Hello 2010!

Happy New Year!

My sweet man and I rang in 2010 last night cuddled on the couch with a bottle of fake bubbly and smooched as the ball dropped. We spent this first day of the new decade watching Oregon get their butts kicked (well maybe not "kicked" but patted for sure) and catching up on the last season of LOST (man, I hate to love that show!). It's been perfect. Right now Ben is downstairs making one of my favorite dinners, "Filipino Breakfast" which is rice (we use brown) with eggs over-easy and bacon. Ben says that traditionally it's a ghetto meal because it's just a mix of whatever is on hand, but I love it! What does that say about me?

Last night we talked about big events that happened in the last 10 years some of which included moving states, new jobs, graduating high school and college, joining the military, leaving the military, living in England, backpacking Europe, music, nursing, online-dating, meeting true loves, falling in love, getting married, living together, starting a career, falling deeper in love, losing loved ones, divorce, marriage, babies, puppies and two people making a home and family of their own.

We have been very blessed the last ten years, and we are not unaware of it. We are so very thankful for every gift that we have been giving and we hope that we are good stewards of our gifts in the next ten years.

Not unlike many others out there, we made resolutions for 2010. I'm not usually a big resolution person, but I thought I'd make a few ones this year. A few are real ones that won't necessarily ever been "checked off" my list, but continually strived for. They are:

1. Continue to grow as a wife. I am so thankful for the man I am married to. He is my biggest blessing and I am truly honored to be his wife. That being said, marriage takes work, as does being a wife. Ben and I are in a really good place and our home and hearts are filled with contentment and joy. We are thankful for this sweet season and we know it will strengthen us now and for the rest of our life together.

2. Reach my goal weight. It should be said that my goal changes. Sometimes it's pretty low and seems unobtainable, other times it's more reachable but either way it's better than where I am now. I ended this year 15 lbs down, and I'd like to work on at least another 15 more and then figure out how in the heck to keep it off.

3. Run a 5K. I hate running but I have a strong desire to make it a part of my life. I don't know why I want to do this, but I do. Maybe because I have always thought that I couldn't run and I want to prove myself wrong. Either way, the Shamrock Run is in March and I have the Couch-to-5K saved on my desktop.

4. Go backpacking.

5. Visit our families, all of them.

6. Read books. I don't care how many, but just read some. Maybe even finish one of the three I have started.

7. Cook more. Eat less.

8. Redecorate our bedroom. Our bedroom is okay right now, but pretty simple. We love our living room and our office, but our bedroom needs some help. I'd love to paint it but I can't decide on a color. I really want curtains and a dresser for Ben. I really think a bedroom should be a sanctuary and a romantic room to escape, relax, refresh and recharge in. I'm gonna make ours like that this year.

9. Change units at work. I'm going back and forth on this one. I have struggled with this decision (there hasn't been a position open yet - budget cuts) because I LOVE the group of people I work with but I feel like I'm missing out on a crucial part of why I became a nurse in the first place. It's difficult to explain, as I can't really put it into words, but my heart has more to give and I feel like I may be able to help families in very difficult situations. However, taking care of really sick kids requires a lot from a nurse and I often doubt that I am ready. We'll see. I'm praying about it and I firmly believe that a door will open when and if it is supposed to.

10. This one is a biggie for me - but not fully supported by my other half. Stop our birth control. I don't think we'll be ready to get pregnant exactly next year, but considering it takes 10 months to cook a baby, I would like to think we'll be ready to start baking sometime in 2011. Ben and I both want getting pregnant to be totally organic and unplanned. We don't want to have to watch my cycle and stress. We just want to do our business and get a very big surprise sometime along the way. This is a big decision and if I think about it too long I start to get pretty nervous. So, maybe if we decide to continue birth control, I'd like to have a better plan as to when we think we'll be ready to get rid of our goalie.

That's a pretty big list and it encompasses where my heart is right now. I am happy. I am in love. We are safe, healthy and secure. Our home is warm and cozy and very happy. We are so, so blessed. 2009 was a wonderful year, here's to 2010!

$ Mrs. Big Time