2019 Goals!

I was introduced to Dave Ramsey's principles to get out of debt in January 2018. To keep motivated while paying down my debt, I often watch his clips on YouTube. Lately, I've seen several videos about setting goals - it's that time of year, you know.

Ramsey recommends creating goals for each of the following seven areas: physical (health, exercise, weight, achievements), intellectual (read, study, learn something new), career, social, financial, family/relationship (one example I heard was about putting the phone away when the family is all together), and spiritual goals.

The next step is to make them SMART goals. When goals aren't specific or measurable, they are only wishes. Do you want goals or are you happy to wish your days and year away?

While not exactly as shown in the image below, I've heard SMART goals described this way:

S - specific
M - measurable
A - attainable
R - relevant
T - timely

The written component is very important too. When goals are not written down (or shared), how do you keep yourself accountable?

So, with all that said, here are my 2019 SMART goals in each of the seven categories:

1. Physical - lose 20 pounds this year; run a 5K
2. Intellectual - read at least one non-fiction book each month
3. Career - research one career or field of study that interests me per month
4. Social - meet with one friend per month that I haven't caught up with in far too long
5. Financial - be completely out of debt by the end of June (six more months!)
6. Family/relationship - TBD
7. Spiritual - TBD

I haven't come up with any specific or measurable goals for two of my categories, but I'm not going to let that hold up my post. I'll plan to do an update at some point this year - maybe then I'll have something to add to these outstanding categories.

2019: The Year of Hope!

Happy New Year!

I'll keep this post short and sweet. My 2019 word of the year is...

Last night (New Year's Eve 2018), these verses from Lamentations 3:21-26 kept coming to mind. May they encourage you and bring you hope too!

Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:
Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.”
The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him;
it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.

May God bless you richly and fill you with hope this year!

2018: The Year in Review

Twenty-eighteen was a hard year for me. Due to workplace stress and not being in a good place physically, mentally and emotionally, 2018 was the most difficult winter of my life. Things actually began to become better when the bottom fell out of my job and I came to the realization that work was something to do and not the thing to do! Thus began my change in outlook.

In the meantime, I had booked the first two weeks of July as vacation. The first week would be spent with my sister in the Regina area, and the second week would be spent with my friend Melinda and her two eldest nieces - ages 14 and 15 - at Clear Lake in Riding Mountain National Park in Manitoba.

Week 1 highlights involved Canada Day celebrations, a football game in the new stadium, learning to play disc golf, and visits to Regina Beach and Condie Nature Reserve. We ate well, rested, played games and completed puzzles, watched favourite old TV shows (now on DVD), window-shopped in malls, and generally hung out. It was just what the doctor ordered.

Week 2 began with driving through new territory as we took the north route into the national park. We stayed right in the park and had easy access to all sorts of fun including a swimming pool, shopping and restaurants. We searched for Parks Canada red chairs, did a kayak tour, tested multiple flavours of ice cream, explored the area on foot and by bike and vehicle, and enjoyed the sunsets.

The first night's sunset was the best!

In the summer and throughout the fall I began group tutoring (teaching English) with the Regina Public Library. It was a great opportunity to get some practice under my belt and see if this is what I might want to do overseas at some point. We'll see...

In August, I began a job search in earnest. A month later I accepted a new position that was a promotion and included a raise. I have been busy wrapping my head around another new position in a different ministry with the government ever since.

Also in August was The Drop Zone. It was an amazing experience, and I honestly feel I can do anything now! Talk about redemption - with my job and my life!

It's 12/12/18 - the 6th anniversary of my blog!

Six years already! Where has the time gone and how on earth am I up to 90 things??? Wow! So much accomplished and so much more to do! I wonder what the next year will hold?

The '40 Things & More' List!

