Rachel's 2008 goals

Reposted from Ladypug Mugs....

It's a new year. Yup. 2008 has faded away and in its place a shiny, new, exciting year with untold excitement and goals and plans that will inevitably slip by you before you even had the chance to notice, leaving you feeling empty and depressed come 2010, thinking that you hadn't even started writing down the resolutions that you felt so strongly about just one year ago.
NOT THIS YEAR!! Right?! Are you with me, bloggie buddies?? This year is different! This year we're going to come out with it - we're going to lay it on the table. We're going to be honest about our short comings, and confident about our abilities to overcome them. We're going to hold each other accountable and help coach each other through the tough times. Right?!?!
Awesome.

So, without further adieu - here's the 2009 Ladypugmugs resolution list....

1. I have GOT to lose weight. I have gained 20 pounds since I got married just over a year and a half ago. (I told you I was going to be honest...) I recently discovered that this may have been partially due to a prescription I was on, which I have also recently stopped taking, so I'm hoping this will help, but I also know that it is partly because I have become less regimented with my exercising, and since coming off the vegetarian bandwagon, have become less concerned with what I put in my body. This is going to change!!
This year I resolve to lose at least 10 of the 20 pounds I've gained (trying to be realistic and not disappoint myself. 15-20 would be awesome, but I would be proud of myself at 10).
I plan on doing this by cooking more conscienciously, exercising at least 3 times a week, and eating vegetarian at least one night a week.

2. I want to get Winston CGC certified. For those of you that haven't heard of CGC certification, it stands for Canine Good Citizenship. Here is a description from the AKC website: "CGC is a certification program that is designed to reward dogs who have good manners at home and in the community. The Canine Good Citizen Program is a two-part program that stresses responsible pet ownership for owners and basic good manners for dogs. All dogs who pass the 10-step CGC test may receive a certificate from the American Kennel Club." Getting Winston CGC certified will be the first step in my eventual goal to get Winston therapy dog certified. This was my goal for him from day one, but I let it slip to the side after we got Clementine. But Winston is a great, smart, loving dog - he would be perfect as a therapy dog, and he deserves to be able to use his ability, so I'm going to do it.

3. My third and final 'big' goal is to find a way to work from home or to be able to set my own schedule. My primary thought here is to potentially get my real estate license for North Carolina to become my parents independent real estate agent for the construction company they own. They have told me multiple times that if I just took the test and became licensed that they would give me all their business. I've been job hunting for a long time and trying to find ways out of my current job and I think that it's time I took more control of the situation instead of just waiting for something to come along to me. I'm going to take 2009 to do research on the NC real estate program and what steps I need to go through. I'm not saying I plan on being a licensed agent by the end of the year, but I'd like to have taken the first step, at least.


So there it is. What do you plan on doing this year? If you have some big plans, why not share them? It helps, I think, to put them out there so that people can help you get through them. Feedback is key to success.

I hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas (and Boxing day) - we have had a very busy, jam packed holiday season, and I promise I will give more details of all that later on - right now I'm too exhausted from deconstructing the Holiday House to write any more than this. Good night, sweet friends - may 2009 be your best year yet.