It's-Almost-A-New-Year-Complete-Lifestyle-Overhaul

Mark Stivers knows what's up

Okay. I've noticed that more than quite a few people whom I know are getting very into working out and dieting all of the sudden. This seems to happen every year... everyone is eating more cookies, drinking more mulled wine and nog and staying inside more, and it doesn't feel good. Every year around this time we all seem to have one Universal Panic Attack, realizing that we are not where we want to be in our lives, and we seek to regain control in any way we can, which normally results in a massive It's-Almost-A-New-Year-Complete-Lifestyle-Overhaul.

This has been a strange year, one of many blessings and also face-palming moments- but ultimately everything from 2012 has brought me to a place of physical, emotional and mental  freedom. I've made peace with my body on the outside, for the most part, and have begun making peace with the inside. A huge part of that comes from my nurturing the creative side, with papermaking and craft projects. Other parts stem from giving myself permission to spend time doing things that make me feel good. This may seem like a no-brainer, but I had reached a place where if I wasn't working or thinking about work or planning my next big project or checking my email or spinning my wheels about something work-related, I felt like I wasn't doing enough.

So now, I've made peace with my non-stop action brain and have started turning my brain off and allowing my body to just do stuff it wants to do. Taking a walk is not "productive" and kayaking the Kearny Marsh isn't making me "successful" but DAMN those things make me feel amazing, plus I get to spend quality time with Steve and sometimes my father, too, which is always a good time (and always ends in hilarity).

My It's-Almost-A-New-Year-Complete-Lifestyle-Overhaul centers around spending more time doing things that make me feel good. This year, my "resolutions" (for the first time) don't include pushups or dietary restrictions or jeans size. I've been listening to my body, and letting that lead the way, and I'm feeling good.

2013 Resolutions Changes Ideas Goals Must Do's

Stuff That Makes Me Feel Ridiculously Good, That I Want to Keep on Doing or Start Doing 

• Hike. Preferably around 10+ miles per week. This means at least 2 days of being outdoors in the fresh (COLD!) air, worrying about bears, getting swept away by the majesty that of it all.
• Morning Walks. At least 4 days a week, I want to haul my toasty, cozy body out of our  big warm bed while it's still dark out, and walk around town while sipping coffee, coming back home before Steve leaves for work so I can kiss him goodbye with coffee/morning breath. I can't fully explain why this is important to me.

• Swim. I have been trying to find an affordable (read: practically free) place to swim in NJ, and literally 40 minutes ago found a place that is a stone's throw away, practically free, with great swimming hours. I could cry with joy I'm so absolutely amazed and thrilled.

• Walk with Women. I mean this literally- there are no walking/hiking groups for pregnant women in my area. As a doula and hiking nerd, I figure a group like this would be a great *free* way for women in the community to get together during this incredible time of their lives and discuss childbirth education, birth preferences, options and ways to keep comfortable during their pregnancy, labor and the postpartum. Nothing too strenuous, just getting exercise and fresh air while creating community and sharing resources. Yes? New parents would be welcome, too!

Please let me know if you'd be interested in something like this! OutdoorDoula@gmail.com

• Join a Hiking Club. Steve works a 9-5 and thus we can only hit the trails on the weekends. I'd like to hike with a group and connect with other outdoor enthusiasts and pick their brains during the week! 

• Grow All The Things.

• Watch (almost) every movie featured on The Great Movie Ride in Disneyworld. Every time we go, we say we're going to watch the movies from the ride that we've never seen... it's been years and years and we haven't yet. This is the year... 2013 will be the Year of Cinema. This means we'll be watching: Casablanca, Footlight Parade, The Public Enemy, Singin' in the Rain (saw this a million years ago but don't remember it), Tarzan the Ape Man, A Fistful of Dollars and The Searchers. Now... to take on the movies from the finale of the ride... that will probably be a lifelong project.

• Train at The Farm to become a Midwifery Assistant. Without going into details, my plans for full-on CPM training have been put on the back burner- let's just say there are some interesting and incredible things in the works right now and that trust me, this is not a good time. However, I so badly want to dip a toe into midwifery training, and becoming an assistant will be monumental for me. I'll be a doula for the rest of my life, and learning midwifery skills from Ina May will deepen and enhance my work and my clients' experiences.

• Craft Fairs. Get ready, New Jersey Craft Shows. The Outdoor Doula plans on dominating you. (I'll settle for attending and at least making back my booth fee). Seriously though... I'm very excited to bring what I've been calling Briar Patch PaperCrafts to local shows and fairs. 

...I know, I know. Walking more and watching movies; I've got pretty lofty goals! I welcome the New Year with open arms- I have a feeling it's going to be the best yet.