It's 2013 already???

I have to say that with all the things that happened in my life in 2012, I - one - never thought the year would end, and - two - can't believe it went by so fast. Is that even possible?

To give you a quick recap of my year -

Game Day at MHS

• I moved three times and now am living in my 4th Vermont town in 12 months. I now live in Montpelier (where I hope to say). Over 2012 I was a resident of Barre Town, Barre City and Marshfield as well. (boy did this confuse the official polling officials on election day - since I was somehow registered in every one of those towns!). My housing ranged from a 2 bedroom house, to only having a small bedroom for myself to sharing a 1.5 bedroom cabin to living in a 2 bedroom apartment.

• Finalized my divorce - this was tough, but ended up being one of the best things to happen. My ex-husband and I are still friends and parted amicably and without needing to go to court. With the split I went for having 2 dogs to just one. Whew. 

Me and Odin snuggling in our newest home

•  Coached JV Girls Soccer at a local HS.

• Ran and finished 4 half marathons!

• Cheered my brother on as he completed his first Ironman!

• Decided to try out online dating - and met a special someone! 

Me and family with our Ironman!

I am sure there are a few things I am missing in there, but with the whirlwind that was 2012 I am not surprised that something got left out. As for the challenges I set for myself at the start of 2012 I can say that I fulfilled some but not all of them. I know that I didn't go through my things every day of the year to find one thing to get rid of - but with packing and unpacking my life 3 times I purged far more than 365 items!

Heading toward the finish of my 3rd half!

And what became of the other challenge of not buying anything new unless absolutely necessary - I have to say that I failed at that one. Unfortunately for me I tend to submit myself to retail therapy when stressed or upset. So, during some of the harder months I did go out and but new things (some necessary, so very unnecessary). Although buying more clothes was excessive at times, I believe I have done better than years past. Maybe I was secretly hoping that the Mayans were right and with the end of the world I wouldn't have to worry about my credit card bills. As I am sitting here on January 2nd 2013 - guess the Mayans were wrong!

So....2013

What do I have on tap this year you ask? I guess I haven't thought about it too much yet, but sitting here now this is what I have come up with: 

• Pay off my credit cards!  -Considering I don't keep them in my wallet I don't need to worry about using them. My goal is to also pay more than the minimum monthly payment and make a good dent in what I owe.
• Save money! No really, I want to save money!  I have set a budget for myself and goals. Using a great secure website - mint.com -  I have been able to see all of my expenses - track what I am spending money on and set goals for myself. I also recently refinanced my car and a personal loan I had and am not saving $200 per month! Whoot whoot! 
• Continue to look for things I don't need anymore. Like those awesome jeans that don't fit anymore that I have held onto for more than a few years for when I fit in them again. My co-worker AG and I actually just set a competition between ourselves to see who could get rid of the most items during the month of January! The prize you ask? Just the satisfaction of being on our way to minimalism!
• Continue to work on reducing waste through smarter purchasing. This for me mostly means thinking harder about packaging when grocery shopping.  
• Get back to doing some fun re-use crafting! I am hoping that whatever household items I may need to can create or find an alternative using recycled materials or items. 
• Try not to buy new things unless absolutely necessary!

Wow - a more exhaustive list than I thought I would come up with! Overall this year I am just hoping to live with less, not worry about money and just enjoy life.