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So last year, I had some public resolutions, and a private goal. I did pretty well.
1. Change something about the work situation.
Successfully got new job. It's not a dream job, and there are plenty of new exciting issues. But it doesn't make me cry, it's checking off a bunch of boxes I needed checked off to proceed in my career, it's not making me rich but the salary is acceptable, and they're being really supportive about the pregnancy and maternity leave thing. Check.
2. Lose 3-5 pounds.
This had the unwritten addendum of "before getting pregnant, and then maintain sensible weight gain over pregnancy". I didn't really succeed with the first--I was about three pounds higher than I wanted to be when I got pregnant. But I've done reasonably well with the second (although this past week has not been great). I'm currently about 23 pounds over my start weight, and my doctor wanted me to gain 25-30. With five weeks to go and an estimated pound a week that I should gain in that interval, that puts me right where I should be. Also, while I've definitely lost a ton of core strength and my cardiovascular system's a mess, I've maintained a reasonable fraction of leg and arm strength.
3. Get at least one story published.
One anthology, sitting on shelf. Check.
4. Go to Costa Rica and go ziplining and white water rafting.
Bucket list items checked off. It was awesome. Check.
5. Revise novel and start sending it to agents.
I got the first revision done. The reports from beta readers for draft two are still trickling in. I'm definitely not ready to start submitting. So progress, but not complete.
6. This one didn't get posted last year, for obvious reasons. Get pregnant.
Check.
Not 100% completion, but pretty darn good. It was a really hard year. Not all bad, but hard. Lost a grandfather and a great-grandfather. Had a scary bout of arrhythmia and a trip to a cardiologist. Major life changes for almost everyone I know--weddings, divorces, babies, deaths, graduations, grad school acceptances, new jobs. It's been an easy pregnancy, as they go, but pregnancy is really hard, both physically and psychologically.
2013 looks to be similar--enormous changes, hopefully happy, but it's going to be really difficult, if rewarding. Next year's goals are both more and less ambitious.
Primary goals:
1. Lose baby weight.
2. Don't lose mind.
3. Don't lose baby.
Breaking it down a bit:
1. I'd like to get back to my original weight, preferably my original goal weight. Most important is fitting back in my old clothes (I really don't want to buy new ones) and getting back to my old strength levels (I suspect I'm going to need that strength and stamina once Smidge is a toddler). If I don't quite make it, I'll try to forgive myself. Especially if I'm just off by a couple pounds--if I can be a bit TMI, my boobs are at least a cup size bigger than they used to be, and if they're filled with milk for the next year, I'm naturally going to be at least a couple pounds heavier.
2. I need to not go nuts over maternity leave, and not go nuts over being a new parent. That means I need to stay physically active, get out of the house regularly, maintain some social ties, and still keep a little of my adult identity, especially during maternity leave. It also means that I need to keep a sense of perspective, and remember that perfect is the enemy of good. I will make mistakes. Smidge will probably be fine anyway.
3. I need to learn how to take care of my child, specifically, and do a good job of it. But I don't need to compare myself to others. I don't need to be super mom, I just need to be Smidge's mom. As long as he's healthy and reasonably happy, I'm doing a good job.
I also have a couple auxiliary goals, that aren't as important. If I don't manage them as well, I'll forgive myself.
A1. Manage graceful transition back to work.
I'm getting a minion tomorrow, who will have me for a month and then report to my boss for three. I need to manage the transition back into the office in a way that keeps my authority without shortchanging her.
A2. Get at least two stories published.
In theory, I have sales of as many as four at the moment. However, several have missed their pub dates. So I need to keep writing and submitting.
A3. Finish revisions on novel and figure out what to do with it.
I'm pretty sure I can finish the revisions. I have not yet figured out what to do next. With the publishing industry in such flux, the old default route of querying agents is starting to be called into question. I need to figure out how I want to handle this strategically, and then start doing it.
So. Was an interesting year. Going to be another interesting year. Oof.
1. Change something about the work situation.
Successfully got new job. It's not a dream job, and there are plenty of new exciting issues. But it doesn't make me cry, it's checking off a bunch of boxes I needed checked off to proceed in my career, it's not making me rich but the salary is acceptable, and they're being really supportive about the pregnancy and maternity leave thing. Check.
