Goals for 2011

I do not usually do full on resolutions and they never include losing weight. I am in definite favor of having goals, I am a first born, Type A person....I LOVE goals but often feel that people expect to much from themselves in one year. So here are a few things I hope to do/get better at over the next year

1)

Get engaged. I would LOVE to tell you that I want to be married with kids by 2012 but that is just way too quick. Getting engaged....we can do. Well I hope he does. We have been dating for over 3 years and living together for more then 2 1/2 of it and are basically married except for the ring and the white dress. I get the question "Why aren't you married yet" all the time. Before the answer "He is in school and graduating in 2010 and I do not want to have to plan a wedding while he is in school, blah blah blah" worked just fine. Now...since he has graduated that doesn't work so well. Knowing him I don't think he would ask before he got a job he felt relatively comfortable at. He is more then likely going to sink money into the ring. Not because I expect/demand it but he does see it as a sign of love/commitment and he wants to get me the best (and this goes for everything) he can afford...and he can afford more with a full time job, etc. Plus I think he may be waiting for more stability in our future. I do hope it is soon, I have been patiently waiting a long time. That being said, depending when he asks we could have a wedding in 2011 as well. We are more then likely getting married here and the only really good months for weddings are April/Mary and September/October so we will get married in which ever month is closest that still allows me enough time to plan. I only plan on being engaged as long is it takes to plan the wedding. We are not doing a long engagement....dating was long enough :) And yes that is my dream engagement ring. Tiffany's three stone, round, with two sapphires at the end. The wedding band would be a plain, simple, white gold/platinum (I am allergic to metal so the lowest I can go is white gold, poor me lol) band.

2)

I need to get better at writing to people especially if I wont pick up the phone (awkward, scary invention). I need to write more thank you notes, send out birthday cards, well wishes. and plain letters. And email doesn't count. I think everyone needs to do these things still but the south definitely seems to hung on to this aspect more then the north. I hope this is one of the things I gain from my experience in the south. I have started out well, Christmas thank you cards have been written and mailed. SO if you are reading this (excluding relatives...I will be bugging Mommy later for your addresses and info) and want to be included in my endeavor, message me your info :)

3)

To save more money. As I said, I am a first born, type A personality. I naturally hate spending money as it is one of the few things I actually have control over. I freak out over spending money on groceries. Spending money is really hard for me. I think Brian and I have done a great job so far. I have Suze Orman's idea of a emergency savings, I have money and continue to put money into retirement accounts, and my regular savings is slowly growing as well. Brian doesn't have much in savings but he has some and puts as much as he can in. At the end of the day, he has graduated college and the only debt we have is his student loans. No car payments, no furniture payments, no nothing. I am not stating this to brag or show off but more so when I look back through the years I can see what we have accomplished so far. But we do need to replace Brian's car sooner then later (if we were ever to move to a busy town or hilly area, oh boy), we do want to buy a house someday soon, I do want children, etc. All of those things require money and the sooner we start saving for those things the better. It will get easier once Brian starts working full time but I can be better at saving as well.

4)

I want a puppy :) I miss having a puppy so badly! I want a St. Bernard (see picture) and, at some point, a Basset Hound. The St Bernard will be named Theodore or Teddy for short and the Basset Hound will be named George. Yes I want male doggies. Girls are cute, but I like my boys :). In order to have a puppy/dog we need to move (our apartment is not pet friendly) and get more money (at this point we can only afford it if the dog stays healthy but like children they can and do get sick and they have expensive vet bills!).


Those are my main four for this year. I hope that next year this time I will have accomplished at least 2 of these if not 4 :)