Welcome to the new year! I hope you all had a fun, safe NYE. We spent our evening at dinner with some of our friends and then went out on the town to watch the ball drop and ring in the new year together. It was a fun ending to a really wonderful year.
I’m not usually one for big resolutions, as I tend to set more short-term goals for myself throughout the year. But the more I thought about it, the more things I came up with that I’d like to do in the coming year… so here are some of my resolutions for 2014::
1. Travel somewhere new together. We love, love, love to travel, and somehow, we have no big plans for going anywhere this year. I’d like to change that. We’ve never been to Arizona, so we’re considering a trip out to the Grand Canyon, Sedona, and Scottsdale for our 5th anniversary. Any recommendations are welcome!
2. Explore more of our home city. I’d like to do this by trying new restaurants, checking out new parks, hiking Stone Mountain, wandering neighborhoods, and visiting various attractions. Atlanta has so much to offer, and we often end up in the same places doing the same things, so I’d like to change things up a bit.
3. Be more intentional about eating better and exercising more. I know this is a resolution for almost everyone on the planet, but it’s something that I think both of us would really like to be more intentional about in our day-to-day lives. Meaning buying or making healthier snacks, researching healthier lunch options, not buying/making sweets other than for special occasions, and making time to walk/jog/go to the gym/do basement workouts 3-4 times a week. Hopefully we can stick to that!
4. Grow my photography business. This is sort of vague, but considering that I just started my business last fall, I have so much room to grow! This new venture is a long time coming and something I’ve dreamed about for years. I want to build a substantial business in the Atlanta area (and beyond — I am always willing to travel!) that will enable me to help families and couples preserve their memories in a beautiful way.
5. Spend less. For the past year or so, I’ve kept a monthly budget and a record of every single purchase I make. I set amounts for each category (like eating out and shopping), and then I use my credit card for things like gas and gift purchases. After monitoring my spending each month, it’s pretty clear what I like to do… eat out and shop. Shocking, I know. So in 2014, I’d like to focus on cutting down on the impulse buys and unnecessary purchases, as well as eating out less each month (which will also help out with resolution #3). It’s amazing how quickly eating out on the weekends can add up!
6. Spread joy. I’d like to focus more on doing good for others. We’ve been so blessed in our personal and professional lives, and it’s really easy to take that for granted. I hope to spend this year (and those going forward) doing more volunteering, donating to worthy causes, and doing random acts of kindness each month for those who just need a little pick-me-up or a thank you for being awesome.
hayes everyday 
Very nice Melissa! I know you will succeed at all of your resolutions!
Glad to hear that you will be going to the Grand Canyon for your anniversary. Don’t know how long you have planned for the trip, but if you can work it in, I think you would enjoy being at the Four Corners park where you can stand in 4 states at one time and then not too much further east is Mesa Verde where you can see ancient cliff dwellings. We did not get to spend enough time there, but what we did see was interesting. You will see some unique scenery out there. Papaw Date: Thu, 2 Jan 2014 16:40:15 +0000 To: billyb6844@hotmail.com
Thanks for the tips! We’ll only be at the GC for one day, but we’ll see what we’d be able to fit in. I’m so excited to visit Arizona — I’ve heard great things!