New Beginnings

I love this time of year, “Out with the old in with the new.” How wonderful it is to know that we can put our past in the past and start anew. I am excited for 2012; I do not think that I have ever been this excited for a new year. It could because of what my little family went through last year but that is in the past. It is a new year and we are looking forward to that. One of the best parts of the New Year is making resolutions. The only difference between a goal and a dream is that a goal or resolution is written down. Dreams are nice but resolutions are better.
So here are mine, the reason why I am sharing them online is because it makes me accountable to those readers I have.

1. To love more. One of the goals I need to have is to open my heart more to love. Sometimes when our heart is broken it is easier to turn it off to the idea of getting hurt again. We decide that it is better to feel nothing rather than pain. This is not true, because when we can feel pain that means we can also learn to feel the opposite which is joy. I can now look myself in the mirror after many months and know that I am worth something. I am a good person and I have something to offer others. This last month I have been walking around on cloud 9 because of someone that loves me. What a wonderful feeling to know that I can feel that sort of love again.

2. Be more prayerful. I have learned in 2011 and in past years that our Father in Heaven does answer our prayers. He doesn’t always answer them in the way we think they will or should be answered but He does answer them. He wants us to come to Him and share with Him our deepest most desires.

3. Be a better mom. I think I am a pretty good mom but there is always room for improvement. I have worked hard this last year to make sure that my children felt safe and secure. I want to focus this year on helping them to make correct decisions that will help them throughout the rest of their lives. Tyler is going to graduate this year, I cannot believe that he is old enough or where the time has gone. I need him and his sisters to know that only by following the commandments they will have enduring happiness. This is going to be what I mainly focus on as a mother this year.

4. To not sweat the small stuff. Sometimes we as people worry about things that we cannot control. It is not usually the big stuff that we have to worry about. Most of the time we sweat the small stuff. We have all heard the saying, “You don’t need to cry over spilt milk.” This is so true; it is usually the small things that we have a problem with. The small things then turn into the big things. I sweat the small stuff quite a bit; this has to do with working 60 hours a week outside the home. My goal this year is to not worry about the little things but only the big things.

5. Do something for myself. This is tough for most moms; we inherently put our children first. I think that is how it should be, but I have learned that I need to take some time for myself. This way I can be the mom I need to be for my children. Rather it is reading before bed when everyone is asleep, waking up early to exercise, or blogging on a quiet Sunday afternoon. Flo Fallis must take time for herself. This does not mean I am selfish; I am not out partying while my kiddos are at home. I am doing something good that uplifts me and therefore uplifts my kiddos.

6. To live as an example of what good stands for. There are many people in my life that I consider good examples not only to myself but also to my children. If I had to name them all the blog would be too long for anyone to read. But, there are a few people that have truly made an impact on their lives and on mine. I hope that there is someone that I have touched and that I have been an example to. I want people to not only know me by my word but also by my deeds. I hope that people can see that what I say I am is who I really am. That there is no double standard or hypocrisy. Being a good example and standing for truth and righteousness is very important to me.

7. Last but not least is to celebrate the small achievements. Today one of my friends at church talked about reading an article on resolutions, and it stated that we should celebrate the small achievements. It could be something like losing one more pound on our diet, having the dishes done at the end of every night, not having an entire box of papers to grade, or just waking up and smiling to those you come in contact with. We might not achieve going to the moon, but we can achieve the small everyday stuff. This will help us keep our goals because they are small enough to keep.

No matter if you are working on daily goals, weekly goals, monthly goals, or yearly goals, at least you are working on something.

One of my biggest points of pride last year was my blog. I am not the best writer but I have turned into a pretty good one. I have enjoyed getting to know myself better by expressing my feelings. I feel lucky enough to live in a time where my thoughts might help others. More importantly I have learned from you my readers. When someone comments online or in person it makes my heart swell. I have learned from you more than you have learned from me. Thank you for taking the time to read my blog.