New Year's Resolutions

Happy New Year!!

So this post is probably a little late, but I wanted to share with you all of my New Year's Resolutions!

A lot of people have just one or two resolutions. I wanted to make a list of ten resolutions so that I'd never run out of things to strive for this year. I had a pretty great 2016 and was sad to see it leave, but I am determined to make 2017 a fantastic year of personal growth and fun! So here are my resolutions and a little bit about why I chose them:


1. Be independent.

2. Make genuine friends.

3. Stick with BBG.

4. Eat healthy.

5. Learn to adapt and be flexible.

6. Be patient with yourself.

7. Grow stronger through every hardship.

8. Don't overthink --> Thrive on simplicity

9. Embrace every opportunity.

10. Lean on God.

2017 is such a big year for because I will be moving away from home and going to a four year university! A lot of people are a little confused about my age and grade and all, so let me clarify. I am 18 and a sophomore in college. I was homeschooled and skipped a grade in elementary school so I was always a year ahead. In my senior year of high school, I attended something called middle college. I would go to my local community college and take high school and college classes there. In that year, I was able to finish my senior year in high school and my first year of college. I decided this year to just stay at my local community college and finish my second year of general education classes. So this May, I will graduate with my Associate's degree and then transfer to a university in August.

My first resolution is an encouragement and reminder to be independent during this change. When I think about going to classes and joining a program with students with an obvious age gap, it makes me nervous. But I want to learn to embrace it, be confident in myself, and grow as an independent woman.

Even though I want to learn to be independent, I want to be surrounded by a fantastic group of friends. I loved 2016, but it was also a really tough year when it came to friends. There were people who acted like we were such great friends, but then when life got busy I was suddenly out of the picture. This year, I want to make friends who are so amazing and caring that we'll all make time for each other even in the busyness of life. Even if it's just going out for a study date or grabbing a quick coffee, the little moments mean a lot. I want to make friends who know they're special to me and who remind me that I'm special to them.

My third resolution is to stick with BBG. BBG stands for Bikini Body Guide and, in my opinion, is the most incredible workout program out there. Kayla Itsines, the creator of BBG, has an incredible talent for making workouts fun. She is so motivating and inspirational and her guide is one of the best investments I've ever made in my life. I started her program early last summer, but because of personal reasons, had to stop for a little while. This year, I want to stick with her program through the winter, summer, and even through the move to college!

Next I really want to stick with healthy eating. Specifically a diet filled with more fresh foods like fruits and vegetables. This isn't too tough at the moment, but I figured it could be a challenge when I move. My goal is to cook myself as much as possible. Of course there will be long days I won't want to go back to my apartment and cook a whole meal. So this summer, I want to scope out all of the food options at my university and make a list of the places with healthy and fresh foods!

My fifth resolution is learn to adapt and be flexible. I love my schedules. They make me feel like I'm in control of my life and give me a secure feeling. But I'm sure everyone knows there's no such thing as schedules in college--except for class schedules. Most of the time, things are spontaneous. I want to go with the flow more often and accept that not everything can be planned.

Next, I want to be more patient with myself. A lot of people don't know, but I am extremely hard on myself about everything! Especially with school. Even if I get a good overall grade in the class at the end of the semester, I'm still beating myself up over that one bad test grade. This year, I'm going to do the very best I can, but learn to accept that I can't do it all. That it doesn't matter if I do it all right, as long as I'm giving my all.

I also want to grow stronger with every hardship. Specifically my daily health struggles. Even though I am a healthy person on the outside, my tummy still gives me a lot of trouble on the inside. For those who may not know, I have an extremely sensitive stomach and have to be careful about what I eat. A lot of times, I would choose not to go to social events because they involved food and I didn't think I could handle all the questions about why I'm not eating. But I know that true friends will be caring and understanding. So if my friends ask me to go out for pizza, I'm not going to not go and have fun because not eating pizza will be hard. I'm going to go out, have fun, and order a salad or something my body can tolerate. I'll be making stronger connections with friends, and know that by fueling my body with the proper foods, I'll also be growing stronger mentally and physically.

The next resolution kind of goes along with being patient with myself. Because I am so hard on myself, I constantly overthink different situations. Instead, I want to live simply. Things don't have to be as hard as my head makes them out to be. I want to try to stop stressing myself with overthinking and start living a more simple, happy life.

Embrace every opportunity. This one is very important to me. I am prepared for the difficult times, but I want to embrace every moment good and bad. Even in the bad moments, you are still learning and growing. So I want to appreciate every moment and live it like it's my last. Since I'm getting my Associate's degree at my local community college, I'll only have two years at a university. I know this time is going to fly by, so I want to grab every opportunity I can and chance my dreams as fast as I can.

My last resolution is to lean fully on God. I want to give Him thanks and praise in the good and bad times. I want to trust Him no matter what life throws at me. I want to know that He is my God and loves me beyond words. So even if I feel like I'm at rock bottom, I'm there for a good reason and won't stay there forever. I will give everything to God and will strive my hardest to be the best person I can.

I hope these resolutions give you some motivation! I highly encourage you to take a little while to think about how you want to improve this year. Comment some of your resolutions, I'd love to hear them!

-Kelsey Lynn <3