Happy New Year!

Another year has flown by, and here comes 2012.  As usual I don't really care for making declarative "resolutions" for the new year.  But there are certain areas that I would like to focus on - some new, and some continued from last year.  Not that I was unsuccessful with these in the past, just that I feel they bear further concentration. 
Here are some of my continuations and some new points of focus:

Continue working towards my athletic goals:  Mainly Tae Kwon Do and running.
Last year I achieved a green belt in Tae Kwon Do, and I would like to continue with my progress up the ladder.  So far the most challenging part of the sport for me has been the sparring aspect - I just don't feel all the skills coordinate together smoothly enough to be effective.  Still working on that. 
New this year: Focus on increasing impact, assertion, and force with my strikes despite my fear of hurting myself or my opponent. 
2011 was practically a wasted year as far as my running goals went.  I spent the entire year in recovery from running injuries and had to quit every training plan I started before finishing the races.  This year I want to overcome my injuries and improve my running and fitness.  This means I will have to continue to affect change in my running stride while gently increasing distance, mileage volume, and speed - something I was unsuccessful with doing last year. 
New this year:  Overcome my fears of re-injury and be able to enjoy running once again.  Starting tomorrow I will be working a marathon training plan to prepare myself for a race in Vancouver on May 6th. 

Continue the job search:
Last year I was unsuccessful in finding gainful employment.  I will still be looking for part time, paid work that will fit into our family schedule and hopefully afford some career experience. 
New this year:  As time marches on, we may be closer to the necessity for me to widen my search to include jobs that are less desirable in that they do not offer long term career potential or do not fit as conveniently into our schedule. 

Continue improvements to parenting and attitude:
Focusing on the positives in my life, being thankful for the gifts I have, and being encouraging to the people with whom I live.  Hopefully this will help me to be happier as well as be a better wife, mother, dog owner, and friend.

Continue to blog:
Though our days get busy, I will endeavour to keep documenting as I go.  I have recognized the need for more photos of our kids and our adventures as they come, so I will keep trying to keep snapping pics as well as the occasional write-up too.
New this year:  There are unlimited great ideas out there in blog world to help inspire, so I will be starting some new weekly features as well as continuing with the old ones.  More to come soon on this.

Continue to practice frugality:
Cutting back on our expenses is more  urgent than ever, so I will continue my efforts in this area. 
New this year:  I will try to cut grocery spending by taking advantage of lower prices at each of the local stores.  I will try to cut back somewhat on trips to my favourite store for personal items, and I will try to plan meals around inexpensive yet quality ingredients. 

Continue attempts to maintain an attractive appearance:
Last year I started participating in What I Wore on Wednesday, documenting at least one  "real" outfit per week. 
New this year: Accessorize!