resolutions

Inspired by our friend Joe, who not only makes a detailed list of goals each New Year, but actually accomplishes them, we are joining the ranks of the resolute.

We're hoping that by publicly posting them, we will be more likely to succeed.

So here we go:

• Limit sweets to once a week. For Stephen, this means one day a week, for me, one sweet a week. Devil's in the details. Don't even ask him about bringing the Jewish interpretation of the Sabbath into the mix.
• No fast food, unless we are on a road trip.
• No sodas. (This one is easy for me, I've been off soda for years)

We are also charting our weight every day. So far we both like it a lot. I made graphs for each of us, with the pounds (to the tenth of a pound) on one axis, and the day on the other. It's posted right above our scale, so every morning we hop on and plot our progress. It's actually kind of fun. Sometimes you need to see that you went down two tenths of a pound, and the recording adds a bit of accountability. Of course for my graph, only the last digit of my weight is displayed. A girl's gotta have some secrets...

Another weight loss competition is starting up at work, and I think I will do it again. I love the competitive aspect, it really makes it a lot of fun. But then I find myself taking it little too seriously, so hopefully the fact that I am still breastfeeding will help me temper that (no skipping meals, gotta eat enough for both of us). It's starting to be light out longer, I am anxious to get on my bike!

Another goal of mine is to sell ten paintings this year. I started doing wedding dress paintings a few years back, they look like this:

It looks better in person. This is the bride's dress, along with the dresses of her bridal party. It's done in watercolor and ink, and the names and wedding date are along the hemline. I can also do just the bride, bride and her mom's dress, etc. Pretty much any variation on the theme.

These make great wedding or anniversary gifts. I sell these matted and framed, starting at around $100 (depending on size and number of dresses - the one pictured here would be $200). I can work from a photo, ad, or detailed description.

If you know anyone who might like one, send them my way!

Happy new year!