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Strengthen In 2015

Published on January 1, 2015 By Emily. Updated on January 1, 2015

For the past 2 years, I’ve chosen words to guide my new year’s goals, instead of a specific goal.  In 2013, it was intentional – the goal was to be as productive as possible and “stop slacking”.  For 2014, my word was invest – the goal was the do the things I was doing better by putting in more time and energy.

I didn’t write an end of year post on how I invested this fall.  Mostly because I don’t really feel like I invested.  I feel like I survived.  There were a lot of changes at work this fall and I didn’t anticipate how much I’d be affected.  Brian and I were really busy.  My summer job turned into a year round one.  Overall, things were good, but I wasn’t invested.  I was tired.

I had a hard time choosing a word for this year.  The end of 2014 sort of beat me up and I wanted to choose something that would reflect my interest in improving my self-care and being better off a year from now than I am now.  I did not want to take more on, I wanted to maintain what I currently had.  I brainstormed and spent some time listening to the “reading of the words” on Allie Edwards.  I ended up with quite a list of good possibilities:possible words for 2015

In the end, I chose strengthen as my word for 2015.

2015

Strengthening is not about adding more.  It is about improving the things I already have, in ways beyond time and money…and saying no to things that are wearing away at what’s really important.  Strengthening is about becoming the person I want to be, not checking items off my to do list.

The word “strength” obviously connotes the human body.  I’ll be the first to admit that my body is not as strong as it has been in the past.  This year I’m going to practice yoga regularly (I’m aiming for 6 times a week!), as well as walking and running when possible.  I’m also going to work on making better choices about what I put into my body, increasing fruits, vegetables and water and decreasing sugar and alcohol.  None of this is going to be easy, but I think that considering long term strength will make it more attainable.

6So then, just as you received Christ

In my discussion with Brian about my word for this year, he suggested I choose a Bible verse that includes my word.  He’s smart like that.  I chose this verse because it will help me focus on what I really need to make sure to be strengthening.  Everything should be tied back to my roots in Christ and the thankfulness that should come from that.  I’ll be continuing my participation in the She Reads Truth community, as well as church this year.

In 2015, I want to strengthen my relationships.  Brian and I participated in a small group at our church this fall where we read Timothy Keller’s The Meaning of Marriage.  It was a really good book and definitely made me think.  I’m looking forward to more purposeful moving forward together this year.  I also want to continue to strengthen my relationships with the rest of my family and with friends, old and new.  It’s so easy for me to sit in my house and stare at a computer all afternoon, but I need to make a point of spending time with people.

There are some skills I’d like to improve in 2015.  I plan to continue making this site better by strengthening my understanding of social media and coding.  I also want to strengthen my cooking skills with some serious time in the kitchen.  Despite writing a food blog, I’ve definitely been slacking on improving my cooking.  Also on the horizon: a photography class and the completion of my masters degree.

In general, I want to become a stronger person over the next 12 months.  This is the year to stop wasting time worrying and being scared and strengthen my resolve.  I’m looking forward to weighing decisions and tasks this year based on whether they’ll strengthen or weaken me.  Here’s to a strong 2015!

Related Posts

The Return of Highlights from My Reader
Investing in March and April
Goals in Progress: January (+ Accent Vlog!)
Five of the Best Decisions I Made in 2018
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Filed Under: life Tagged With: goals, strengthen

« Twosday XX: Holiday 2014 Edition
Celebrating 6 Years of Relishments…with a Giveaway »

Comments

  1. Tammy says

    January 2, 2015 at 9:44 am

    Emily – thanks for sharing – what a great word to start out the new year! So often we try to change, add, improve all the things we fail at looking back over the past year. WE need to learn and accept what was done for a reason, and strengthen the good that was there. I too am going to put that verse into memory!

Trackbacks

  1. How I Rehydrate Dried Beans says:
    January 30, 2015 at 5:52 am

    […] I wrote earlier this month, I’m making an effort to strengthen my life in a variety of areas during 2015.  One of the ways I’m doing that is making as many products at […]

  2. Strengthen 2015: January and February says:
    March 5, 2015 at 7:35 pm

    […] you may recall, at the beginning of the year, I committed myself to getting stronger in 2015.  I finished 2014 feeling a little beat up and I was ready to stop trying to do all the […]

  3. Strengthening: 2015 So Far | Relishments says:
    September 1, 2015 at 8:28 pm

    […] may remember that in January, I picked “strengthen” as my word for the year.   Last fall was rough (though I made it rougher than it needed […]

  4. 2016’s Word: Connect | Relishments says:
    January 1, 2016 at 7:24 pm

    […] my at the beginning of  2015, I wrote: “This is the year to stop wasting time worrying and being scared and strengthen my […]

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Emily
Last week Brian and I finally got around to hiring Last week Brian and I finally got around to hiring a sitter for a rare night out. We went to dinner at @publicna and took advantage of the opportunity with drinks, appetizers and dessert.

