. 365/365 .

amazingly it has been 365 days since i started project365 on here.  this year, thankfully, has flown by.  it wasn't the best year for me and i'm so ready to see what 2012 has in store.  of course we had some wonderful times that were such blessings for me and my family, but somehow the bad outweighs the good in my mind, most likely because the bad all happened at the end of the year.  this new year's eve we spent going to laundromats to drop quarters in the machines for people who would be coming in to do their laundry.  it's one of my random acts of kindness that i'm doing for my birthday.  so the last picture of project 365 ...

yep.  a stack of quarters.  i would pay a million dollars for this next year to be the best year ever.  and i'm hoping that even the small amount of quarters that we gave out tonight would help just one person in the biggest way.  you never know.

. new year goals .

sunday was christmas.  by monday, everyone starts thinking of their new years resolutions.  we all make them.  sometimes we stick with them.  sometimes we don't.  i want my goals for 2012 to be different this year.  2011 wasn't much of a fun year for me.  i want to make 2012 amazing and like no other year before it.  i want them to be goals instead of resolutions, for resolutions always go down the pooper a week into the new year anway.  so, for me, i have goals. 
this year, my biggest goal is to make my focus on others.  i want to get the focus off of me.  to teach my children to think of others first.  to give.  to help.  to encourage.  to always think of others first.  always.  what better way to start this new goal than with my 30th birthday.  30 is big.  i want it to be big.  and i want to celebrate for 30 days leading up to that one day.  january 28th, that is.  so, starting december 30th, tomorrow, i will do one random act of kindness every day until january 28th.  that's 30 random acts of kindness.  you should join me. 

my family is doing this together as much as we can.  i feel like my children are so concerned with what's in it for them and when their next birthday is and when they'll get the next present.  i don't want that.  so we've been talking about helping others and doing things for others all week long.  and today, we had the perfect chance to give them a little taste of what we'll be doing. 

we went to one of the local frozen yogurt shops today as a special treat.  as we finished up, an older lady had come in, filled up her cup of yogurt, used a coupon, and went to pay with her debit card.  two times her card was denied for whatever reason.  the cashier let her take her cup of yogurt, although the lady had not yet paid.  she said she was going to get cash and would be right back.  we quietly gave the cashier the money for her yogurt and left.  the feeling was amazing.  and that was without the lady knowing what we had done.  whether or not the lady actually came back to pay, i have no idea.  and it doesn't matter.  we helped someone.  and the feeling was indescribable.  you should try it sometime. 

so, just one thing. big or small. once a day. for 30 days. that's how i'm celebrating.  and i'll blog about it here and there.  if you do a random act, share it with me.  i'd love to hear about it.