Gifts 2020 Final Follow Up

Alas, the new format doesn’t have nearly as many colors and doesn’t copy and paste them. I’ll consider my options for next year.

Reminder: Word of the year is Beauty A good word for this past year, as it kept me focused on the Beauty in this amazing world.

I want to be better. If you don’t know what it means to be better how will you know when you’ve become it? If I don’t define it for myself, the world will define it for me. Guarantee: The world will get it wrong.

23 Write post for Sally Shupe’s blog. Done

22 Use the healing power of gratitude. Doing

21 Talk to myself in the mirror. An interesting experience. Doing

20 Up my coconut water from 1/2 cup to 1 cup daily. Makes a huge difference in my knee pain. Doing

19 Add spinach to my morning breakfast shake. Found out pumpkin is a fruit, not a vegetable. Need to add a veggie to my diet. Love it. Doing

18 Up 1/2-mile days to 1-mile. Doesn’t need to be every time, just more often. Doing

17 Re-memorize forgotten hymns. When the power went out I tried to sing to myself and discovered I’ve forgotten almost every song I knew. Singing and memorizing a little. Doing

16 Intermittent fasting. I eat when I’m not hungry. I need to reset. I need to let go of my need for a routine and give myself permission to wait to eat until I’m hungry. This is helping me feel less frantic about scheduled eating times. Doing.

15 “Am I hungry enough to eat an apple?” Trying a suggestion from Faster Than Normalby Peter Shankman. Nope. This didn’t work for me.

14 Try dyeing clothes with food scraps. Interesting. Done

13 Create a Dream Book ~ I let my dreams die rather than watch them starve and wither. I need to make a change in my perspective: My old dreams don’t fit anymore; I need dreams that fit me now that will help me grow into who I want to be. Done

12 Set up my author page on Amazon: It’s time I accepted responsibility and pray God helps me with my frustration with such things. Not yet

11 Nap. If I’m feeling munchie, ask myself if I’m tired. If I’m tired, lay down. I forget.

10 Instead of stressing about leaving the house or doing something I’m afraid to do, now, I’m going on an adventure! Doing

9 Learn to love my body Working on it

8 Work on forgiving myself Working on it

7 Give away/let go of 1 thing every day for Lent. I loved doing this last year. With the whole stay home thing, which didn’t change things much for me, but I decided to go through books. More than 40 items gone. Done.

6 Make it through Valentine’s Day Done

5 Regain control of my budget I think I’ve figured it out, as last month went well. We’ll see how this month goes. Second month worked again. Doing.

4 Beauty Secrets of the Bible ~ My perspective will never change if I refuse to confront the lies. Done.

3 Guest on Hallee Bridgeman’s blog Wednesday 8 January ~ I’m honored to be a guest on her blog, as she’s one of my favorite authors and a genuinely nice person. Done.

2 Publish A Promise of Possibilities ~ Having this done will open the door to being able to move on to the next book. Deep edit is done. Final read through. What I thought was the final read through wasn’t. Closer.

1 Lose weight 6 Jan 260.2 lb starting point. Instead of measuring weight every month, I’m giving the starting weight and the end of the year weight. In between I want to track what I do to eat healthier. For example, I’m eating at least 4 fruits a day 5 days a week, up from 3, something I added in November 2019. Eating healthier is more important than losing weight. It helps me feel better, so I’m better able to do what I need to do, and clears my mind. Eating healthier. End of May up 5 lb. For the last month of the year, the battery in the scale died. I let it. I didn’t replace it. I worked on eating healthier. Don’t know what my weight is, today, but my clothes fit pretty much the same. I am easting healthier. My PT and walking have improved. I’m sleeping better; staying up late happens once in a while rather than on a regular basis. Overall, I think I’m healthier.

Writing ~ Novellas and novels ~ Schedule deadlines and follow through ~ I want to finish Christmas Lost and the Anthology, write four novellas for another anthology, and outline a four-book Regency series with the first book written.

Creating a home ~ Clean and clutter ~ Vacuum, bath, sweep, dust, throwaway or giveaway to bless someone else. I want a routine I can regularly accomplish. The house is not mine, but I do live here. Nothing can stop me from making things nicer.

Reading ~ Fiction and non-fiction ~ Balance and reduce my TBR pile. I’d like to read 100 books.

Finances ~ Budget, spend better ~ Ledger. I want to be able to meet my financial responsibilities and have a little leftover for fun, while not scrimping on self care.

Faith ~ Bible study, prayer, church ~ War Room ~ I want my habits to be more mindful.

Health ~ Sleep, meals, exercise ~ Consistency and try new recipes. I want to be able to walk up a flight of 14 stairs using alternate feet. Right now, I mostly have to step up using my left because my right has a bad habit of buckling. With slow practice and training, I know I can change this, as long as I don’t hurry things along too quickly, which always sets me back.

Fun ~ Friends and clothes ~ Meals and Holy Clothing ~ I eat breakfast with my sister on Saturdays. I have lunch once a week with octogenarian friends and about three times a month with other friends. However, it’s important for me to acknowledge and celebrate these times.