2012 Goals in Review

2012 was a roller coaster of a year for us with lots of ups and downs. There are many people that will say they are glad 2012 is over, but for me it brought me another year of growth and opportunities to make myself a better person.
 

Here's my original goals that I set back in January:
1. Start a blog and post regularly.
2. Run a marathon.
3. Be a CPA by the end of 2012 – Study for, take, and pass the CPA exam.
4. Read 12 books – one each month.  
5. Clean out the clutter - trash/donate any unwanted/unneeded items.

I did really well with most of my goals this year.
1. I started by blog and posted regularly to it. There were some months that I posted more than others, but I kept with it all year long.
2. I didn't run a marathon, but I did start being active which was my main purpose of this goal. I ran regularly in January and February, then didn't do much until this fall when I started working out with some girls from work. Then in November and December, I took a 6 week kick-boxing class. I really enjoyed this class and will probably take it again some time in 2013.
3. I completed my goal of passing the CPA exam and am very close to being fully certified. A little bit of paperwork and an ethics course are all that stands between me and my license!
4. I came oh-so-close to completing 12 books this year. I am 25% of the way done with book #12 right now.
5. We cleaned out a lot of clutter this year giving lots of things away and trashing more. We still have more we need to clean out, but we are well on our way to de-cluttering our house/lives.

I'm proud of how I achieved or made progress towards my goals in 2012. I am still working on finalizing my goals for 2013 and will share them soon (hopefully no later than the end of the week). Blogging about my goals has helped to keep me accountable to them and has provided lots of encouragement from you. Thank you for your support and I'm looking forward to your continued support and encouragement in 2013.

Book #11 - Secret Santa

 

Last week I finished book #11 of the year, Secret Santa by Kathleen Brooks. It was a short little novella that was cute, but jumped around a bit for me. Here's the synopsis from Amazon:

It wouldn't be Christmas in Keeneston without a party! Everyone's invited, even Santa… 

Kenna's court docket is full, Dani's hiding from her in-laws, Paige and Annie are about to burst from pregnancy, and Marshall is breaking up fights at the PTA Christmas Concert. The sweet potato casserole is made, the ham and biscuits are on the table, and men are losing their shirts - and not because of bets placed with the Rose Sisters! All the while, the entire town is wondering one thing: who is the Secret Santa that showed up with special gifts for everyone?

The book has too many characters for such a short story and doesn't set up them up very well. I was confused for the first few chapters of who was who and who was related to who and how they were all connected. It was an easy short read, but has way too many characters for such a short read.

Book #10 - Blame It On The Mistletoe

Today I finished book #10 of the year, Blame It On The Mistletoe by Lily Graison. This is a short little novella that will put you in the Christmas spirit. It's a cute little romantic story. Here's the synopsis from Amazon:

When Macy Carter’s parents order her to bring her live-in boyfriend Sean home with her for Christmas she has no idea that her little white lie is just about to snowball into a fabrication of monstrous proportions. Sean isn’t her boyfriend, he’s her boss. Now she has to reveal the lie she’s been telling her family for the past two years or hastily concoct an elaborate ruse to fool them instead.

When Macy tells Sean Mathis of her predicament he does what any gentleman would - he laughs and then agrees to help her out. Little does he know that one misplaced word in their little scheme will backfire and land them both in the hot-seat.

Secluded in the mountains, surrounded by snow and good will, Sean and Macy can’t help looking like the perfect couple. So perfect that the family decides a Christmas wedding will make it a holiday none of them would ever forget!

I liked this little book. It was such an easy read and was definitely a sweet story. If it is put up for free again on Amazon for the Kindle, you should grab it.

Top 5 Things I Learned in my 1st Season as a Coach's Wife

I got a little taste of the coaching world and what it's like to be a Coach's wife last year when Josh helped out with the football team during his student teaching. It prepared me a little bit for the first season of him being a full-time coach, but there were still some things that I learned this season. I'm sure each new season will bring new things to learn and experience, but probably not as much as this first year.

Top 5 Things I Learned in my 1st Season as a Coach's Wife:

5. Friday night into Saturday morning is a very short night. Late when you get home from the game, early morning work for Coach.

4. Saturday is laundry day. If the laundry gets done on Saturday, there is no worrying on Thursday night that Coach’s game day clothes are clean and Coach is happy because all of his favorite practice clothes are clean and ready for Monday morning.

3. You always need more shirts with the school name on it or in school colors. You don’t want to be seen in the same thing every week!

2. People outside the coaching world don’t have a clue how many hours coaches put in every week. Most are shocked when they find out Coach works 7 days a week.

