Mama has New Year Resolutions

I thought long and hard about my New Year resolutions this year. They will follow my New Year philosophy for 2010: What benefits Mama, benefits the family.

If I am happy, fulfilled, successful, and not too tired, everyone else will be better off. I dream of a happy household, and I am one of the keys to that happy household. My husband is another key. AwesomeCloud was born to be happy, so I'm sure he'll do his part. But he's very sensitive to my moods.

I am going to keep drawing and creating comic books. My art is a very tangible form of accomplishment. It is too easy to say, "Eh, I have a toddler now; drawing is too much work." None of that. I will draw AND be a parent.

I am going to keep reading nonfiction. Books enrich my mind, and remind me that I have soooo much to teach AwesomeCloud about the world. The big, complex, beautiful world.

I am going to keep volunteering. I could easily justify taking a few years off, but I won't! If I do good, I will do well. And the spirit of doing good will permeate our household. Besides, if my husband rescues stranded sea mammals and I do nothing, I will become insanely envious. Envious Mama is not happy Mama.

I am going to exercise every day. I'm going back on the Prodigy regimen (dancing to techno - now I can add Fatboy Slim to my playlist). I will also pretend the stroller is a jogging stroller, and AwesomeCloud and I will take power walks around the 'hood. Um. As soon as the snow melts.

I am going to rest when I'm tired. I am. I swear. AwesomeCloud will learn that a Mama resting in the middle of the day is a normal thing. Mama will learn that, too.

I am going to learn more Chinese. I'll refresh what I forgot and learn some new words too.

I am going to spend money to do things right around the house. I jury-rig far too many things. Joining the 21st century will help prevent me from getting too tired. Maybe we can't afford a dishwasher this year, but there's no reason for me to have a $5 annual budget for the garden. I'll grow better veggies if I invest in some loam. I need to use real baby gates, buy real plant pots, get some high-quality hard-for-toddlers-to-open plastic containers, and this is the year I get a real wood bin. A rain-proof one.

Aside from all that, though, I'm going to sit back, relax, and pay close attention to the little things. AwesomeCloud's developing speech skills, the wild blueberries across the street, hummingbirds, cats. I will stop and smell the clovers.

(We don't have any roses, but we have lots of clover, and I hope it spreads this year. It's a much better ground cover than grass.)