My 2017 New Year’s Resolutions

How is it New Year’s resolutions time again?? The years are just flying by more and more. It’s kind of crazy.

And yes, I know it’s totally cliche to use this time of year to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) and make promises for bettering your life in the year ahead, but there’s a reason this tradition exists. It’s a new year, y’all. We get to turn the page on the calendar to a clean page: 2017. Many things feel fresh, like we’ve gotten to hit the restart button, especially after a busy holiday season. So yeah, I’m totally okay with using this time of year to reflect on the past year and plan for the one ahead. And this year, having just started a new job last week, New Year’s resolutions seem more relevant than ever.

(Also, if you’re interested, here are my 2016, 2015, 2013, and 2012 resolutions. I guess I took 2014 off!)

So here goes. My 2017 goals! This year, I just have a few:

• I want to be a good mother. This one won’t become relevant until mid-March, but it’s at the top of my list of goals for 2017. This will be a whole new role for me, and one I want to be great at. Not just because I aim to be good at the things I commit to (and that’s definitely a factor, if I’m being honest with myself), but also because this baby girl deserves a good mother. A great mother, even. (Plus, Kevin’s going to be an incredible father, so I want to be a good partner in parenting to him.) I know I’m going to fall short of that goal time and again, but I want my intention to remain intact. I was given a parenting personality book by a friend, which guesses the positive traits as well as struggles you might encounter as a mom based on your Meyers Briggs personality. I LOVE things like this (I’m a big believer in differences based on the way you’re wired), and think the assessment for me will likely prove to be quite accurate. One positive: “ENFJ parents will encourage their children to explore and grow, recognizing and appreciating the individuality of the people they bring into this world and help to raise.” But I’m also wired to do things quickly and efficiently, and already anticipate getting frustrated with a tiny person who slows that process down. I’ve tried to start mentally preparing (as best I can!) for what this change might look and feel like. It’s helpful for me to think back on childhood memories of baking cookies with my mom. I’m sure it took her five times as long to make those damn cookies when she let me help, and it made nine times the mess, but those were special moments that made me feel included and valued as a child, and times I still look back on today with a smile. So yeah — I want to be that kind of mom as often as I can. And I also want to be quick to forgive myself when I’m NOT that kind of mom, which will happen a lot, too.

• I want to be intentional about my new career role. In my new job as Marketing & Communications Manager for AlphaBEST Education, an after-school enrichment organization that’s part of the Kaplan family, this is my first time working outside of advertising. I’m so excited about this new challenge, and am especially energized by the fact that no one held this title at AlphaBEST before me. I’ll be able to dictate what this role involves, how it grows, and more. For the first time in my career, I’m able to blend my educational background (journalism/PR) with my career experience to date (advertising, in an account service role), and I couldn’t be more excited about getting to merge those two realities. Knowing that this position is new is thrilling and slightly intimidating, but my excitement outweighs my apprehension. Because I’m carving out what this role looks like, being intentional about my career is more critical than ever. I can’t just follow along in a pre-prescribed path, nor can I rely solely on past career experiences for success here.

• I want to be kind to my body. This one will be especially important in 2017. After all, my body is working hard these days growing a human. I’m continually amazed at all it’s able to do (and, for the most part, I’m able to function within my normal routine, which is kind of insane to consider). So this year, I want to pay it back for all its hard work. This one is going to be hard for me, I think, because this year “being kind to my body” is going to entail more than staying active and eating healthily. My body is going to be recovering from childbirth at a certain point. I hope to be able to breastfeed, and that will involve a physical commitment I can’t quite understand yet. I’m going to have less time and, often, less energy to stay active. This year, being kind to my body is going to also involve cutting myself some slack. Remembering all it’s been through and being okay when/if things are slow to go back to “normal” physically. One thing I know for sure: This won’t be easy for me. It will feel uncomfortable and frustrating at times, but I’m going to try — really try — to be patient with myself throughout the process.

Here’s to 2017 being a great year!