Let's Bring in the New Year!

It's New Years Eve.
How in the world did that happen? Wasn't Corvin just born yesterday? It certainly feels like it! Once you become a parent, time seems to go by faster than you ever could have imagined. In 11 days, Corvin will be 16 months old, Zander's already 2 months old, and it wont be too much longer until Allyn turns 23!

Anyway, today some of my resolutions are just going to have to wait until tomorrow. I still plan on working out and eating right, but I know the amount of beer and liquor I drink tonight will make my calorie count sky rocket. The only good thing about my hangover tomorrow is that I wont want to eat as much, so it'll kind of even out, right? ;)

I don't really plan on doing much to become a better photographer today, definitely not going to worry about wedding planning, my boys will most certainly learn new things and I will definitely NOT be getting pregnant.

My main concerns for today will be cooking a healthy dinner (sounds like we're going to have Chicken Noodle casserole, you can find the recipe here) and attempting to make myself look attractive for tonight. My roots are dyed, my skin is tan-ish, my toes will eventually be painted and make-up will be slabbed on later. Allyn's assistant manager, Andy, hooked us up with VIP bracelets to one of the local bars here in Peoria. I'm looking forward to a drama free New Years Eve. The last 4 NYE celebrations, I've dealt with ridiculous drama. 4 years ago, my best friend Sam was basically attacked by another girl who was incredibly huge and had another girl stomping on her face. 3 years ago, at least 2 of my girl friends were punched in the face by random guys, someone was threatening to beat up Allyn and a friend of mine got a drink dumped all over her for no reason. 2 years ago, Allyn and I fought because I had a fake ID and went out without him for a little while. (oops). Last year, another friend had her purse stolen while she was dancing. So I'm REALLY hoping this year is DRAMA FREE! We'll just have to wait and see I suppose. Wish me luck!

Oh, and just a friendly reminder, NO DRINKING AND DRIVING!! If you need a ride, call 1-800-222-4357. This is the number for AAA. They will give ANYONE, ANYWHERE in the entire country a ride AND take your car back home for you too....FOR FREE!! So please, please save this number. If not for yourself, for a friend who might need it. This year, there are literally NO EXCUSES for drunk driving.

I hope everyone has a fun, safe and happy New Years! :)

Yes, these are my shoes for tonight. Yes, I am aware my feet are going to hate me tomorrow. :) hehe

New Years Resolutions

So, seeing as blogging seems to be all the rage lately, I decided I would make my own to see what all the fuss is about. This will kind of be my online diary. My thoughts, life events, accomplishments, defeats, everything will be posted right here for the world to read.

....I suddenly feel very exposed. o_O

In a way, this will help keep me on track with....well everything. I have several New Years resolutions that I would REALLY like to stay on track with. Maybe if I continue to post about them, they'll actually happen...or not happen in some cases. :)

Here's my list:

1. Lose weight.

2. Become a better photographer.

3. Plan an amazing wedding.

4. Teach my boys as much as I possibly can.

5. Don't get pregnant.

#1. The resolution to lose weight is probably the most common, and probably the one that most people don't actually accomplish. I'm not most people though. I currently weigh 137 pounds (according to my Wii Fit anyway, hah). My first goal is to be at least 125 pounds by May 25th (the day I get married). My second goal is to be 115 pounds by my birthday, September 4th. I think I can make it happen....scratch that. I KNOW I can make it happen!

#2. To become a better photographer there are a lot of things that need to happen. Saving money is one of them. It's not cheap starting up your own photography business. This year, I want to take a specific class that costs $350, I want to buy a better lens, and I want to learn how to network better. I'll obviously be practicing a lot too. My rates will be dirt cheap if not free and if anything hopefully I can keep people coming in based on my prices. A year from now I'm hoping my talent will be what truly lures clients in, not the cheap rates.

#3. To plan an amazing wedding also takes money. Some of that money will be coming from my fiancee's (Allyn) soon to be ex-jobs last bonus. The rest will be obtained from our tax return. The projected total for our wedding is currently set at about $9,500. We have about $4,000 more to pay before all is said and done. The financial aspect really only takes care of so much, so in order to have our wedding be truly amazing, I've come up with some fun ideas for entertainment. :)

#4. Teaching my boys as much as I can sounds a lot easier than it actually is. They're both pretty sharp (for a 2 month old and a 15 month old) but they both still have a long, long way to go. It's funny how many things we take for granted every day. For example, just knowing how to say a word as simple as 'go.' Then knowing exactly what it means. Both of those things took every single person on this planet quite a bit of time to figure out. Thanks to our parents, we know how to say 'go' and we were beyond proud of ourselves once we could finally utter such a simple word. The look on Corvin's face when he says 'go' is just pure excitement and delight. So this next year, not only do I need to continue to teach Corvin lots of words, but teach them all over again to my little Zander.

#5. Yes, I know this is humorous to most people. Not getting pregnant should be easy, right? I thought so too. Most people don't know this, but Allyn and I were actually trying to have Corvin. We both knew we loved each other more than anything else on the planet, we both wanted to have kids at a younger age, so we decided to try. With Zander, it's a bit of a different story! Corvin was only 3-4 months old when Zander was conceived. I was definitely NOT ready to be pregnant again at that point. Unfortunately, birth control pills were missed a few days in a row and one drunk night lead to the beginning of our second son. Whoops? Not really. We were scared at first, but the idea of having 2 babies 13-14 months apart grew on us quickly. However, this time around I'm going to make sure that no amount of alcohol is going to stop me from reminding myself and Allyn to not be silly & wrap that....well you know.

So there you have it folks. My New Years resolutions. I probably have more in all honesty, but I barely have enough time to write this blog so I'm not even going to bother wasting time thinking about more things to occupy my life with!

Feel free to leave comments and questions :) I'll enjoy reading them with my glass of wine every night!