New Design and School Year Resolutions

My blog design is complete!
Well, mostly complete.
Complete enough to make public.

We are still working to tweak some things.
For instance, I feel the header looks a bit cut off, like it needs something to put the finishing touch.
But that will be an ongoing process!
I'm so lucky to have such a wonderful and talented husband. :)

In celebration, I'm going to post a freebie tomorrow during Monday Made It!
Be on the look out. :)

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Amanda at Teaching Madness is having a linky party!





Yeah!
Only, this is going to be a bit different for me.
It's going to be my "First School Year Resolutions".
Perfect!

1. Stress less. Holy cow, y'all, believe me when I say this: I am a stresser. To quote Galadriel, I stress over "things that were, things that are, and some things that have not yet come to pass" (just a little Lord of the Rings for you there - I'm also a huge HUGE nerd!). I know it's going to be a stressful and whirlwind of a year, but I don't want to stress about things like getting my contract resigned in May when school hasn't even started yet (no lie, I started stressing about this the second I landed the position - I'm rather ridiculous)!  So, I want to stress less. I'm being realistic - I know that my stress wont disappear or anything, but I really want to work at taking it down a notch or two!

2. Stay organized. This appears to be one of everyone's resolutions, but I think it is such an important one! It really goes hand in hand with my #1 resolution. Organization = working smarter = less stress. See? This means getting grading done before coming home. I can do it!

3. Get healthy. It's been tough these last couple of years. We have been living essentially off one income, which doesn't leave a whole lot of money to devote to extra pricey things like healthy food. It's be lots of hamburger helper type meals here for too long! I've gained weight and feel miserable. Plus, how can I set a good example of healthy living for my kids if I'm not living it, myself? It ends this year! I will: eat healthier (this has to wait until September when I get my first paycheck!), move around more (jump rope, Pilates DVDs, 30 minute walks in the morning or evening that will eventually become jogs - fingers crossed), and again... STRESS LESS! When I stress like crazy, I eat like crazy... funny how all of my resolutions keep leading back to that one, huh?!

4. Stay two weeks ahead with my lesson plans. When I was student teaching, we always had to plan for two weeks out. It was amazing being able to say, "whew, the next two weeks are all planned out, now I can relax for a couple of days". When I say "relax", I of course mean: copy, grade, organize, write notes, teach, reteach, reteach AGAIN.... But it helped to have one less thing to worry about, even if it was only for a few days!

5. Get monthly/biweekly pedicures. This one is purely for selfish, "I really enjoy pedicures" reasons, but I can work it back into my first resolution. More me time = less stress, and I love me some pedicures!

A lot of these resolutions really sound more like personal goals, don't they? Hey, gotta take care of yourself to take care of anyone else, amIright?!

Be sure to hop over to Amanda's blog and link up!

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Before I go to Slumber Land (Little Nemo reference - I'm on a roll!), I just wanted to say how excited I am that my little blog has started to gain followers.
Seriously, you are all awesome!

I can't do any giveaways just yet (I just don't have the resources at the moment)...
But I'm going to try to put up freebies more frequently.
So it will kind of be like a give away, but one where everyone wins!
Huzzah!

Night, y'all!