My 25 Before 26

You guys. I turned 25. Karley of course was a ridiculously good friend along with Mel and Liz and they planned me a surprise party that made me feel so freaking warm and fuzzy inside. I got a lot of comments about how this year makes me a quarter of a century. My dad said, "Hey Anna, only three more quarters to go!" I said, "Until I die? That's morbid Dad!" And he goes, "No...just three more quarters to go...until you turn...100." It's weird to have the first half of my twenties behind me, but I also love that those years have been lived. I really became myself in these past five years, made some dumb choices, made some good ones, but mostly just made my way in this world. As I did last year, I want to look at this year ahead as a year of opportunity; a way to accomplish things and never forget that this world is never finished in amazing me with new things, big and small, to try and discover and experience. Here we go, friends. My 25 goals before I turn 26!

1. Refrain from purchasing clothes until January 1st, 2015. I know it seems somewhat negative to have a "don't" as the first thing on my list, but it's the one I'm most determined to accomplish. I wanted to see what it felt like to go without buying clothes for six straight months. I've been on this thing since July 1, 2014, and plan to make it to New Year's Day. The (self-imposed) contest goes like this: I don't buy clothes (pants, jeans, tops, shirts, sweaters, shoes, etc...underwear and other accessories like tights are allowed in moderation so that I can be work appropriate haha) for six full months. If I make it to the end of the six months good on my promise, I'm going to reward myself with a small shopping day splurge. This is not meant to show solidarity with people less fortunate, as I am fully aware that my lack of spending does absolutely nothing to impact the lives of others and there are much, much better ways to support those who lack materially. This challenge came up when I was moving all of my clothes to our new place and realized that I don't always appreciate what I have. I love my clothes and want to put them to use; make them earn their keep. I love shopping almost as much, but there are better ways to spend my time and resources. So sorry, Anthro magazines, you'll just have to be eye candy for now. Whew. That was a long explanation for my first goal. The others are much shorter, I promise.

2. Go soft-drink-free for a year. No soda. No coke. No sugary-caffeiney-teeth-rotting nectar to complement my delicious bacon cheeseburger at DMK. Wish me luck.

3. Sponsor a child. 

4. Use money to bless people. I have been blown away by how God takes care of me, takes care of Brian and I together, and how generous our friends and family (and sometimes people out of the blue) are when it comes to money. Too often I'm counting and counting over and over what we've saved so far, only to forget that we could not have done it without the generosity of others. I want to be smart enough with my money so that it can be available to support other people.

5. Go wine tasting.

6. Use the broiler in my oven.I don't even know what that really means, but I see a lot of steak recipes in this great cook book I have that calls for me to use it, and yet I'm still scared. It's uncharted territory in the Gesch Whartnaby household, and I plan to chart that territory in the next year.

7. Run for a good cause. 

8. Wake up really early to see the sunrise. This is a repeat of last year, but I want to do it again. So there.

9. Have a housewarming party. I suppose my surprise party kind of christened our apartment as the first time we had people over, but I still want to host some sort of event. I love it here and want to share it!

10. Own a houseplant without killing it. 

11. Write more consistently. That means on this blog and in my journal. One of the things that makes me feel like "me" is writing things down. It's so basic of a thing, but it's important to me, and I should do it more often. I guess quantitatively that means something like 8x per month as a minimum on this blog and about 5x per week in my journal.

12. Go to a yoga class. I still haven't done it! How am I 25 years old without this being accomplished?! Up until now I've only ventured to the youtube yoga videos in the comfort of my own home, but this is the year where I will get out there and try a class or two.

13. Always have a book going. Last year I was good about reading during the breaks from school, but my reading life dropped off during the weeks and months of teaching. I want to always, always be in the middle of a book, no matter what time of year it is. I've never actually read Harry Potter, and I'm thinking it's the series I want to tackle this year.

14. Make dinner and have people over to eat it. This terrifies me, but I think is important to do before I turn the ripe old age of 26. C'mon Anna, woman up!

15. Keep fresh flowers in the house. 

16. Go on a road trip with Brian. 

17. Spend more time intentionally technology-free. I want to purposely leave my phone in the other room for an entire evening and be okay with it, on a consistent basis.

18. Be tidier. If you've ever met my dear cousin Liz, you would understand why she is the inspiration for this challenge. Stay tuned for how I figure out some strategies that work for me to keep up a clean apartment, for it shall need some creative thinking.

19. Accessorize more. The only jewelry I ever wear is my wedding/engagement ring combo. As lovely as they are (and they are) I want to amp this one up.

20. Visit the Art Institute of Chicago for a new exhibition.

21. Paint a watercolor picture.

22. Wash off my makeup every night. Pathetic that this one needs to be a goal, but yet, I am so, so lazy in this regard.

23. Try 10 recipes I have never tried before. Let me know if you have suggestions please!

24. Get my planning for school done before the weekend for a full month. Usually my Saturdays and Sundays are plagued with this slight feeling of dread that I have to get my work done. I want to pick a whole month to show myself that I can budget my time wisely and have the payoff be a very chilled out weekend.

25. Listen to the Lord. The tradition of Christianity in which I grew up was a strong, true, and wonderful one, but it didn't necessarily stress actually listening for the voice of the Lord. I want to spend more time acting out Psalm 46:10, really being still, and asking the Lord what he wants from me and for me. I want to investigate this part of my faith this year.

Join in if you'd like - what do you want to do in this year of your life?