1. Coach loves looking up in the stands and seeing you there cheering for him and the team. It’s one of his favorite things! (He said so himself!)

Goals Update - November

November was a busy month with finishing up football season (including playoffs!), starting a new kickboxing class after work, and the beginning of the holidays.
 

Here's the update for November:

1.   Blog – I've didn't post much other than football reports, but we haven't had much going on except for football. I'll keep posting what's going on over the next month.

2.   Marathon Training – As I said last month, I'm not going to be running a marathon this year. I did however start a kickboxing class every day after work. This is week 3 of the the 6 week class and I'm really enjoying it. It's been a fun new way to exercise!

3.   CPA – At the beginning of November I found out that I passed FAR, so I am done with the CPA exam!! Just a little paperwork and an ethics course stand between me and being completely certified!

4.   Books – I didn't read really at all during November, so I have to read 3 books during December to complete my goal. I better pick up a book soon!

5.   Clean out the clutter – We are pretty much done unpacking our house now and have a box of giveaway/goodwill things. There's a few other things I need to go through then I'll be making a trip to Goodwill.

I can't believe December is here...2012 has gone by fast! Christmas and 2013 will be here soon!

Friday Night Lights: Playoffs!

Last night Richardson played Allen in the first round of the playoffs for the bi-district game. Unfortunately, Richardson lost 63-14 to end their season. I'm so proud of the team for making it to the playoffs and playing hard. Coach says, he's "thankful for my players and how hard they worked all season." Overall, it's been a great first season in the coaching world. We're looking forward to many more successful seasons!

2012 Season Record: 4-7 (4-3 in district, 0-1 in post-season)

At one point we were winning...7-0!

Passed FAR - 4 down, 0 to go!

Friday Night Lights: RHS vs Dallas Jesuit

For the last game on the regular season Richardson played Dallas Jesuit. Unfortunately, RHS lost 59-33. This was Senior night and it was nice to honor all of the Seniors on the football team, band, drill team, and cheerleaders. They all spend Friday nights at the games supporting the football team and the school. Overall we had a good season and are now playoff bound! It's definitely been an exciting first season and an adjustment to this new lifestyle. I know Josh is ready for some rest soon, but it doesn't come yet as playoffs start next week!

Season Record: 4-6 (4-3 in district)

Next Week: Playoffs vs Allen (yes, again!)

Friday Night Lights: RHS vs Richardson Berkner

This week Richardson played Richardson Berkner with a trip to the playoffs on the line and Richardson was victorious! The Eagles beat the Rams 47-35 to head to the playoffs. It was a very good game with lots of back and forth, but the kids fought hard for the win. There is one more regular season game next week, then playoffs begin!

Season Record: 4-5 (4-2 in district)

Next Week: RHS vs Dallas Jesuit

Goals Update - October

October went by extremely fast! It was a crazy month for us...I took my last part of the CPA exam, football continues to keep us very busy, and we're still trying to get all of our boxes unpacked.

Here's the update for October:

1.   Blog – I've done good with blogging this month. The football reports will keep coming as the season continues and as other things happen.

2.   Marathon Training – I'm still working out with the girls at work during our lunch break. There's been days when I really didn't want to go, but it's been nice having them there to encourage me and to make me go. Let's be honest, I'm not going to be running a marathon this year, but the main point of this goal was to be active which I am now completing.

3.   CPA – I took my last section of the CPA exam on October 1st and am still waiting for my results. I should find out my score next week and hopefully then I'll be done for real!

4.   Books – I finished book #8 and book #9 this month. I just have 3 more to go over the next 2 months to finish my goal. I haven't started book #10 yet, but will be soon.

5.   Clean out the clutter – I've been putting things in a giveaway/goodwill pile as I've been going through things and unpacking more boxes.

October was a good month and I can't believe 2012 is almost over. The holidays are on their way, which makes me very happy! I love the holidays and getting to spend time with family!

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween! We carved pumpkins this year! We decided we would carve pumpkins to support our house divided this year. Josh's looked really good when it was carved, but unfortunately I didn't get a picture of it lit up until after it had sat outside for a week (same for the football). Anyway, enjoy!

Book #9 - Married by Mistake

 
Thursday night I finished book #9 of the year, Married by Mistake by Abby Gaines. It's a very easy read that I finished in about 3 days because it keeps you interested the whole time to see what's going to happen.