1. Go snowshoeing.
2. Serve a meal in a soup kitchen.
3. Eat something I've never tried before.
4. Visit a town in Saskatchewan that I've never been to before.
5. Plan my dream 40th birthday trip.
6. Start running again.
7. Visit a US state I haven't been to before.
8. Read a classic novel.
9. Create and complete a scrapbook for one of the trips I've taken in my 30s.
10. Do up a will.
11. Complete one of my cross-stitch projects.
12. Go kayaking.
13. Get my website business off the ground.
14. Take a self-defense class/course.
15. Go horseback riding.
16. Visit a museum or historic site in Saskatchewan that I haven't been to before.
17. Give blood regularly.
18. Attend a Victorian Tea.
19. Ride my bike in the city.
20. Stop and smell the flowers at a garden I haven't been to before.
21. Try an activity that's new to me.
22. Walk a portion of the Trans Canada Trail that I haven't been on before.
23. Learn more about my family history.
24. Visit a park in Regina I haven't been to before.
25. Participate in a fundraiser that involves a physical activity.
26. Simplify some area of my life that needs simplifying.
27. Learn how to change a tire on a vehicle.
28. Explore Regina's backyard - see what's just outside the city limits.
29. Learn more about Canadian history.
30. Visit a natural site in Saskatchewan I haven't been to before.
31. Learn to play the guitar.
32. Visit a Canadian National Park I haven't been to before.
33. Climb Wascana Hill in Douglas Park and watch a sunset.
34. Visit the observatory at the Science Centre.
35. Attend Mosaic - a multicultural festival held annually.
36. Play my first solo concert on the bells.
37. Attend an outdoor movie event.
38. Go fly a kite!
39. Play a mini golf course I haven't been on before.
40. Go on dream 40th birthday trip!
41. Attend a Regina Red Sox baseball game.
42. Visit Saskatchewan's only lighthouse.
43. Run a 5K.
44. Visit the Great Sandhills in Saskatchewan.
45. Visit a Canadian province or territory I haven't been to before.
46. Attend the annual kite festival in Swift Current.
47. Visit a major US city I haven't been to before.
48. Watch a sunrise.
49. Try another activity that's new to me.
50. It's a surprise (even to me!) - I'll know it when the opportunity presents itself.
51. Take a ballroom dancing class.
52. Watch an old black & white movie I haven't seen before.
53. Experience a WARM birthday!
54. Experience a WARM Christmas! (not necessarily in the same year as the previous item)
55. Attend the annual Dickens' Village Festival in Carlyle.
56. See the polar bears in Churchill, Manitoba.
57. Visit the east coast of Canada.
58. Jump out of an airplane! (in tandem, of course!)
59. Experience a 4th of July in the United States.
60. Visit a US National Park I haven't been to before.
61. Write a book.
62. Watch the Rose Bowl Parade in person.
63. Attend a spring training baseball game.
64. Buy something at an auction.
65. Drive part of Route 66.
66. Attend the tulip festival in Ottawa.
67. See the Great Wall of China.
68. Visit Disneyland or Disney World.
69. See a lavender field in bloom.
70. Attend a ballet.
71. Live overseas!
72. Visit Laycock, England.
73. Get published (e.g. magazine article).
74. Attend a Remembrance Day service/ceremony.
75. Visit the Grand Canyon.
76. Learn Spanish.
77. Take a river cruise on the Rhine River and see castles along the way.
78. Learn Latin.
79. Visit an orphanage.
80. Learn to play handbells/play in a handbell choir.
81. Go curling!
82. Go ice fishing.
83. Attend a NHL game.
84. Play crokicurl.
85. Go dog sledding!
86. Get out of debt.
87. Take a hot air balloon ride over Cappadocia, Turkey!
88. Take a flying lesson!
89. Visit the Provincial Archives of Saskatchewan.
90. Visit a continent I haven't been to before.

A Spot of Tea for my Birthday!

I try to do something different for my birthday each year, and this year was no exception. This afternoon, I and three of my friends went to Government House for their Christmas Tea!

