I promised my mother-in-law

As we left my in-laws at the airport, and my mother-in-law started to cry because her first baby was flying home, I told her something I didn't think I would. At least not yet.

I told her that we'd be working on her Christmas gift for next year.

That gift being her first grandchild.

Whoa.

Maybe it was all the emotions in the air, the look of seeing her tear up and my husband tear up, I just couldn't help myself. But after I said it, I couldn't help but feel excited and hopeful for the future. And all that it holds.

I hope I can keep my promise.

Goals for 2013

It's almost the end of the year. If you're one of those people who sitting on pins and needles for the end of days tomorrow, good luck. I'm not holding my breath.

Just 5 days until Christmas.

This time of the year, I always find myself thinking about next year. And EVERY. SINGLE. YEAR. I always say that "this year is going to be different".


  • I'm going to lose weight
  • I'm going to get organized
  • I'm going to eat more vegetables
  • I'm going to be successful
And then, by the middle of the year, I've lost steam in my goals that I set in January and find myself slowly slipping back into bad habits and giving up on those goals. It's awful

This year I did lose 20lbs! But then, by September, I lost steam and have gained a little bit of the weight back. And now that we're in holiday mode, I've put off all exercise and healthy eating until the new year. 

With planning to have a baby in 2013/2014, I need to get really serious about my health. My OBGYN said that if I lost about 20lbs, it would help with what she suspects could be PCOS - polycystic ovarian syndrome. While I haven't been formally diagnosed yet (we'll test at my next annual exam), I've read all the symptoms and my OB says I fit the description.

PCOS totally stinks too because it isn't curable, it's merely manageable. It includes symptoms such as trouble losing weight, excess hair, acne, irregular periods, and fertility problems - awesome, right?!

Thankfully, some of the symptoms can be reversed/reduced through diet and exercise, and sadly, by limiting carbs. Sugar is evil and yet so delicious!

Anyway, all that to say that I've been seriously thinking about my goals for 2013. And I think that what happens to me is that I get all excited about setting goals, but I don't really make them that specific or measurable. Instead, they are big, vague, and overwhelming. So this year, I'm laying them out here. Sharing them on this little blog, and hopefully giving me some accountability for making things happen personally.

My 2013 Goals

I'm sure that I will continue to add things to this list for 2013, but I just wanted to get things started before 2013 is actually here! I'm also thinking about starting a a 101 in 1001 list - starting January 1, 2013 and ending September 28, 2015. We'll see.

Health

  1. I want to lose 20lbs in 2013 and keep it off. 
  2. I want to track progress - eating and working out.
  3. I want to get pregnant in 2013.

Life

  1. I want to celebrate our 30th birthdays with my husband with a party surrounded by good friends.
  2. We want to host at least 3 parties at our home.
  3. I want to go out to dinner with friends at least once every other month.

Travel

  1. I want to go to France with my husband. (Possible baby-moon.)
  2. We want to go on at least 2 vacations.
  3. We want to not travel during the holidays in 2013.

Organization

  1. I want to start meal planning on a weekly basis so that I cook at least 3 days a week.
  2. I want to get organized - better filing, less clutter with paperwork.
  3. I want to finish painting my office and make it a truly functional space.
  4. I want to create a "chores" list of sorts so that regular cleaning occurs each week.

What are some of your goals for next year?


PCOS - Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome

I was trying to figure out if I want to even talk about this on the blog, but I figure that it's part of my journey and if it helps just one person with their journey, then that'll be a great thing.

I went to my new OBGYN back in April for my annual women's exam. You know the one. With paper gowns and stirrups. Fun times. My mom had suggested that I ask the doctor about PCOS - polycystic ovarian syndrome - maybe I had it? I had some of the symptoms - acne (I thought acne went away by the time you're in your late 20's), trouble losing weight (I mean, who doesn't have that problem, right?), excess facial hair (I had to admit to this, but it's downright awful), thinning scalp hair (my hair used to be fairly thick), irregular periods, and infertility.

Since up until recently, we didn't have to worry about infertility since we weren't talking about having kids yet. But now, now that we really are talking about starting a family, this has become an issue.

I also have to say that I haven't been formally diagnosed. That would involve an ultrasound to check for cysts. It's sounds awesome and wonderful, right? Not really. Unfortunately, it's not a condition that has a cure. Thankfully, it's a condition that can be managed and the symptoms lessened, mainly through diet and exercise. Most notably for the diet - reduction in carbs!

It stinks that I love carbs so much.

But if carbs are what are standing in between us having a baby, then I will gladly give up that extra sugar.

Part of my plan, come January is to start up eating Paleo style again, at least at a 80/20 ratio. I know that the hard core Paleo/Primal gurus will say that it is a lifestyle, but if I'm being totally honest with myself, I know that I'll be able to do much better if I give myself the 80/20 ratio.

I'm slowly learning to eat more vegetables (I wish I loved them) and I'm excited about being able to eat plenty of protein (I love meat!) I have to admit that I will miss my carbs, between cakes and candy and bread, the idea of saying goodbye sucks. But it'll be worth it.

I'm going to follow an eating plan that is somewhere between a Paleo and 4 Hour Body diet, giving myself that one day a week to go nuts on the all the bad stuff. I hear from friends who have done it say that after a few weeks, you don't even miss or crave the bad stuff anymore.

Anybody else out there managing PCOS? I would love to hear your advice!