Here's the synopsis from Amazon:

Do not adjust your set. That really was Casey Greene being jilted by her fiancé on live TV! And that really was Memphis's most eligible bachelor who stepped in to marry her instead.
Millionaire businessman Adam Carmichael wanted only to help Casey save face. He isn't prepared for the news that their "fake" wedding is legal and binding.
While they secretly wait for an annulment, media and family scrutiny forces them to put on their best loving-couple act. Except by now, neither one is quite sure who's acting....

 It is a very predictable book with a few twists. You know what's going to happen in the end, but it's like watching your favorite chick flick when you're sucked in anyway. I'm just a sucker for a good love story. This was another free book I downloaded to my Kindle. If you just look, there are lots of free books out there!

Friday Night Lights: RHS vs Dallas Skyline

This week Richardson played Dallas Skyline, one of the top ranked teams in the state. They lost 49-20, but showed that they can play with the top teams. I know the score doesn't look like it, but for the first quarter and a half, RHS was in the game. A few turnovers really made the difference in the game. If the Eagles can get those under control, then they can beat anyone. Two more games left in the season, need 1 more win for the playoffs...

Season Record: 3-5 (3-2 in district)

Next Week: RHS vs Richardson Berkner

The Skyline band is always fun to watch! P.S. Check out their student section on the left...it was packed!

Book #8 - The Coach's Wife

A few days ago I finished book #8 of the year, The Coach's Wife by Carolyn Allen. I had read really good reviews about this book and it had some great insight into what life is like as a coach's wife, particularly a Texas high school coach's wife. The author, Carolyn Allen, is the wife of Highland Park High School's head coach, Randy Allen. They have been at numerous high schools throughout Texas prior to Highland Park. There is nothing quite like Texas high school football so it was good to have insight from someone who has been there in both a small town and big city. We have no idea where the coaching life will take us so it's nice to know what it's like it both places.

The description that Amazon gives of the book is:

The coach's wife is proud to stand beside her husband. She's not in the limelight in the shadow of or behind her coach. Yes, the spotlight shines on him; however, they are both hanging on as life during the season takes on intensity like no other. Emotions are high. Time is short. And the pressure is to win. The coach s wife is doing everything to keep the marriage and family going: waiting, cheering, moving, crying, budgeting, scrapbooking, repairing,traveling, praying, and juggling it all. Coaches wives believe that the calling of a coach is a noble one: to instill integrity, courage, and sportsmanship in the next generation.

There is a lot of great insight in this book about how to keep the household running during the season when Coach is incredibly busy and not home much. There's also chapters about dealing with the community and parents and how to handle your life in the spotlight. One thing I found particularly interesting was a comparison of a coach's family to a minister's family and how the two are similar in that in both of them people are watching you and how you live all of the time and that the only people that truly understand your life are other coaches/ministers. I have often compared a coaching staff to a church staff many times as I see how alike they are and how similar the lifestyles are.

Anyway, I would recommend this book to any coach's wife, no matter the level or sport. While the book does focus on Texas high school football coaches and their families, it would be beneficial for any coach's wife to read.

Friday Night Lights: RHS vs Dallas W.T. White

This week Richardson played Dallas W.T. White for Homecoming. I don't think they could have asked for a better game for Homecoming. It was a back and forth game with neither team ever really pulling away with the game ending in a Richardson victory! I think the final score of 53-44 was the largest lead either team had. Richardson only needs 1 more win out of the last 3 games to go to the playoffs! Let's go Eagles!

Season Record: 3-4 (3-1 in district)

Next Week: RHS vs Dallas Skyline

Homecoming Queen nominees

Friday Night Lights: RHS vs Lake Highlands

This week Richardson played Lake Highlands. There's not a whole lot I can say about this game since Richardson lost 41-0. It was as ugly as it sounds. Hopefully the team can get back on track with a win next week for homecoming. We just need 2 wins out of the last 4 games to make playoffs!

Season Record: 2-4 (2-1 in district)

Next Week: RHS vs Dallas W.T. White

Friday Night Lights: RHS vs Dallas Sunset

This week Richardson played Dallas Sunset and won 36-0. The game actually was called with 5 minutes to go because of a bench-clearing fight. Needless to say, the coaches were not happy. I didn't go to the varsity game since it was away and on Thursday night, but I did go to the Freshman and JV games at home on Wednesday night. We're at the halfway point in the season, are 2-0 in district, and hopefully we can keep the ball rolling!

Season Record: 2-3

Next Week: RHS vs Lake Highlands

Coach at the Freshman game

Goals Update - September

September has been a busy month for us with getting into the routine of football, finishing studying for my last test, and getting settled into our new place. Football season is now in full swing and we are even getting close to the halfway point in the season. The team is currently 1-3, but started district play on a good note with their first win!

