2015 Goals

As much as I love my readers, this blog post is mostly for me.

You see, at the beginning of the year I wrote down a few new years goals. This post is just an update on them and a chance for me to check in and see what I've done in the past 4 weeks.

• Read more.

I think I've decided to read approximately 1 book a month for fun. (And hopefully review 1 book a month for the blog program I'm part of.) So far this year I have read…

these books for fun:

1. the After series by Anna Todd (review here)

Yes, I started it at the end of 2014, but I finished it in 2015. That counts right? The first book was read for One2One, but I read the other 2 for fun. I just couldn't stand not finishing the series. It was literally driving me crazy!

2. A Lion in Paris by Beatrice Alemagna (review here)

Definitely a children's book, but I'm still counting it because any reading and critical analysis of books should count (in my opinion).

3. I Sold My Soul to the Devil For Vinyls … Pitiful, I Know on Wattpad (review to come)

After reading Anna Todd's series on Wattpad, I realized how easy and how much fun it was to have books on my phone that I could read on the go … or late into the night when I was suppose to be asleep. (Reading under the covers so as not to wake up the hubby FTW!) I will definitely be continuing to find new books on Wattpad in the future to read simply because they are so much easier to get my hands on and so fun to read!

4. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (review to come)

I have been wanting to read this book forever and over Christmas I finally got my hands on it! Justin couldn't say no since I had an Amazon gift card and the total cost of the book was a penny (for hardback!) plus shipping! It was an intense book and easy read. I can't wait to review it!

and this book for my blog program (Blogging For Books):

1. Refinery 29 by Piere Gelardi and Christene Barberich (review here)

Enjoyable, easy, quick read, but I'm hoping for something better in February…

• Take More Pictures, Edit More

One of the things I struggle at the most is getting color correct after capture. I decided during January to submit some photos to Photographer's Edit and see how they did handling my images. I was surprised at what I got back. They seemed to suggest that the majority of my images did not need color correction. (WHAT?) But it did give me a bit more confidence… Justin has encouraged me to go ahead and try printing at Costco to compare and contrast their ideas of correct color to mine. Did they actually do anything? Is it a service worth exploring further? Are my eyes just that screwed up?

I haven't actually printed yet despite the fact that we go at least once a week to Costco. For that matter, I haven't printed images from my huge October editing spree either. Overall this lack of desire to print-and-see has slowed down my desire to edit by the nth degree. I'm aware that I should print but I'm also scared and worried to see the results.

In a few weeks CreativeLive will be airing Photoshop Week. I will definitely be tuning into that to see how to take my photos further.

• Pay off Debt.

You'll hear about this next Monday. Why give it away?

• Travel more.

image from Mike Paws

This is soooooo happening this year.

Here's the schedule so far…

Feb. - Asheville, NC (Biltmore House)
Mar. - Nashville, TN
Jul. - Charleston, SC (maybe?)
Aug. - Germany
Sep. - Gainesville, FL
Oct. - Somewhere on the beach in FL for a wedding
Nov. - Orlando, FL and Disney World (more specifically Epcot)

We have so many wedding coming up. I'm doing my best to book travel early and save where I can but it can be difficult, time consuming, and overwhelming.

• Health

Not in the cards yet. :(

Walking has been replaced with working and socializing. I have a new job for one. And two, Justin and I have been trying to spend more time with friends and family. Technically this was last year's goal (2014), but I still think spending time with family and friends is important.

Eating has been replaced with celebrations. A new baby! A birthday! A friend quitting a job! Plus, Justin's been sick so quick and easy is the way we've been going. Eating on the road? Yes. Having time to sit down for a meal? No.

How have you been doing with your 2015 goals?

* I'm participating in the SITS Girls' February Writing Prompts. Are you?