A Still Life

Since my husband brought it home as a surprise find at the dollar store, I have been reading A.J. Jacobs’ The Guinea Pig Diaries: My Life as an Experiment. He’s the guy who wrote The Year of Living Biblically, and this 2009 collection of essays follows nine different month-long experiments from practicing Radical Honesty to following his wife’s every instruction to living by the rules that George Washington followed. As I have read through each month’s practice, I began to see this experiment idea as a fresh way to look at New Year’s resolutions.

Last year I declared that I would finally embrace my body and reconcile the things I know to do with the things I actually do. I am really proud of sticking with the Master Plan and keeping off the 25 pounds I set to lose last year. I certainly have more fitness and wellness goals for 2012, but those aren’t new or particularly inspired. But when I think of applying the Jacobs’ month-long experiment model to my 2012 goals, I get excited.

First, I am not choosing all hard projects or significant life goals. Some may become practices that I carry into the next months while others may be a one-time experiment that ends with the month. The goal is to stick with it for the month and reflect, as Jacobs does in each chapter, on what I’ve learned through the practice. I plan to write about the experience at the end of every month to hold myself accountable.

As promised, here are my 12 goals for 2012:

January: A Bag A Day
I know I have too much stuff. I know you have too much stuff, too, but I’m only concerned about my stuff this month and reducing how much we have in every nook and cranny of our home. As I put away the Christmas decorations and move into the routine of January, I promise to get rid of one paper grocery bag a day of things that are no longer useful, things that are broken, or things we don’t need.

February: Centering Prayer
I am not a morning person. Having children has forced me to be more productive and to function slightly better in the mornings than I once did, but I still resist waking any earlier than is absolutely necessary. For the slightly shorter leap-year month of February, I will wake at 6 a.m. for quiet, for reflection, and for centering prayer. A wakeful, centered mama is much better for us all than the reactive, hurried woman I was in December.

March: No Coffee
Yes. Really. I’ve gotten up to maybe 3 cups a day. I could make excuses, but I won’t. To paraphrase St. Augustine, I want to detox…but not just yet. So March is the goal for ripping the caffeine IV from my veins. I won’t promise to stay off the juice forever, but I’d like to increase the green tea and decrease the caffeine. I know I feel better when morning exercise is what energizes me instead of coffee. So there it is.

April: Raw
I’ve played around with raw food a little in recent weeks and have observed in 2011 that I feel lighter, more vigorous, and more alert when I eat fresh, raw food. So in April I plan to aim for 75% raw including juicing and more smoothies. There are countless sources out there for recipes and ideas, and I will move toward that 75% goal as the weather warms.

May: Social Media Ban
I will not fully withdraw from my online check-ins but will stay offline before 10 a.m. and after 4 p.m. I know I carry my online friends with me in my head more than I’d like. I don’t like when something happens in real life and I immediately think of a short tweet or status update. I will not stay online for a solid six hours, either, but I will limit any online activity to that window. That leaves large chunks of morning and afternoon for family meals and face-to-face time plus evenings for friends and conversation with that man of mine.

June: Outdoor Play
I’m thinking about  school letting out for Summer and how easy it was in August 2011 to pop in a video for the kids. I’m slightly ashamed to say that the June goal is a minimum of a straight two hours outside every day. Picnics, botanical garden, time with friends, and all the good things I know to do. No excuses. If it’s nice, we’ll be outside.

July: Unplug
Another confession…we watched more than one movie a day last summer. It got bad. I certainly started strong with our Book Weeks, and we’ll pick that practice up again. But the heat and the kids and whatever lazy excuse I want to throw out there had us all plopped too often in front of a tv or computer. So July 2012 will be a MAXIMUM of two hours of computer/tv/screen time per day. That should go without saying, but we need a month of being intentional about it.

August: Crafts
As I said, we’ll do out Summer Book Weeks again, but August can drag. In those final weeks, we’ll do a craft a day when at least 4 days a week. Sunday is church, Tuesday is work, and Saturday is our family day. At minimum, on those other days, we will do some kind of crafty, arty, fun something. Edible crafts totally count.

September: Home Improvement
I know I will be ready for kids to return to school and full of ideas to fill the mornings. I’m giving myself the assignment of sanding and painting the trim in our house as we mark five years in this home. We have lived here more than twice as long as anywhere else since 1995. The least I can do is plan to take care of a tiny part of it…nine months from now.

October: Group Fitness
Honestly, I may get to this one sooner than October, but it’s still a goal to try some new group fitness classes and stick with one for a full month. October is that quiet time before holiday planning really gets started, and I am certain I’ll need a motivation boost after turning 35 in September. So at 35 and a month…I’ll try kickboxing or a TRX class or maybe hot yoga. Who knows?!

November: Gratitude Wall
I’m not sure what this will look like, but I want to build a gratitude wall in November that leads us toward a good celebration of Thanksgiving and better prepares us for Advent. I was too busy in my professional life in November-December 2011 and did not give each holiday the proper time at home I think they deserve. So 2012 brings a heaping helping of thankfulness.

December: Handmade Christmas
My intentions may be good each year, but I keep failing. I still have the dress for The Girl that I started in 2010 and never pulled out in 2011 and might modify into a fun top in 2012. I have the 2011 list for handmade teacher/helper gifts that never moved past a list. I have half a dozen art projects the kids and I made for family in Alabama and Georgia but haven’t finished and haven’t mailed. I am stating now that we will have a more minimalist Christmas in 2012 but will be generous and creative in new ways.

There’s my list. Twelve experiments for 2012. I’ll report back on the first in about 30 days. What are you planning? What are your goals for the new year?