This is a bit of a special event. First, there is only one was to get tickets. You fill out an application form that is entered into a draw. Second, this is done in September when almost no one is thinking about Christmas at all. I'd say this also explains why I've missed getting my application form in each of the last dozen years or so. Third, you have to be one of the lucky ones chosen. And, guess what? I was!

The tea was a lovely affair, and Government House was decorated to the hilt for Christmas. It was beautiful to see and lovely to experience - finally!

I'm glad I got the opportunity to attend a Christmas Tea. We had a wonderful time! Happily and surprisingly though, I prefer the regular monthly teas that aren't near as hard to get tickets for.

My 45th Birthday is Coming Soon!

The last couple of months I've been sensing that a change is coming. You know how it feels when a chapter of your life is closing or a season is ending? Well, it's like that - but more! I feel like a whole book - a large bound volume with brass buckles - is closing.

I can best describe it as the first 45 years of my life were Volume 1, and now Volume 2 is beginning. Look out world, here comes Jill 2.0! Exciting, hey?

Just like drawing a line in the sand and stepping from one side of the line to the other to signify a new beginning, I believe the second half of my life is just beginning and it will be even better than the first half!

What's somewhat surprising is that I've really enjoyed being 44. It was a fun age to be. It was an easy number to remember (this gets more important the older I get). I didn't miss being 43 and neither did I rush forward to 45. Age 44 felt like me. But, onward and upward we go! Bring on chapter 1 of Volume 2...

#50 - The Drop Zone!

I woke up excited! Today was the day...

Today I would be rappelling down Hill Tower II as part of The Prairie Chickens team. The rappel would be the culmination of months of fundraising for Camp Easter Seal.

As I got ready and donned my prairie chicken ensemble, I realized I wasn't fearful at all. I was full of anticipation for the adventure of a lifetime the day would bring!

We had chosen to do our rappels in the morning. There was no need to have all day to rehearse the event over and over in our minds or to watch others as they got geared up, completed one final practice run and then rappelled. I hadn't come to be an observer; I wanted to get up on the roof, do my rappel and then enjoy the rest of the day.

The Prairie Chickens (L to R): Melinda Lalach, Jill Laycock, Bobbie Sevenster

Fast-forward through the next couple of hours. We signed in, waited our turn, got geared up, did our final practice run, and finally were ushered into an elevator and made our way out onto the rooftop - what a view!

We then waited to be called over one by one closer to the edge of the building where the rappelling equipment was set up and where SWAT team members were ready to guide us through each step of the process.

It was my turn. I walked towards the railing. My harness and knots were double- and triple-checked - good!

Then began the hardest part of the day - climbing over the railing of the roof of the building. Every single cell of my brain seemed to be telling me, "Don't do it! Danger! Danger! Warning! This is completely unnatural!" The two SWAT guys kept me at ease and gave crystal-clear instructions. I was literally on the edge - of a building!

Look at that focus, the concentration!

I really (REALLY!) did not want to let go, but in order to move forward in life (which in this case meant down), you have to let go of what you're holding on to. I did and the fun began!

Surprisingly, it wasn't hard at all. I zipped down about 10 floors before I realized I should slow down a bit, take in the view and enjoy the ride (as this likely was not going to happen again).

Prior to the big day, we were all asked to choose a song that would be played as we rappelled. I chose Mandisa's Overcomer. The lyrics of the chorus are:

You're an overcomer
Stay in the fight 'til the final round
You're not going under
'Cause God is holding you right now
You might be down for a moment
Feeling like it's hopeless
That's when he reminds you
That you're an overcomer
You're an overcomer

I was enjoying my descent so much I didn't want the rappel to be over, but all good things must come to an end...

Before and after we rappelled, The Prairie Chickens were interviewed by a journalist who then wrote this awesome article: Easter Seals fundraiser a chance to do good and take a leap of faith

It was an amazing experience, and I'm so glad I took this opportunity to rappel down one of Regina's tallest buildings! Talk about a year of redemption... I feel like I can do anything now!