2019 New Years Goals

Happy New Year!

Every year we create a poster with our goals for the coming year. This is one of my favorite traditions! The rules for the annual poster are A) the goals must be achievable in one year, and B) they must be quantifiable, as in, they have to be things we can measure and check off. 

First, I like to review how we did on our goals for the previous year. To be perfectly honest, we didn't do so hot this year. 2018 was a year of upheaval for us. At New Year's we didn't know where James would be working post graduation, so a lot was up in the air. As things coalesced, some of our goals changed or fell by the wayside. 

James:
Did marvelously with his Duolingo study this year, he's been making great progress in Spanish. He did read (or listen to an audiobook) every day. He did obtain a post-graduation job. He did not practice the piano every day.

Joel:
Learned to read! Of course it's still a developing skill, but we love to hear him read beginning books to us, it's awesome. He's still working on his roundhouse. =)

Xander:
His goals were ones that we neglected this year.

Valerie:
I did not work on my novel "Allspeaker" this year. (Although I did make some progress on "The Seventh Guardian" fortunately.) I did pretty well with my photography challenge. Duolingo totally fell by the wayside for me. I did finish my poomsae challenge in time for my black belt test in October. Bike riding didn't happen as intended. But I definitely got pregnant!

Family goals:
We successfully moved to Utah, a location which meant we didn't need to find a new martial arts school, haha. We went on one of the two camping trips we'd intended. James and I did attend the temple three times. We are still working through the Book of Mormon together. We're terrible about walking our dog, but at least we've been on a date every week!

And now I present our goals for 2019!

James:
-Daily Spanish study
-Daily reading/audiobook
-Settle finances
-Create and follow personal exercise plan
-Weekly video journal
-Bake 12 new recipes

Valerie:
-Earn 5th Dan
-Finish "The Seventh Guardian" revisions
-Project 52 with Clickin Moms (ie weekly photography project)
-Journal weekly
-Read 5 new books
-Finish Duolingo Spanish tree
-Take a yoga class

Family/Couple goals:
-Successfully move to Colorado
-Family camping trip
-Go star gazing
-Find a new martial arts school
-Trip to Tennessee
-Create a family budget
-Attend the temple (number of times to be determined when we know what part of Colorado we're moving to)
-Weekly "Come Follow Me" family study
-Weekly date night

We also want to add "Plant a tree" if we end up buying a house this year. But we'll have to see!

We decided not to set goals for the children this year. We've decided  to wait until they're old enough to set their own goals. We feel like we shouldn't be forcing our ideas of what their progression should be, but should let them discover their own interests. Of course we'll be working on things together, but it's a little different when we're setting up checkboxes on their behalf. So we'll revisit those in later years.

We are excited about this coming year. We've got some big changes ahead for our family. Hopefully our move will go well; we are looking forward to settling down at last and hopefully not moving again for a while! =) 

We wish you a happy New Year and a great 2019!

New Year Poster 2017

Welcome to our annual New Year's event at the Holley House!

Every year, we create a poster, and upon said document, we enumerate various goals that we hope to accomplish in the forthcoming year. (2016, 2015, 2014, which also lists 2013's goals.) The rules for our poster is that the goals have to be achievable in one year, and that they must be quantifiable--they have to be things that we can measure and check off. Let's review our goals from 2016:

James:

He obtained jobs for both his first and second summer (we're excited to be spending this upcoming summer in Utah!) He read 9 new books this year, so he's increased his goal next year to make up for the one he missed. He successfully changed the oil in both our vehicles, he read the Book of Mormon, and he joined the Duke Journal of Constitutional Law and Public Policy, which he is thoroughly enjoying.

Valerie:

I did not referee at the state championships this year (it was an overwhelming logistical nightmare, with a breastfeeding baby at the time, so I gave that one up). I read more than 5 new books this year. I successfully posted a photography blog each month this year. I read the Book of Mormon and taught Joel the alphabet. I also won NaNoWriMo and Camp NaNo in the summer, which was awesome.

Family:

We went on two family camping trips this year, as well as our trip to Washington D.C. We totally failed on making handmade blankets. :( We took Joel and Xander to two different zoos. We went on a date every week this year. We did attend the temple three times each, though one of those visits a piece were solo trips.

