New Year

The past 3 months have been the busiest of my life! Many many work dinners and events, social calls for me and the family, conducting a NYC high school search for our 13-yr old like it was college, rush to work, rush to daycare, rush home, rush rush rush!...all the while feeling overwhelmed and underperforming. Not a great place to be for an overachiever.

So - 2010 finds me and a bazillion other people on websites like facebook and 43Things starting off with resolutions and promises anew for a more peaceful and productive year!

Happiness for me starts with getting healthy, getting organized and getting happy!

Get Healthy

Sleep

Our little guy just turned one year this month and has started waking at night again, so we are on Day 4 of sleep re-training for baby so we can all sleep.

• Complete sleep re-training - December
  
• Buy supplies for bedroom partition - January
  
• Set date for assistance with installation - January
  
• Get to bed by 10:30pm at least three times per week

Nutrition

Healthy eating is the fuel needed to live a BusyLife, so it is no surprise that a malaise has settled over me at the same time as a decline in the healthy habits our family once enjoyed.
To kick the year into gear:

• Appointment with family nutritionist - January
  
• Resolve to cook 5-6 days per week – schedule created
  
• Bring leftovers from said cooking nights for lunch (also saves $$!)
  
• Expose the kids (and adults) to more varied and healthy foods
  
• Take vitamins regularly

Exercise

Need more exercise in all our lives!

• Appointment with trainer for new routine
  
• Qualified for NYC marathon in November 2010
  
• Schedule gym nights for both husband and me
• Get teenager to attend martial arts classes twice a week
  
• More playtime for baby outside of the apartment (Saturday classes, museums, playground)
  

Get Organized

I’m always happier when I feel like I’ve accomplished my goals. Whether those goals are big (career change, marathon, baby) or small (vacuum the rug, organize my purse, put away that pile of clothes in the corner), happiness for me begins with organization.

• Chore list – no more guesswork or complaining, we all have a job to do and know when to do it
  
• Event list – all our outside activities are in one place so conflicts are to a minimum
  
• Goals list – posting a list of goals for the family in a prominent place (new apartment, healthy eating, more sleep)

Get Happy

Finally, a BusyLife is all about balance. Need a few little “me” moments to recharge and refresh so I am up for any challenge!

• Yoga – make time for morning and evening practice everyday again
  
• Bath – amazing what a quiet soak with a book can do for the psyche
  
• Walk – make time to walk to work more
  
• Read – at least one non-work related book per month
  
• Visit – at least one get together with friends and family per month
  
• ReConnect – at least one date night per month
  

My goodness…that’s a lot of lists! Well…that’s the plan for the coming year. Ambitious, but I think doable and ultimately will lead us to a very happy and relaxed place once complete.
‘Til next time,
It’s a BusyLife,
Danielle

Healthcare should be like car insurance

Ok, I know I am way oversimplifying the matter, but I think healthcare reform has gotten so complex and so hotly debated, that some simplification might be in order.

Everyone who owns a car in this country, needs some form of insurance. It is regulated and varies from state to state, but is still a legal requirement to owning a car. People with more money pay up for better insurance with greater coverage. People with less money generally choose the bare minimum and if you are caught driving without insurance, you pay fines.

Why can't this model work for healthcare? It's not perfect, by any means, but it's comprehensive. It's not an entitlement, but it's comprehensive. Those with more money can afford better, those with less buy what they are able, and those without are fined because if they get into an accident without it they will be a burden on the system and that is discouraged.

Why couldn't this work for healthcare? Why is one side of the aisle trying to institutionalize healthcare while the other side wants the wild West? Let's just get this done people, because my premiums from my employer sponsored plan are up nearly 500% in the past decade and if I recall correctly, we haven't seen that kind of inflation in the general economy.

Til next time,
It's a BusyLife,
Danielle