I’m a consummate list maker.  Heck, even my lists have lists.  To be fair, I come by this trait honestly, as my momma is probably one of the most organized people I know.  When Cowboy and I got married, A LONG TIME AGO, you should have seen the lists my momma carried around, and it worked.  It was a perfect day for us.

So as we go into 2017, you might imagine that I’m in full on list mode.  But the truth is, a list of New Year’s resolutions always baffles me.  Of course, I could, like most folks, add the usual suspects – eat less, exercise more.  But that also brings out my recovering perfectionist side.  The moment I miss a workout or a piece of chocolate just throws itself into my mouth, my brain screams epic fail.  One of my dearest pals subscribes to the notion of a theme.  He picks a theme for the year, like adventure, and focuses his efforts on making progress against the theme.  I’ve always admired that, and even tried it, but once I get past January and a couple of journal entries, it’s c’est la vie to the theme.

Which brings me to Cowboy.  (Good gravy how I love that man!)  Cowboy is not big on the holidays of any kind, never has been.  And while at first that might make you go, “Awe, shucks.  Really?”  I’ve come to love this about him. He’s been known to say, “Why focus on <fill in the holiday of your choice>, when you can experience love/gifts/joy all year round.  What would you rather?”

So that got me thinking about New Year’s and a way to do a little something to mark the occasion that would work for me and alleviate my need to check things off and truly just live – live in the moment. Enter the vision board. While I had never done one before, I had heard about them from friends and usually equated them to grand things you’d like to accomplish like buying a new home or getting that next promotion at work.

I didn’t read up on how to do them or take a class, which is monumental for this girl who loves to know how first – think of me as that lovable 4-year-old asking why and how.  Instead I just bought a frame, some scrapbook paper, some stickers, and picked through my magazine stash and starting clipping out words, phrases, and pictures that meant something to me.  And what I found was that it wasn’t really the big things.  In fact, it’s the little things, and a lot of them I already do.  What I was thinking about as I snipped, arranged, and glued was cultivating the vision for the life I wanted to live this year.  Loving Cowboy and this farmgirl life I get to live.  Writing more stories, crafting, cooking, digging in the dirt.  Sharing moments and treasuring those special friends that I hold close in my heart.  Giving back, paying it forward, and being a woman of faith and grace.

Sometimes the new year does not need to bring monumental change, but rather a reminder to live the lives we were meant to live each day.  As Cowboy would say, happy new day.

P.S. – If you’d like to make a vision board, here are a couple of tips if you also have an inner 4-year-old.

A few things you’ll need:

• A frame – I chose 11″x14″ but any size will work
• Magazines or books you are willing to cut up with abandon
• Scissors – the ones that make decorative edges are my favorites
• Glue stick
• Scrapbook or craft paper to be your base
• Stickers, stamps, markers

To get started:

1. Cut your paper to the size of your frame.  I had to tape two pieces together.  Don’t worry, if you’re like me you’ll have so much on your board the seam will never show.
2. Cut out words, photos, images that make you smile and speak to your heart.
3. Arrange and glue.
4. Frame and place in a spot where you’ll be sure to appreciate it.

If you decide to make a vision board, we’d love to see it, so please share away.

P.S. – A version of this post was published in The Glen Rose Reporter under the title of Happy New Day.  It’s the first in a monthly column I’ll be doing for the paper as a community columnist.  A dream come true for this farmgirl!