Thursday, January 2, 2014

Resolutions Past and Present

One of the years my grandmother was going through chemo (she went through both chemo and radiation several times), my uncle helped her make a list of resolutions for the new year. Instead of resolving to do anything like "get fit," which obviously would have been unrealistic for her, my uncle suggested simple, yet attainable things like "put your toes in the sand" or "smell a box of new crayons." He intended for her to stay hopeful and motivated while she was going through a very trying time.

This is a picture of my grandmother the last year she was physically able to walk to the peer. Isn't she beautiful? There was a huge storm brewing (which is why she's holding down her hat), but we arrived at our destination just before the storm did. My dad picked the two of us up at the peer. This was a pretty proud moment for my granny.

My husband and I are in a weird phase of our lives, so I thought it might be fun to have our own list (similar to my grandmother's) to post in the apartment. It is not exactly a traditional resolution list, perhaps, but we are not entirely traditional people. As I am sure you will notice, some points on this list pertain to both of us; other points pertain to one or the other of us. See if you can figure out which ones belong in the "His," "Hers," or "Both" categories (I will give you the answers below).

2014 Resolutions: 
1. Eat more fish tacos 
2. Finish reading The Coming Prince by Sir Robert Anderson 
3. Go to a baseball game 
4. Go ice skating 
5. Ride a horse 
6. Sew a dress 
7. Practice target and skeet shooting 
8. Read an entire book on the beach 
9. Hike a very specific, extremely difficult mountain trail (a trail unspecified for privacy's sake)
10. Visit more historical places 
11. Purchase and consume REAL maple syrup
12. Make and try fish jerky
13. Cook and eat more Caribbean-inspired food 
14. Make a sandcastle 
15. Catch at least one wave in the ocean (a follow-up to this one should be "avoid any and all sharks"... ha!)

Happy New Year from our family!

Answers:
1. Both (we had them twice in 2013)
2. Hers (I recently re-started it a second time)
3. Both (we did not make it to any last year)
4. Hers (one of my favorite things)
5. Both (another favorite)
6. Hers (I have had the pattern and fabric for over a year)
7. Both (we missed out on this in 2013)
8. His (because my husband is wild and crazy like that)
9. His (the jury is still out for me on this one)
10. Both (we only made it to one in 2013; yes, we enjoy that kind of thing)
11-13. Both
14. Hers (hopefully with my almost-three-year-old niece)
15. Both