2. Lose 3-5 pounds.
This had the unwritten addendum of "before getting pregnant, and then maintain sensible weight gain over pregnancy". I didn't really succeed with the first--I was about three pounds higher than I wanted to be when I got pregnant. But I've done reasonably well with the second (although this past week has not been great). I'm currently about 23 pounds over my start weight, and my doctor wanted me to gain 25-30. With five weeks to go and an estimated pound a week that I should gain in that interval, that puts me right where I should be. Also, while I've definitely lost a ton of core strength and my cardiovascular system's a mess, I've maintained a reasonable fraction of leg and arm strength.
3. Get at least one story published.
One anthology, sitting on shelf. Check.
4. Go to Costa Rica and go ziplining and white water rafting.
Bucket list items checked off. It was awesome. Check.
5. Revise novel and start sending it to agents.
I got the first revision done. The reports from beta readers for draft two are still trickling in. I'm definitely not ready to start submitting. So progress, but not complete.
6. This one didn't get posted last year, for obvious reasons. Get pregnant.
Check.
Not 100% completion, but pretty darn good. It was a really hard year. Not all bad, but hard. Lost a grandfather and a great-grandfather. Had a scary bout of arrhythmia and a trip to a cardiologist. Major life changes for almost everyone I know--weddings, divorces, babies, deaths, graduations, grad school acceptances, new jobs. It's been an easy pregnancy, as they go, but pregnancy is really hard, both physically and psychologically.
2013 looks to be similar--enormous changes, hopefully happy, but it's going to be really difficult, if rewarding. Next year's goals are both more and less ambitious.
Primary goals:
1. Lose baby weight.
2. Don't lose mind.
3. Don't lose baby.
Breaking it down a bit:
1. I'd like to get back to my original weight, preferably my original goal weight. Most important is fitting back in my old clothes (I really don't want to buy new ones) and getting back to my old strength levels (I suspect I'm going to need that strength and stamina once Smidge is a toddler). If I don't quite make it, I'll try to forgive myself. Especially if I'm just off by a couple pounds--if I can be a bit TMI, my boobs are at least a cup size bigger than they used to be, and if they're filled with milk for the next year, I'm naturally going to be at least a couple pounds heavier.
2. I need to not go nuts over maternity leave, and not go nuts over being a new parent. That means I need to stay physically active, get out of the house regularly, maintain some social ties, and still keep a little of my adult identity, especially during maternity leave. It also means that I need to keep a sense of perspective, and remember that perfect is the enemy of good. I will make mistakes. Smidge will probably be fine anyway.
3. I need to learn how to take care of my child, specifically, and do a good job of it. But I don't need to compare myself to others. I don't need to be super mom, I just need to be Smidge's mom. As long as he's healthy and reasonably happy, I'm doing a good job.
I also have a couple auxiliary goals, that aren't as important. If I don't manage them as well, I'll forgive myself.
A1. Manage graceful transition back to work.
I'm getting a minion tomorrow, who will have me for a month and then report to my boss for three. I need to manage the transition back into the office in a way that keeps my authority without shortchanging her.
A2. Get at least two stories published.
In theory, I have sales of as many as four at the moment. However, several have missed their pub dates. So I need to keep writing and submitting.
A3. Finish revisions on novel and figure out what to do with it.
I'm pretty sure I can finish the revisions. I have not yet figured out what to do next. With the publishing industry in such flux, the old default route of querying agents is starting to be called into question. I need to figure out how I want to handle this strategically, and then start doing it.
So. Was an interesting year. Going to be another interesting year. Oof.
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no subject
Date: 2013-01-02 07:37 pm (UTC)From:Also, about boobs: they'll go away. My mother was never really large-chested (mine come from my father's mother), but she grew another cup size with pregnancy and went down a size (versus pre-pregnancy) after. She used to tell me that if I really wanted to get rid of my larger size to have a kid. If you lose the baby weight in general, they'll shrivel up some after they stop producing. Lots of tissue loss once you're not making milk. Just FYI.
no subject
Date: 2013-01-02 08:02 pm (UTC)From:I've also known women whose bust size went up and stayed up afterwards, too. I think the lesson here is just that pregnancy changes your body in ways that can't be predicted. We'll find out what happens when it happens. But assuming things go well, I'm hoping to try to feed/pump for his first year, so it's unlikely they'll decrease in size in 2013.
no subject
Date: 2013-01-03 05:56 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2013-01-02 11:34 pm (UTC)From: