2008 goals

I'm not big on the term "resolution" but I love me some "goals." It's not that I need to resolve to change my life, but I certainly enjoy working towards goals. And I've been thinking a lot about the upcoming year, and what I want out of it.

So here they are, my goals for 2008:

1. Run another marathon. I'm in the process of convincing myself to run a FULL marathon this time, even though the half marathon we ran in 2005 was harder than heck. Let me clarify: the race itself was not extremely difficult, especially after training for three months. We used this training program by Hal Higdon for our 13.1 mile race and it prepared us sufficiently. What was difficult was the amount of time and commitment needed for the training. Day in, day out, running ALL the freaking time. And let's just say that I'm at the opposite end of the "motivation spectrum" these days. Which is exactly why I want to get off my lazy arse and run the Lakefront Marathon in Milwaukee, October 5, 2008. At first I thought I'd do the Chicago Marathon, but alas, we'll be at Laura and Andy's wedding that weekend in St. Louis. It makes more sense to run the marathon in my new city anyway, and in October it will be quite nice running weather. Here is the path I will take:


Now back to the whole 26.2 versus 13.1 miles thing: I'm nervous about committing to a full marathon. I don't know if my old lady body will hold up for the intense training. I don't know if my attention span can last for the 18 weeks of training that this race will require. I might even need a 12 week pre-training program before I begin the actual training, since I haven't exactly been an avid runner as of late. Nate isn't sure if he will run with me this time. After all, he is beginning his own intensive program this summer [P.T. school] and our partnership last time lead to quite a few arguments. Come on, you try running with your then boyfriend for three months and not bicker. Impossible.

Bottom line: if I post this, then it makes it real. And I can't easily back out now that I've announced this to you blog readers. I'm going to do it, by golly. But that doesn't mean that I'm not scared!

2. Save $18,000, or $1,500 per month. Now this is largely dependent on A. when we move out of our money draining apartment and begin to live rent-free:), B. how healthy my promised "nice raise" is in March, C. how much Nate can contribute with his part time job[s]. But regardless, this goal will certainly be challenging but possible. It's going to take determination and focus on our ultimate goal of home ownership. I am also aware of the "balance" concept, meaning I cannot save every single penny I earn at risk of going crazy. I have to let go of SOME money to maintain [Nate's] sanity. So yes, we will need to spend money on food and an occasional "fun" purchase. I'm working on this balancing act each day, so that my inner tight wad does not always dominate.

Bottom line: 15-20K should be in our savings account by this time next year. It's going to be hard but worth it, my friends.

3. Obtain our professional wedding album. Shouldn't be too hard, right? Well, that requires money and considering that we are attempting #2, any major purchase is difficult to justify. But this is something that I won't sacrifice because we NEED a visual representation of our big day. We spent enough time, energy, and money on that day already....and I think it deserves a permanent reminder. I just have to get the wedding DVD first, then decide on album options. But I want an album in my possession by the end of 2008 [hopefully before our one year anniversary, but we'll see].

4. Catch up on my traditional scrapbooking, so that I can pursue digital scrapbooking. I make chronological albums for our everyday life. But right now, the current album is only up-to-date through May 2006. Yikes, I'm far behind. But really, I didn't take TOO many pictures in the last 1.5 years. And our honeymoon album is already finished, the wedding album will be a separate entity, and I'm contemplating turning this blog into a book someday, too. So that would cover October 2007 until the present. Still, catching up on our scrapbook will be time consuming but rewarding. It's always been in the back of my head but I've just been a little preoccupied with wedding planning, moving, being married, etc.

5. Find a church and start going on Sundays. Again, something that has been in the back of my brain, nagging me. Religion is an interesting topic in our household, as we are from completely different backgrounds. Me: attended Lutheran grade school for nine years, public high school, Jesuit [Catholic] college, while my parents attend a Southern Baptist church. Nate: Catholicism all through his childhood, but not actively practicing for awhile now. We both agree that we want to be a church going family, especially for our future children to experience that aspect. We just need to find the right denomination for us. I personally think that Lutheranism is a nice compromise between Catholicism and Baptists, so I think I might look into a few local Lutheran churches. I hope Nate comes with me, and I know it will be difficult to give up one of my two sleep-in mornings, but I know it will be worth it. Hey, I'm all for Sunday afternoon naps, even when I DO get to sleep in, so why not suck it up and go to church?

So that is it, five goals for 2008. Sorry there aren't many pictures in this post. I know it's quite annoying to read a novel without eye candy, but hopefully you survived. I'll do my best to avoid long posts for awhile now.