Here's the update for September:

1.   Blog – I've done pretty well with blogging this month. The football reports will keep coming as the season continues.

2.   Marathon Training – I finally found a way to workout/run while working, studying, and going to football games! A few weeks ago, I started working out during my lunch break with a few of the girls at work. We go 4 times a week, then take Fridays off. It's been great to have people to push me when I don't really want to go and in turn, push them when they don't want to go. We've been going for 3 weeks now and it's going great!

3.   CPA – Early in September, I found out that I passed REG! That was a big relief because I really wasn't too sure about that one. I take my last test tomorrow (!) and then hopefully I'll be done! It's going to be really weird not having the "I should be studying" feeling all the time. I'm going to have free time that I haven't had in oh...about 6 months. It's going to be awesome!

4.   Books – I finished book #7 this month and I'm about 73% of the way through book #8. I'll be able to finish that one in the next few days then get started on book #9. I'll definitely be able to finish 4+ books in the next 3 months since I won't have any more studying to do after tomorrow!

5.   Clean out the clutter – I'll be hitting this one big in October as I finish unpacking our boxes. There have been some things that were left packed away in boxes at our apartment because we didn't have room for it, but if we don't use something in our house now, we probably won't ever use it so time to give it away!

September has been a great month for us! We've gotten into football season, Josh got his first paycheck, I'm almost done with studying...it's just been a good month! October is bringing lots more football, Rangers post-season baseball, then the holidays will be here before we know it!

Friday Night Lights: RHS vs Richardson Pearce

Last night was the big rivalry game for Richardson against Pearce and RHS was victorious!! The Eagles got their first win of the season beating Pearce 50-35! The rivalry is pretty cool to me. The two schools share the stadium they play in and this game is played for naming rights of the stadium. The winning team determines if the stadium is called Eagle-Mustang or Mustang-Eagle (with the winning team's name first, of course). For the 3rd year in a row, Richardson defeated Pearce, so the stadium will continue to be called Eagle-Mustang Stadium. The team played well last night and the boys were very excited to get their first win, especially with it coming over Pearce. It was a cooler, drizzly night, but it just feels like football season to me (and luckily we didn't get too wet).

Season Record: 1-3

Next Week: RHS vs Dallas Sunset

Friday Night Lights: BYE Week

This week was Richardson's bye week, so we got a week of not-as-late nights and a Friday evening off. This included Josh getting to leave earlier on Monday, so we could go watch Zach play in his first middle school football game! Zach started on defense and was in on the kickoffs too. Unfortunately, Kimbrough lost at the very end of the game, but it was fun to get to watch him play!

Next week: RHS vs Richardson Pearce

Zach is #17

Friday Night Lights: RHS vs Allen

Last night Richardson played Allen High School at their brand new stadium. Knowing how good and big  Allen is, I was honestly dreading this game, but the kids fought hard and even threatened to make it a very interesting game late in the first half. They will forever hold the place in history of scoring the first opponent's points in Allen's stadium! I am extremely proud of how hard and how well the team played. The final score was 52-17, but it doesn't come close to representing just how well our guys played. If they will play as hard the rest of the season as they played last night, they will win games...maybe even upset a few teams!

Season Record: 0-3

Next week: BYE week

A few pictures of the stadium since I know everyone is wondering what it looks like!

Passed REG - 3 down, 1 to go!

Book #7 - Bridesmaid Lotto

Today I finished book #7, Bridesmaid Lotto by Rachel Astor.  This was another one of my free Kindle books. (You can find lots of them if you just look!) This book started out a little slow, but picked up not very far into it. Anyway, here is the synopsis of the book from Amazon:

Josephine McMaster is pretty and smart, but very much a klutzy mess. Finally, at 26, she may have actually lost the dreaded ‘McMaster the Disaster’ nickname that has followed her around her whole life.

Josie’s quite content to be single, much to her mother’s disappointment. So when a bizarre contest is announced where a socialite is holding a lottery to pick her bridesmaids (and rake in a little extra cash), she can’t roll her eyes fast enough, even if it does mean meeting Jake Hall, her one and only movie star crush. Obviously, Josie doesn’t enter the bridesmaid lottery, so you can imagine her surprise when her picture pops up among the winners, thanks to Mom. With a little prodding -- okay bribing -- Josie agrees to participate.

The wedding turns into the event of the year, and Josie finds herself in the middle of a paparazzi feeding frenzy, which gets even crazier after Jake Hall takes a special interest in her.

