Adventure – I live in California, FFS. There are so many things I want to try before I longer can. From foraging for sea urchin, seaweed, Dungeness crabs, to camping outdoors to learning how to ski. These are things I have never embraced before; getting dirt on my hands.

Give more, expect nothing – It’s time to accept that I really enjoy giving. I haven’t always given without expectations. So I cut back on gifts, but realized that wasn’t the solution nor did it make me happy. This year, I’ll enjoy giving for the sake of giving, because it truly makes me happy to do so without any expectations whatsoever. 

Less – Of everything. After we moved from a 600 square foot apartment into our new two story home, we realized how much stuff we had. We had filled every crevice of our old tiny apartment with so many things, in case of this or that. To have to physically move all these (often useless) things from one place to another – and to pay for it – made use reevaluate our purchasing behavior. We went through a major cleanse of our things and I hope to continue to do so this year. I want to shop less so that I cherish the things that I do have, live more sustainably and be more conscientious of what I bring into my home. 

Maui – This is the first wedding trip of the year, and the first in a long time where I’ve made it a goal to actively plan our trips and be present. In the past I’ve just been a passive attendee, showing up because that’s what you do for friend but never really taking advantage of the destination. In the past we’ve been to Da Nang, Vietnam and I truly regret not plotting our adventures for that one more. So, this time around, we’ve planned an open-door helicopter tour, trips to hopefully see whales and turtles, lots of eating among sunsets and hikes, lots of hikes.

Embracing the darkness – Clarice Lispector said it best:
          
“Respect yourself more than others, respect your needs, respect even what is bad in you­–respect especially what you imagine to be bad in you–for the love of God, don’t try to make yourself into somebody perfect–don’t copy an ideal person, copy yourself–that is the one way to live. Take for yourself what belongs to you, and what belongs to you is all that your life demands. It seems like an amoral moral. But what is truly amoral is having given up on yourself. Have the courage to transform yourself, my darling.”

            It is so easy to compare yourself to that perfectly filtered, Facetuned Instragram model/lifestyle guru. Do not do it. Obsess over yourself. Watch your own stories over and over again. Take countless selfies of your face with and without make up. Obsess over your own life because it is more real than anything you see on Instagram. 




Italy, Bali, and other parts unknown – This is the year of destination weddings. Our friends have been selecting far flung places to tie the knot and we couldn’t we luckier to be able to attend. Excited to plan these trips as well, but if you guys have any tips based on your travels please let us know.

Handstands– Last year I finally accomplished splits. I had to go to yoga at least five times a week. Some days my body would not let me be still (usually after work), other days I fell into poses effortlessly (weekends, figures). After a few months, I finally accomplished a real push up. I had to work my way into it, building up the muscles in my shoulder, triceps, arms, abs and back. I want to continue to do so and maybe by the end of the year I will be able to point both foot in the air.

A dog– I’m almost afraid to type this one out because I’m afraid I might chicken out. A dog is a huge commitment. Lucky for us, we’ve been cutting back drastically on going out so it won’t change our lifestyle as much. What may be difficult is all the traveling that we are doing this year, but I have a feeling we will figure this out or find a friendly sitter close by.

Taking a pottery class– I’ve been putting this one off for so long. But 2018 had so many other priorities that this one just couldn’t be squeezed in. But the goals have been set and written down with plenty of room for this easy commitment. I feel like it will be a great way to escape and focus. I’m most excited about working with my hands to create something physical again because I spend most of my time working in digital marketing, everything is intangible. To be able to hold something that I’ve made (that will hopefully be functional) will be a nice feeling.




Learning photography– The lover recently got me a camera that I’ve been eyeing for a few years. I have an Olympus from 2011 that has been getting less and less use as the years go by. It’s a limiting camera that is a bit bulky and I was looking for something with a wifi connection to easily transfer pictures. I’m embracing my addiction to instant gratification. Learning how to use this baby will force me to capture more memories on something other than my phone or IG stories…and then immediately share it on my IG stories better. My 10 followers on Instagram have the most to gain =) 

Xx

Ps, this is a great video of women ages 5 to 75 sharing what they are looking forward to the most in 2019. I love that adventures do not cease the older you get.