My Happiness Project~~Part II. November is the new January!

The Happiness Project has begun! Yesterday was the first official day of my year-long resolutions project. I'm aiming at an attitude of learning...learning about what happiness, joy, contentment, and gratitude are and how I can tap into these things on a more daily basis. Of course, I believe that such emotions (or experiences) can only come when I'm living in the reality of Christ's salvation over my life. The writer of The Happiness Project is not a believer, so her project looked much different than will mine. If you're curious about how this began, read here.

So this is how it works: each month, I will be focusing on a new theme or area of life. With each topic will come a number of tangible resolutions I plan to begin. The resolutions will, ideally, carry on through the rest of the year. But I plan on failing here and there, finding certain resolutions that just don't work for my life (let me get it out now that I don't think I'll ever really be a consistent bed-maker). My goal, you may ask? Well, I wouldn't necessarily say my goal is to be a happier person, though I would love for that to come about. For now, my goal is just to meet goals that have been a long time in the works and to develop a handful of new lifestyle habits, which I pray will foster more joy in my life. I actually considered changing the title to "My Joy Project", but it didn't sound as catchy to me.

Here's the game plan:

November-"Finish What I Started"
-Complete 2012 New Year's Resolutions:
Be a prayerful woman.
Keep my areas and my home cleaner.
Exercise 3-4 times a week and eat right.
Publish a book.
Be there for Laura and Gracelynn.
Get plugged into a community after graduation.
Have a 3rd annual Sleighbell Sisters' Soiree.
Travel (near or far).


December-"Home is Where the (Sane) Heart is"
-Break my habit of clutter.
-Have more consistent cleaning routines.

January-"The Healthiest Me"
-Make a plan of attack for physical health.
-Be stringent about diet and exercise.

February-"The Rx for Relationships"
-Make Valentine's Day count for the girls around me.
-LOVE people.
-Keep up with long-distance friends more consistently.

March-"Career Path"
-Take a step toward my career...go to a conference, apply to a school, meet with a dean, etc.

April-"Get Serious About Hobbies"
-Find crafting mentor.
-Learn to read a crochet pattern.
-Figure out sewing.
-Work on publishing a cookbook?

May-"22, Flirty, and Thriving"
-Build and work on my confidence.
-Go to a trend show.

June-"No Pain, No Fun"
-Get serious about alleviating chronic pains.
-See all those pesky specialists (i.e. the dermatologist).

July-"Every Spiritual Blessing"
-Maximize spiritual gifts.
-Learn 1-2 new worship songs on guitar/piano per week.
-Write more encouraging notes.

August-"Work Hard, Play Hard"
-Focus on attitude at work.
-Maximize variety.
-Put effort into being better prepared each day.

September-"Back to Learning"
-Read at least 3 new, interesting books in full.
-Visit museums.
-Do an in-depth study of an unfamiliar book of the Bible.

October-"A Joyful (and Grateful) Heart is Good Medicine"
-Keep a public, daily gratitude journal.
-Review the past 12 months and decide which resolutions to keep, reinstate, throw out, revise, etc.

Wow! I know that was a lot, so if you're still with me, hopefully that means you're interested. I would appreciate all the encouragement I can get because this project is a little obscure and a lot ambitious. But I am hopeful! I'll write an update on November's resolutions soon.