always waiting for an apology from their parents and their parents are always waiting for a thank you. Both are left disappointed.

My #1 commitment to myself for July is: to take care of my health. Doctors appointments, leaning in to my counseling appointments, writing, vitamins and probiotics... etc

Because I am brave, here are two new/scary things I will do in July:
1. dating
2. facing my health/the money implications that may come from having to commit to evening things out

The one book I definitely want to read in July is: House of Plants

Something I want to experiment with in July is: Rest. Sounds funny, but experiment with sleeping earlier, reading, unsubscribing from hulu so I can read more, deep breathing, meditation, etc.

Just for fun, I will: Start re-watching Friday Night Lights

As an act of intentional kindness, I will: remind myself constantly that people need our love, not our judgements.

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