12 in 13: January

I hope everyone had a wonderful CHRISTmas (okay it totally bugs me when those people who have never abbreviated Christmas as "xmas" even in a text to their best friend spell Christmas like that... but I'm in a weird "I-want-to-show-you-all-who-I-really-am" mood today... so just go along with whatever happens in these next few paragraphs--I'm honestly not even positive as to what's about to happen). 

WOO 

Now that THAT'S cleared up let's move onto the NEW YEAR 2013!  I hope you all had a wonderful evening yesterday.  My night consisted of flying back from Mexico, getting into Denver at about 8pm, and going to a great family friend's home for dinner and fun. 

Here's basically what you're thinking I did..

But, guys, I promised from the beginning to be entirely honest here.  So, with that sense of mutual love, friendship, and respect in mind, here's a more accurate look at what I did to welcome in 2013...

Let this be a gentle reminder to anyone ever doubting my being truly genuine and honest on here.  (On a side note, I AM ABSOLUTELY LOVING READING HARRY POTTER, I'm currently about halfway through book 6 and must get through all of them before I go back to school on the 7th, or risk facing judgmental floor mates as well as failing every single class of the 19 hours I'm taking)...  Anyway, my night was a delightful conclusion to a week full of quality fun in the sun, as I sincerely hope all of yours were as well :)

Okay, now let's get down to business.  One of my favorite American traditions to willingly participate in is the act of welcoming in a new year with loved ones, and then taking some time to do a bit of self reflecting, and setting a few personal goal for the year ahead.  However, one of my frustrations with this tradition is that I feel like most people (myself included) stick to a goal for the new year for at most two months, and then the craziness of life proves to be too much and the goal eventually gets pushed out of mind.  So this year, I decided to approach my New Year's resolutions in a new light. 

Ergo, this morning I sat down with my bible, my new favorite notebook, and a classy black sharpie to go about creating two pages full of random words.  The first page was titled "Words From 2012" and included some tear stains as I wrote hundreds of words describing what was the hardest, but most rewarding year of my life thus far.  On my second page, "Words For 2013," I wrote longer phrases that I want to be reoccurring themes for my 2013.  By the time I had finished, I realized that I had conveniently come up with twelve goals, and would, therefore, be assigning a different theme to work toward each month of 2013.  Some of my goals are more tangible than others, while some seem honestly quite silly to spend an entire month working on, but I feel as though each one is an extremely important characteristic I develop in order to make my life more Christ-like.  I have decided to entitle this endeavor 12 in 13, and will be keeping an account of my personal journey through twitter, instagram, and Facebook.  And of course here at Hashtag Love! 

ALRIGHT here we go!  January!  Part 1 of 12 in 13!!!  (yeah that's not confusing at all.)  My theme for this month is "Striving Toward Simplicity."  My main goal is to start off by clearing out about 50% of my wardrobe, and donating it to an organization I'm passionate about supporting (I currently have a few in mind but not a confirmed one, so I will let you guys know when I have found "the one.")  This is basically starting off a big goal I have for my whole year.  In order to strive toward more simplicity in my life, 2013 is going to be a year where I am focusing on learning to be content with the blessings I already have, and to nip my temptation to constantly shop for clothing right in the butt.  I went shopping today with my mom and sister, and will not be shopping for nor buying clothing for myself until January 1st 2014!  This is honestly a scary endeavor for me, mostly because I'm terrified it will end in failure.  However, I have been convicted to trust that God is going to provide me with the exact doses of patience, humility, and heart I will need to accomplish the goal He has inspired me to set for myself.  It's going to be so cool to watch what He does with the money I save from not buying clothes, as well as with the time I will no longer spend devoted to the subject. 

More simplicity in my life is something I would love to see happen for a few big reasons, which I won't get into right now, but I know it will benefit me greatly in so many ways.  I'm not sure at this point what else I will do this month to integrate more simplicity, but I am totally confident God is going to show me some great ways to do so, and will joyfully share as I can :) 

If anyone is interested in joining me through this month-by-month challenge to integrate new habits and passions into your life I would be overjoyed!  Simply make your own list and hashtag 12 in 13 (#12in13) on any post about your own journey, and let's inspire one another to be the change we wish to see in ourselves and in the world around us in 2013! 

Seriously, thanks for reading, thanks for letting me be myself, thanks for encouraging me, and thanks for showing me love in so many ways.  I have so much to be thankful for.  Love you guys!!! 

Inspired in love,

Tay 

Psalm 63:1-3 #love

Find me on twitter (@TaySmalley) and on instagram (@TaySmalley) to see what other wonderful adventures I'm up to ;)