2011 Upgrades

The beginning of a year is all about renewal, reflection, and improvement. Yeah, yeah...I get it...it's almost March -- but that's my birth-month and probably the time I do the most reflection. The weather's changing, the spring storms seem to bring new life, and I tend to analyze how different I am from my last birthday (how existential, right?). So I'm just just now getting around to my resolutions...and they're pretty random this year.

1. I'm going to learn the "Single Ladies" dance. I am...it's going to happen...and you're going to be jealous...it's a fact.

2. I'm going to try to be able to pepper in personal details in my small talk. This resolution is brought to you by James. James is a Post Office employee at the Post Office in the Heights of Little Rock. He works almost everyday and is one of the sweetest creatures on the face of this planet (seriously guy...he's the epitome of what a male should be). Anyway, James always has smile, ALWAYS willing to go the extra mile, and there's something else special about him...every time I come in he greats me with a "Good morning, Miss Lauren! How are things at Arkansas Symphony? Is LeAnne (a co-worker) getting excited about her wedding?" Here's the thing...it's not just me, one day there was a HUGE line and he did something like that to EVERY PERSON that walked in...EVERY PERSON!! And I saw something remarkable...every person in the long, slow post office line was smiling, and just happy to be there...contagious, huh? So I'm going to work on my ability to do that. A few seconds to make someones day. Anyway, enough about James.

3. Read at least one fundraising/nonprofit book a month. It's important for me to excel at my work...especially because I actually love what I do (who knew??).

4. get even more organized and conquer more projects. This was a resolution last year, and I have to say....I did pretty phenomenal. My apartment stays spotless. all parts: storage, refrigerator, pantry, dusting, glass cleaning, vacuuming. Better than that, everything has a place....I dare say it's become a hobby...my mind stays clear. So I'm going to work on a few projects to "upgrade" my apartment. You may remember it from this post (Note to self...must post pictures of changes already made from then to now). Here are a few upgrades I had in mind:

1. A drapery accent wall such as these:
2. A front door upgrade:

I don't really have anything in mind for this yet, since we do have a very unique front door situation...but I will post what I have so far very soon.

3. Paint an accent wall on this wall:

Well...not this one...the one to the right of the T.V. Stand....we're thinking some form of gray...CAST YOUR VOTE!!

Other than that, I have big, big news....I'm going to be an aunt!!!! Congrats to my sister, Lexi, and my brother-in-law, Hank. I will be very involved because I'm super excited...more posts to come!!