Hello, lovelies! Happy Friday! I hope you all had a great week and are looking forward to the weekend; for some of you, maybe even a three-day weekend!

I know it’s a little late, but I thought I’d share with you some of my goals for 2015, as we begin this new year. We’re halfway through January, so I’ve had some time to think about this, and thought I’d talk about it here, so that you guys can help keep me accountable.

1. Be more intentional as a friend: I know this one can tend to be vague, but I have a few specifics in mind that I think will help give me a more defined sense of what that really means. I’m sure these are different for everyone, but for me, a few practical things I can do to be a better friend are: write more handwritten letters to friends (because who doesn’t love receiving snail mail?!), send more messages throughout the week, i.e. text, Facebook, etc., pray with a purpose (as in, don’t just pray, “God bless my friends.” Know their prayer requests and pray for those specifically), remember and acknowledge birthdays.

2. Don’t sweat the small stuff: I have a tendency to stress out about every little thing, even though I know that being anxious won’t affect the outcome and will only serve to make me unhappy. My word for this year is “trust,” and it applies to everything from trusting God about the future, to trusting that so-and-so is going to email me back with a response. As my boss always says, “Things always work out.”

3. Learn to say, “no,” when necessary: The funny thing about this one is that just a few years ago, I would have killed for the opportunity to be able to say, “yes.” What I mean is, right after I graduated college, it seemed like all of my friends moved away and my social calendar was pretty much empty. Then I started attending Existence Church, got plugged into the women’s ministry, and immediately started making friends. I felt and still feel so incredibly fortunate to have met so many incredible women, who are now like sisters to me, that last year was the year of, “yes!” Yes to every single social outing, numerous volunteer opportunities, etc. Don’t get me wrong, these are all wonderful things that I still plan to do plenty of in 2015. However, this year, I plan to focus a little bit more on my mental and physical health and know my limits, so that I don’t stretch myself too thin. I want to give 100% (or as close as possible) to all areas of my life and I can’t do that if I’m burnt out.

4. Journal more: I go back and forth between being super dedicated to super lazy about this one, but I find that I get a lot more out of my morning quiet time when I take the time to write down my thoughts and prayers. It takes all of 10 minutes to do and let’s just be honest, who doesn’t love a pretty journal?!

5. Drink more water…no, seriously: I’m pretty sure I make this resolution every year, but never actually keep it. I’m pretty good about drinking water at work when I’m at my desk, with a water cooler just down the hallway. But then, for some reason, I go on a water fast over the weekend, when I’m out and about. I own about five different super cute reusable water bottles (each bought with the intention of drinking more water) and I never remember to use them. So I guess, in a way, this resolution should really be, “Drink water on the weekends!” We’ve all heard of the multitude of health benefits drinking more water can give us. I’m curious to see if they’re actually true!

These are just a few goals I plan to work towards/maintain in 2015. What are your resolutions for the new year? I’d love to hear about them in the comments!

Thanks for reading and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!