2013 ~ a new year & new goals

I recently decided to give this world of blogging another go at it.  My first attempt a few years prior failed miserably, sigh.  Oh well.  It's a new year and with that I'm going to give it another try.  Who's to say that my second attempt won't be successful?  Have faith everyone.  And please join me in this journey as I attempt to chronicle my life as a full time working mom to an almost two year old little girl.  She's quite the little princess, as you will see...

With the new year I've set some goals for myself.  I truly believe that if you share it, then you're more likely to achieve them... mostly because when others know about, you're suddenly held accountable.  Especially when they start asking you about how it's going...

So I figured why not share it with everyone, here goes my 2013 goals & how I will attempt to achieve them:

1)  To pack work lunches more often.  Doing this will help me save so much money.  After a recent analysis of my monthly credit card spending (I charge practically everything! Sad I know) I learned that I spend WAY too much money on eating out.  A typically lunch for me ranges from $6-14.  And a typical breakfast ranges from $4-6 (what can I say, I'm addicted to McDonald's breakfasts.  Please don't judge).  So if I attempt to curb eating out on work days, I will stand to save a bunch of money roughly $10-20/day.  And why not?  Also packed lunches will be healthier too...

2)   To time out for myself.  All mothers do this.  They put their children/husband/family first and neglect to take care of themselves.  While on maternity leave, I was especially bad with this.  I wanted so desperately to be the best mother, the best wife, as well as keep a nice neat home... the result?  I was so exhausted at the end of the day that I just never had the chance to take care of myself.  I got to admit I was grumpy most days.  So I decided that this year will be different ~ by taking care of myself first, my daughter & my husband will benefit.  I'll be a happier mom, wife & all around person.  This will be somewhat of a challenge for me but I have a plan in place.  It's all about balance & if I make a good effort then I will achieve that perfect life balance.

3)  Be conscious of my spending habits.  For the most part I am very good with my money, but I occasionally will slip up and "over spend" on certain things and/or at certain times of my life.  This year there will be some big expenses coming my way (braces, basement development & landscaping our backyard), so I need to plan ahead and make sure that I have enough funds to pay for it all, while still maintaining a reasonably comfortable lifestyle.  It's all about choices & I chose NOT to go into debt.  My braces alone with cost just over 8K!  But it's something that I want for myself so I view it as a necessity :o)