Pictured:
- Citrus Braised Beef Tacos
- "Chicken and Waffles"
- House Fries with Garlic Aioli
- Fried Chickpeas
- Blood Orange Cheesecake
It was no surprise that Public was close to full on a Wednesday night - everything was so good. 

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#igers413_food #igers413 #BerkshireFoodies #InTheBerkshires #EatLocal #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #NorthAdams #NAmazing #PublicEatAndDrink
New year, new theme word! This year's word is "enr New year, new theme word!
This year's word is "enrich" and I'm really excited about it.

I've written more about this year's theme on the blog. Click in the link in my profile or follow the link below to read the post.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/my-2023-theme-word-enrich/
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#YearlyTheme #MyOneWord #2023 #enrich2023 #NewYearsResolution
It's not New Year's Eve without a Top 9 post. It's It's not New Year's Eve without a Top 9 post.
It's almost all #Berkshires content this year, which is great.
1. A pasta salad reel that took longer to create than the recipe took to make.
2. A reel from North Carolina where I could have watched birds all day.
3. The @thelazygenius book giveaway.
4.@plantconnector 
5. @berkshiremuseum 
6.@sculpture.now at @themountlenox 
7. @massmoca 
8. @mountainviewfarm413 
9. The #AshuwillticookRailTrail
New on the blog: My 2022 reflections on last year' New on the blog: My 2022 reflections on last year's theme word - resume. 

I was able to get back to many activities that were meaningful to me this year and I'm calling this theme a success. Follow the link below or click the link in my profile to read more.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/reflections-on-resuming-in-2022/
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#resume2022 #newyearsresolution #myoneword #yearlytheme
New on the blog: My Favorite Recipes of 2022. For New on the blog: My Favorite Recipes of 2022.

For the fourth year, I've recapped the best new (to me) recipes I made this year in the hope that they'll give you some new dishes to try. This year's list is short, but delicious. It includes @budgetbytes My Favorite Recipes of 2022
Published on December 30, 2022 By Emily. Updated on December 30, 2022

It’s hard to believe that 2022 is basically behind us. Though overall this year found me getting back to the person I want to be (post-babies and “post”-pandemic), I did not try nearly as many new recipes this year as I used to. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised to see that I’d made note of any new-to-me recipes I wanted to share in this post. This year’s list is short, but delicious. It includes recipes from @budgetbytes, @smittenkitchen and @howsweeteats.
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Read the post by visiting the link in my profile or 
https://www.relishments.com/blog/my-favorite-recipes-of-2022/
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#RecipeRoundUp #BestRecipes2022 #FavoriteRecipes
@coastalmainebotanicalgardens continues to be one @coastalmainebotanicalgardens continues to be one of the highlights of all my return trips to Boothbay and their annual Gardens Aglow event continues to impress. It was great to be back to walking the gardens instead of the pandemic drive through and there seemed to be more lights than ever.  I'm already looking forward to next year.
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#Boothbay #BoothbayMaine #CoastalMaineBotanicalGardens #GardensAglow #BotanicalGarden #MidcoastMaine
It has been a while, but there is finally a new CS It has been a while, but there is finally a new CSA menu plan on the blog! Visit the link below or in my profile to see how I plan to make use of some of the @mightyfoodfarm produce seen here.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/welcome-to-winter-farm-share-csa-menu-plan-148/
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#MightyFoodFarm #EatLocal #EatSeasonal #VermontGrown #CSApickup #CSAshare #KnowYourFarmerKnowYourFood #MenuPlanning #MealPlanning #igers413 #igers413_food #BerkshireFoodies
Fall in the Berkshires is always incredible, but t Fall in the Berkshires is always incredible, but this year we've had weather that has also been outstanding. The past 2 weekends have included time at Jaeschke Orchards, the Greylock Glen, and the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail as well as stopping to photograph any random foliage I see. 
Check out the last slide for video of some feathered friends we saw on a walk.
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#igers413 #InTheBerkshires #EatLocal #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #FallFoliage #FallColors #autumn #AshuwillticookRailTrail #JaeschkeOrchards #GreylockGlen
@freshgrassfestival continues to be one of my favo @freshgrassfestival continues to be one of my favorite events each year, and it doesn't hurt that it's just minutes away from home. Enjoying the festival with my kids is definitely a different experience than without, but it's still a good time. The weather was especially cooperative today which was great for all the laps I did around the @massmoca campus pushing a stroller. I'm already looking forward to next year.
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#igers413 #InTheBerkshires #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #NorthAdams #NAmazing #FreshGrass #FreshGrassFestival #MassMoCA #MusicFestival
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