this year, i vow to...

(photo via Wildfox)I have never really made a New Year's resolution, at least nothing I can remember, meaning that I didn't stick with it for more than a few days. So this time around, I thought really hard about some changes I wanted to make. No huge changes, nothing crazy like "lose 100 lbs in one year!" because I want to be able to stick with these changes. So while I won't complain if I lose a few pounds each month, that's not my goal for the year. Instead, I decided to stick to something that's both simple and complicated:

Taking care of myself. That is truly the one and only resolution I have. This relates to a lot of different things, from health to how I spend my time. There are three major things I want to focus on, but there are also a lot of little things that I can work on. Here they are:

Make better choices with eating, avoid binges as much as possible. I'm not saying I'm on a diet -- just trying to be more aware of what I'm putting in my body. I'm currently doing a juice cleanse (review will be up tomorrow) so that was my first step toward that change. Less processed, less sugar, less Taco Bell. I'm hoping just some mindfulness will help keep me more energized and less prone to colds/illness.

Watch my sleep schedule. I sleep at odd hours, particularly while off from work, which also leads to a low energy level. I'll stay up really, really late then sleep in as long as possible. If I have to wake up early, my sleep schedule changes very little, meaning I go with much less sleep. So then I'll find some time to nap during the day, and rather than a 30 minute nap like a normal person, it'll turn into a 2+ hour coma. Not great. I'd also like to wake up earlier than two minutes before I have to get in the shower to go somewhere so I can start my day off better with a work out, breakfast, or even just some time to myself.

Stop stressing out so much about school. Every semester, I put my schoolwork above all else, especially my social life. Even if I'm not spending every second doing the schoolwork, then I'm thinking about how I should be doing it or what I'll have to do next. A lot of the time this stress leads to me being in a bad mood, snapping at people, holding up in my room or avoiding plans on weekends, but a lot of the time it also ends up with me feeling extremely rundown. I need to learn to use my time better, and only worry about school when I really have to. There's only four months left for me in my program, meaning I better enjoy this time while I still can!

Other things that this relates to: keeping organized (my room, especially), saving more money for the future, keeping away from negative things and people, embracing my new friends as much as possible -- especially before I graduate, and while I've definitely gotten used to the freedom of saying "no," I would like to start saying "yes" more but not out of obligation.

Most of all though, I'd like to just keep loving myself! Every year, I come closer and closer to self-discovery and thus, self-acceptance. I think I'm pretty awesome, so just holding onto that feeling is an achievement in itself.