New Year's Day

Happy New Year's! Hope everyone had fun and stayed safe. Party animals that we are, the husband and I (well, mostly me) fell asleep at 10 pm after a game of scrabble and 1 hour's worth of the Godfather Part II. Can't complain though- that's about as exciting of a New Year's as I want these days. I guess it means I'm getting older?

We had a merry little Christmas down in Florida and are now back up North. I'm not usually one for New Year's goals and resolutions, but this year I definitely had more free time to reflect on where I've been and where I'm going. I was waiting to share more when I knew more about my new position, but I'm very excited to be moving to Boston next academic year to accept a position as one of Boston Children's Hospital's Global Child Health Fellows. Finally getting that position that I've always dreamed about feels pretty surreal and amazing, and since it's been a working goal of mine for the past 10 years I feel incredibly excited, satisfied and proud all at once. Between that satisfactory feeling and being a lot less sleep deprived than last year (thanks residency!), the idea of trying to accomplish some goals is more exciting than daunting. Here's what I've come up with so far

• Read a book every month- the year Peter and I started dating I set this goal and really found it to be very rewarding/enriching during my Fulbright year in Greece. I've already read so much more this year than I have since starting my medical training, and forgot how relaxing/enthralling it can be to curl up with a hot cup of tea during the winter, bundled in the coziest socks and blankets, and diving into another world. This time around there's a lot less fiction and more nonfiction/memoirs on my list, but I'd like to tackle some classic lit that I missed during my Bachelor's degree as well (looking at you, massive Shakespeare anthology.) Other authors on the list include Tara Westover, Garth Nix, Paul Farmer, Ursula LeGuin, and maybe some C.S. Lewis
• Get proficient at another language- I haven't decided yet if it will be Greek or French, but since the new job will likely take me to Haiti (although that's not yet official), French would be the natural choice. I haven't studied French in close to 10 years but I'm hoping my 4-odd years of foundational high school and college classes will have laid a solid enough foundation that I'll be able to catch myself up to speed quickly enough.
• Eat healthier and exercise- this is a big/broad one. I'm in now way in terrible shape, but I am the heaviest I've ever been and more sedentary than I've been most of my adult life. During residency longer workouts and runs just proved to be too daunting to even come close to tackling, so for now I'm committing to eating out once per week or less, no processed sugar and no alcohol outside of vacations. More importantly I'd like to exercise a little bit every day, or at least 6 days a week. I've found a couple 20-30 minute targeted workouts on youtube that I can do at home, removing the 'it's to cold to go outside' excuse that I've clung to for the past 3 years :) I may also start to try and see a therapist for the next few months, to help curb some of the built up anxiety I've accrued the last few years of adulthood. We'll see if I have time for that one...
• Discover new music- Nothing against the top 20 charts, I just feel like I've missed out on quite a few years' of new rock, folk and alt country. I was a bit inspired by this post by the Larson house (link here) to stop listening to the same few pop songs over and over again. This year I'd like to spend more time discovering new artists and albums in some of my favorite genres. I made the below playlist out of some old songs I've had for ages, but it's time to find more new artists to get excited about. Open to any suggestions in this area if y'all have some!

I think those are the big ones. Overall there's a lot to look forward to in 2019- more traveling, a big birthday (I'm turning 30! ah!) and a bigger career step that's both terrifying and exhilarating at the same time. What are your goals for the new year?

How to Have a Happy (and Healthy) New Year

a lot of people Everyone seems to be making a plan to do or to be better in the New Year. I think that's great, and I think that's something we should do more often than just around January 1st. But since it's on the mind right now anyways, let's go for the obvious- I thought I'd share a few of my ongoing plans to work on my inner peace and overall well-being in 2015.

1. Respect Your Body. As my great-grandfather (pictured above) said, everything in moderation. In this day and age we indulge ourselves just a little too much, I think. So exercise. Drink more water. Drink less alcohol. Eat less processed food, less fried food, less red meat, and more beans and pulses as protein. Eat more greens- start your own garden, if you've got the space. When we put good things into our bodies, we feel good, as well.

2. Respect Yourself. Oftentimes, we are our own worst enemy, and mentally, our negative, overly-critical thoughts can wear on our minds and our spirits. So just stop. Stop calling yourself ugly, or fat, or stupid in your head. Talk to yourself {come on, guys- we all do it- we've all got that ongoing dialogue in our heads!} the way you would to any other person. Tell yourself you're worthy daily. Compliment your successes. Assess your mistakes fairly, and promise yourself you'll atone for them and deal with the situation differently next time. Beating yourself up, even about mistakes, is a waste of time and energy.

3. Lighten the Load. Over my 25 years I have accumulated my fair share of stuff- clothes, books, art supplies- I even have my fair share of notes and writings from the 8th grade- no joke. And I don't know about you, but I'm tired of it- it's got to go! So if you haven't used, worn, played with or enjoyed it in over a year- let it go. Donate it. Sell it. Trash it. Real Simple's January editorial has some great tips on ways to tackle the seemingly overwhelming task. You will feel so much better, and your space will look beautifully unencumbered, for what I am betting is the first time in a while.

4. Show Kindness to Others. Even those who are unkind to you. I very often take even the slightest negative comment from another very personally- don't do this. Realize that other people are humans too, with their own set of challenges, burdens and fears. Forgive them their flaws and their  burdens- and when the time comes to forgive yourself, it will make your own crosses easier to bear, too.

So those are my tips. Also on my more concrete list of goals for 2015: Pray more. What are your New Years Plans? How about your resolutions? Do you think I've missed any big points on how to live better?

Best,