2017 Year in Review and 2018 Look Ahead

Another New Year's Eve?!  Honestly, how is that possible.  Life goes by way too fast ya'll!  I realized I didn't even DO a post like this last year life was speeding by so quick.  Now I'm really sad about that so I am making sure that I do it this time around (even if I have waited until the very last minute to do so...)

I went back through Instagram, as that is kind of my life diary, and picked out some of my favorite memories from the year.  Hope you enjoy and have a very Happy New Year!

Jan - Started the year going to what turned out to be one of the best concerts I've been to - LOCASH at House of Blues with Brian and my Dad.

New Year's Resolutions 2016

Can NOT believe it is New Year's Eve again already!  And I am married!  Wow - a lot can change in a year.  I going to give myself a B+ for my 2015 resolutions (read them here) because 2015 was one heck of a year and I survived it and I think I survived it quite well actually!  I just didn't work out or eat as healthy as I had planned, but I did the best I could with all that's been going on :)

What a year! Graduated college, started my dream job, got married! I don't know that I'll have another year with as many major life events!

So I am going to keep things simpler for 2016 by having just 2 resolutions.

1) Commit to and Focus on my brand.  This one is a huge task but also something I am really passionate about.  I know it will be a challenge but I want to focus all that I can on growing my blog, building my following, and creating and selling new and great products on Etsy.  This is what I want to do for a living (in my wildest dreams!) and I want to see what I can do if I really commit (while still maintaining my real full time job... hmmm this may be more challenging than I think! ;)

2) Feel fulfilled.  I think sticking to resolution #1 is going to play a big part in this one.  I want to make a difference in the world and I feel like blogging is a great place to start.  Even if I can write or make something that changes one day for one person I will be happy!  I also want to get more involved in my church and community.  I think serving others is the best way to feel fulfilled yourself!

So wish me luck!  Those are some tall orders to fill, but I always say I work better under pressure. What are your resolutions?  Comment below!

Happiness and Blessings to you all for the New Year!

Don't forget to Sparkle!

XO ~ Katie

Bonus resolution: buy our first home!  I'm pretty confident this will happen in 2016 so this time next year I will at least be able to say I stuck to one resolution ;)

New Year's Resolutions 2015

How did we get here?  The last day of 2014!  Every year seems to go by a little faster than the last and so my first New Year's Resolution is to make every moment count.

I have quite a few New Year's Resolutions for 2015 so I'm writing this post to help hold myself accountable!

1. Be Nice - not that I am normally mean or anything but I think we can all be a little nicer and more understanding of others.  I'll be trying to keep this in mind next time someone cuts me off on the highway:

2. Exercise and Eat Healthy! - How original right?  But I'm serious about it this year and I am going to do it for the WHOLE year and not just the first few months (that's my story and I'm sticking to it!).  And this includes drinking as much water as possible all the time - no more soda or coffee!  Well let's not get too crazy - not AS MUCH soda or coffee ;D

3. Don't Stress - I know there are going to be SO many changes in 2015!  Graduating, Starting a job in the real world, Getting MARRIED!, Moving into my own place.  It will be a whirlwind I am sure and I just hope that I can always remember that God has a plan for me and he will make sure everything works out the way it should.

How cute (and true) is this?

4. Believe in myself - I did a pretty good job at this in 2014 and the result was exceeding my goals on Etsy and creating a following on Instagram!  Not to mention surviving 2 semesters of engineering classes with an internship in between on top of all that.  So a huge THANK YOU to every single person who was a part of it!  Hopefully I can keep it up for 2015! 

Always believe in yourselves my friends:

I'm sure I a thousand other things I want to do and a thousand other things I should do but haven't thought of.  But at least these are a start and all live under the over arching theme of living the best life I can and enjoying every day for what it is - good or bad, happy or sad, every day is a gift and I am thankful for everything that happened in 2014 because it's all made me who I am today!

Happy New Year!!  Share your resolutions with me in the comments if you're so inclined, I'd love to hear what they are!

Don't forget to sparkle ~ Katie

All pictures are found on Pinterest.  Check out this board for sources.