Can Josie handle the pressure in the spotlight? Is it possible she might really have a chance with Jake Hall? And if she’s busy worrying about all that, how in the heck is she going to keep ‘McMaster the Disaster’ from showing up in front of the entire world?

I enjoyed this book and towards the end it got hard to put down. You can really relate to the main character, Josie, because who hasn't felt like the most awkward, disastrous person in the world at some point in their life. It's a good love story that's mostly predictable with a few twists. If you are looking for some light-hearted reading, this is a good book for you.

Friday Night Lights: RHS vs Frisco Wakeland

Week 2 of the football season had Richardson playing Frisco Wakeland. This was a fun match-up since Josh's cousins go to Wakeland. It was great to get to see Ethan and Grant march at halftime as they have a very good band. Unfortunately, once again, the game didn't go our way and the Eagles lost 61-24. Hopefully the team can learn from their mistakes and power on to next week.

Season Record: 0-2

Next week: RHS at Allen

Coach is hard at work

The Wakeland band looked great!

Friday Night Lights: RHS vs Irving MacArthur

Friday night was the first varsity football game of the 2012 season for Richardson. They played Irving MacArthur at home. Unfortunately, RHS lost 55-26. It was a long game to begin the season (it was after 11 when we left the field), but the good news is that the team can learn and grow from this loss and they get to play again next week!

Season Record: 0-1

Next week: RHS at Frisco Wakeland

Goals Update - August

Where did August go? I can't believe it is already over! I guess time flies when you're having fun! August has been crazy busy...bought a new truck, moved into a duplex, took another part of the CPA exam, unpacked most of our boxes, football started, school started...whew, busy month!

Here's the August update:

1.   Blog – August hasn't been busy on the blog, but it has certainly been busy for us. With football season starting, there should be more regular postings with updates of how the team is doing.

2.   Marathon Training – The only work out I've been getting has been from unpacking boxes. It's been crazy around here, but with getting settled into a routine hopefully I can make working out be part of that routine.

3.   CPA – At the beginning of the month, I found out that I passed BEC, so 2 down, 2 to go! I took REG on August 18th and I'm still waiting to get my score back on that one. I'm really not sure how I did on it. I think I either barely passed or barely failed, but we'll see. I just started studying for (hopefully) my last part, FAR, and will take it at the beginning of October.

4.   Books – I started book #7 and am only about 10% through it. With getting settled I'll be able to read more. Just as I got caught up, I got behind again, but I still think I can finish my goal of 12 books for the year.

5.   Clean out the clutter – We haven't cleaned out much as we've unpacked yet since most of what's been unpacked has been necessary things. There's still plenty of time to go through things and get it out of our house.

Football season has begun! Richardson JV and Freshman played last night and Varsity opens play tonight against Irving MacArthur. Baylor starts their season on Sunday against SMU. I'm so excited for football season to be here even though it means Josh is working 7 days a week. I guess it just means lots of me time (or study time...)!

Chile Colorado Burritos

Tonight we tried a new recipe for dinner that I found on Pinterest (of course, where else?!). It is an easy mostly cooked in the crock pot recipe and was delicious! Here is the original post where the recipe can be found. I changed it up slightly, but overall followed the recipe. We'll definitely be making these again as they are so easy and so good! Here is the recipe if you want to try them!

Chile Colorado Burritos

Ingredients:
1 1/2 to 2 pounds stew meat
1 large can of chili (I use Wolf brand)
2 beef bouillon cubes
1 can refried beans
8 - 10 tortillas
1 cup of shredded cheese (I use fiesta blend)

Directions:

Put beef, bouillon, and enchilada sauce into a crock pot and cook on low for 7-8 hours (or the entire time you are at work). Pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees and heat up the refried beans in microwave or on stovetop. On cookie sheet, lay out a tortilla and place about 1/2 cup of meat on tortilla drained with a slotted spoon along with a spoonful of refried beans. Roll into a burrito. Repeat until all the meat has been used. Pour remaining chili on top of burritos and sprinkle cheese on top. Bake in oven for about 5 minutes until cheese is melted. Serve.

I was able to make 9 burritos out of this and easily could have made more as some of them were very full. I probably could have made 12 burritos without skimping on the meat in them.

My pictures never look as good as the people's I get the recipes from...

Roughriders vs Naturals

Last Sunday night Josh and I went to the Frisco Roughriders game against the Northwest Arkansas Naturals for our last date night before football completely takes over. Minor League baseball games are a lot of fun since the ballpark is so small and you're so close to the action. Add in all-you-can-eat ballpark food, a free hat and shirt, and a Roughriders win and it's a great night!