New Year, new thoughts

Hope you all had a great Christmas and holiday. Ours rocked. I do love Christmas ~ it is a very special time of year with all the messages of peace, the Christmas music, the lights and trees and goodies.

Here at Irishopian we never really go overboard on the gifts. That is just not our style. We keep things low key and try to stay focused on the birth of Jesus. I am quite proud of my kids because I know they hear of friends getting tv's for their rooms, laptops and dune buggy's etc,. but my kids are happy with the books, games and clothes they receive. They seem to realize that having 8 kids is costly and also, more importantly, they know that those big ticket items are not the real "reason for the season".

So, as I do, I was pondering the new year this morning. I was thinking of how some really believe 2012 will bring about the end of the world. I have to say I am not too worried about that happening. But I made of mental list of the things I plan to worry about and the things I don't intend to give much of my time...

Here are my thoughts:

Will worry about:

*My daughter going off to college and how much I am going to miss her. Ugh.
*My Ethiopian sons doing better in school, especially Fitsum who is truly overwhelmed.
*The rotting dormers on my house. We MUST get these fixed!
*Starting an exercise regimen. I am hoping to really make exercise a priority in my life again.
*Getting to Mass on all the First Fridays of the year. There is a special devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus that is shown through the 1st Friday's.
*Hugging my kids more often. Some need it more than others but I want them all held tight to me at least once a day!
*Getting this medical mission trip planned. This is a big worry for me because I have allowed myself to put it off too long and I am behind!
*Drinking more water.
*Blogging. I miss it. I would like to blog at least weekly and know that someone finds what I say interesting or helpful.
*Nurturing friendships. I am blessed to have many different pockets of friends and I love that. I want to spend more time with these uplifting and special people in 2012.


Will NOT worry about:

*The Kardashians
*Other people's drama, ugh, life is too darn short for ridiculous nonsense, keep it away from me please!
*the end of the world
*Grades for some of my kids. Sounds funny but I would rather see these particular kids work as hard as they can even if that means no A's.
*The upcoming election. I will be an educated voter but I will not get sucked into the pettiness of politics, ick.
*Whether people like me or not. Though I mostly don't care too much and march to my own drum, sometimes, like most of us I would think, this worry flares up and I allow myself to wallow in it. Not in 2012. I like who I am, that is enough.
*Making people happy. This statement may sound mean but this year we will have to make certain decisions based on what is best for our children. Some of our choices may leave some people unhappy. I am truly sorry if in the end someone feels let down, betrayed, angered by any of these. Some decisions are not popular though they are still the right decisions.

Those are the things that went through my head this morning. What about you? Have you decided what is worth worrying about for this new year?