I wrote this 4 years ago, but it was a good reminder to me about what is important. I didn’t edit it or put in paragraphs, I just copied it as is from Facebook:

We all need to look at the world through the eyes of a child, not just so that we can catch the wonder and excitement in the everyday, but to remember that everything they experience leaves a lasting impression. Looking at the big boxes of unorganized Christmas decorations does not instill the same joy and thrills in me as it does in my 6 year old grandson. He's digging through and saying, "Look at this!" "I remember that!" "Grandma, I love Christmas!" Because of his excitement, and because I know I'm creating his memories, I am willing to go through the motions and eventually catch the spirit myself. Watching his 1 year old brother's eyes light up with the plugging in of the colored lights reminds me that we are responsible to instill joy and tradition into the next generation. We don't ever get to say I'm too old, I’ve put up enough trees in my life time, i don't want to bother this year. One way or other we are going to pass on what the holidays will mean to our children and grandchildren. We can pass on stress and impatience over the holidays, or self-sacrifice and love for family. So, I am happy to say my house is now littered with decorations, sparkly garland shreds all over the rug and Christmas lights that only half the string lights up. My 20 year old Christmas tree has seen better days, but my daughter filled it with uneven, mismatched lights and it's ready for the boys to hang years of collected ornaments onto. (One ornament has already been dropped, shattered and vacuumed up!). Charlie brown has nothing on us! Soon the unused decorations and mess will be cleaned up, the floor will be vacuumed, and colored lights will flicker inside and out of my house, inviting friends and family to join in our Christmas Spirit. Glass Santas and nativity figurines will fear for their lives every time the boys come near, or the cat walks through them and decides to nap on top of baby Jesus, or when the dog's tail wags dangerously close. Some will live to be packed away to see another year, some will go into the box of things that need superglued but we all know never will be, and some will get swept up in the dustpan, having given their all to carrying on the family traditions. And I will be so happy I had a six year old jumping around this last week of November asking when we were going to put up Christmas decorations. I want him to remember Christmas as a peaceful, joyful family time and I want his little brother's first big boy Christmas to be kid friendly and filled with pretty lights and wonder. And most importantly, that they will always know that Jesus is the reason for the season.

100 Reasons to Keep Making New Year's Resolutions!

We’ve all made New Year’s Resolutions. Many of us make one every year; maybe even the same one over and over! Mine was always to lose weight. Some years I would succeed for a while, but gain it all back. Some years I would start, but give up within the first few days. Some years I didn’t even bother making the resolution in the first place because I knew I wouldn’t follow through. New Year’s Resolutions became just another thing to fail at. But you can’t fail if you don’t make one, right?

Last year I had no plans of making a resolution. But the ladies in my office wanted to start diets on January 1^st, so I decided I would go ahead and join them. I had no belief I would succeed. I was still in survival mode from my life turning upside down three years before. I’d already tried a few times to lose the weight I’d gained as my coping mechanism during that rough patch. I just didn’t believe I could do it, or even deserved to do it. So making my resolution with the ladies was halfhearted at best.

I somehow made it through the first month successfully. My daughter’s wedding was coming up at the end of March, so I decided to lose some more weight for that. I actually started to believe I could do it. And I did. I lost about 45 pounds and felt much better about myself.  It felt good to see family and friends at the wedding instead of being embarrassed to have them see me. But, when it was all over, I didn’t feel that same hope inside that it was worth continuing anymore; or that I was worth it. Circumstances still seemed bigger.

I gained back about 15 pounds, but then in June, decided to try again. I lost the 15 pounds plus a few more. By the time I set out on a three week motorcycle trip I was about 55 pounds lighter than I was at the beginning of the year. I would never have even gotten on the thing if I hadn’t lost the weight first. Throughout the trip, I ate healthy and lost a few more pounds. Eating right was becoming a lifestyle change instead of a diet for the first time in my life. I am still eating that way and feel like I’m choosing to do it rather than feeling deprived.

I have now officially lost 100 pounds in 2016, all because of a New Year’s Resolution I didn’t even believe in! I don’t write this to say, ‘Hey, look what I did!’ I write it to say, ‘Hey, look what we can do!!’ Even if we have tried a million times to lose weight, quit smoking, quit drinking, follow a budget, write that novel, train for a 5K, or whatever is important to us, this might just be the right time to try again.

I would much rather everyone forget I ever weighed that much than to admit I lost 100 pounds, but I also want to be an encouragement to others to never give up. If we wait until we feel like it, or until our lives improve, we will never start. Or, if we let discouragement or circumstances have first place on our resolution journey, we will never finish.

My circumstances hadn’t changed any on that first day. There were many times along the way I didn’t feel hopeful about the future, so it was hard to push through. But my heart was grateful, and I realized staying overweight and self-medicating with ice cream wouldn’t change anything for the better, it would just make me feel worse about myself. Time continues to tick by whether life is where we want it to be or not. Even if my situation wasn't going to change over the next few months, I decided that I could change.

I believe God has a plan and better things are in store for us if we don’t give up. But if we wait for the good things to happen before we start our resolutions, when they do finally turn around, we will still be in our bondage. I decided I wanted to be emotionally and physically ready for whatever happened next in my life. Like jumping on a Harley and riding across the country!

In October I got offered a job that I really wanted. By then I was down 80 pounds. I am not sure I would have presented myself as well, or felt that I could do it, if I hadn’t worked hard to better myself before the opportunity presented itself.  

There are still things in life that I worry about. Difficult circumstances still surround me. Along with losing the weight, I lost my house this year. But I continue to choose to eat healthy and not let myself fall back into that hole that will probably always beckon me. I choose to stay grateful and believe everything happens for a reason.

I have now lost 20 more pounds since starting my new job. I may or may not lose more. It doesn’t matter. What matters is that I actually completed my New Year’s Resolution! Whatever comes, good or bad, I know I will handle it better because perseverance has made me stronger.

Don’t let things, or worries, or other people stop you from taking that first step. Then the second. Then the third. And if you fall back a step or two, give yourself a break and start over. Don’t let that self-talk tell you that you failed again. You never fail as long as you don’t give up! You can do it!

So, please, keep making resolutions. I am celebrating 100 reasons why it is worth giving it another try! I haven’t decided what my resolution for next year is yet. Maybe I will train to run that 5K! Or skydive! Or write novel number 3!!!

Let’s all make our New Year’s Resolution for 2017, close our eyes, and take that first leap together! As long as there is even a little bit of hope, it can’t be hopeless!!