And now, for our 2017 goals!

Yes, it's blue. It was the only posterboard I could find at the time.

This is our first year including the children on our poster. We did talk to Joel about his goals, as far as he understands, but Xander's is definitely something we've chosen for him. It will be fun to include them more in this process as they get older. Presenting our goals:

James:
-Get a job for after school
-Lose 20 pounds
-Camp NaNoWriMo
-Read 11 new books (at least 3 non-fiction)
-Create a handmade item to donate to charity
-Daily scripture study of at least five minutes (He has committed to tracking this elsewhere.)

Joel:
-Read a book
-Potty train

Xander:
-Learn the alphabet

Valerie:
-Complete "The Seventh Guardian"
-Lose 20lbs
-Complete the 100 Poomsae Challenge
-Read the New Testament
-Win NaNoWriMo
-Complete a 52-week photography challenge
-Read 6 new books

Family:
-Create a budget
-Family camping trip
-Attend the temple 5 times
-Walk Shadow twice weekly
-Go on a date each week
-Practice taekwondo at home 2 hours per week


Obviously we have some repeats. Some of our goals, like attending the temple and going on dates, are so important for us to continue and hold ourselves accountable for. Some of our goals come from things we find ourselves slacking on, like walking our dog and losing weight. And some of our goals are true aspirations that we hope to achieve in the coming year.

For me personally, I'd consider my "big" goal of the year to be finishing my book. It's been a long time coming. If you look through our posters of yester-years, you'll see that it's been a goal of mine for a long time. Between new motherhood and post-partum depression, my progress on the book has been wretched, up until the past six months or so. But I am now ready and committed to finishing "The Seventh Guardian." I've set the goal with Sam, my co-author, to finish the first draft by summer. It's going to take a lot of my time and energy over the next few months, and I am excited for the challenge.

Camp NaNoWriMo

If you haven't ever heard of it, National Novel Writing Month (aka NaNoWriMo) takes place each November. Aspiring novelists all over the world embark on an epic quest to pen 50,000 words in 30 days. Camp NaNoWriMo is a less formal version that takes place during the summer, this year in July. I am excited to participate!

I have done NaNoWriMo as well as the Camp version many times in the past. (Every year from 2006-2013!) In fact, portions of both my published novels were composed as NaNo projects. I love the motivation and support that NaNoWriMo provides. There's an incredible energy to it.

The past couple of years I have skipped NaNoWriMo, because I had a couple of babies. :P Seriously, though, I never imagined, before having kids, how much it would affect my writing.

A) Raising little boys takes up a lot of time and energy. During my formerly-most productive times of day, I now either have little boys to care for, or I'm exhausted from caring for said kidlets.
B) Post-partum depression seriously affects my creative energy.

I read an article a few months ago by an author who declared that sometimes mom-writers mistake writer's block for what is really PPD. This article was a real turning point for me. Previously, I have felt really guilty and/or frustrated with myself when I have struggled to work on my books. I mean, writing novels is supposed to be fun, right? But while battling depression, doing anything creative feels a lot like pulling teeth.

It's hard because I know a number of people have been waiting for mine and Sam's third book for a long time. I get asked periodically when the trilogy will be completed. It's hard to admit to my readers, whom I want so desperately to please, that I simply haven't written anything in months. That I haven't wanted to write. That I haven't really been able to write.

Happily, the fog of depression is beginning to lift. This happened about a year after Joel was born, so I'm excited to been feeling a bit more like myself only 8 months after Xander's birth. I still struggle some days, but I actually feel like I can commit to Camp NaNoWriMo this time around.

Camp begins on July 1st. My goal is to write 30,000 words. Or more! Since I have already 33k written in Buk Tri ("book three" of our Seventh Empire series), this should put me around one-third complete, if the third book is similar in length to the other two. And hopefully it will get me back into the habit of writing consistently, so that we can get this thing done! Wish me luck!

Bring on 2016

We are a little late this year with our traditional New Year's poster. What with our trip to Utah and then getting settled back in afterward, we waited until tonight's FHE to assemble our goals for the year.

Each year, James and I set individual goals, and we set goals for our family. We require our goals to be quantifiable--they have to be things that we can check off. We also try to create a mixture of mental, physical, and spiritual goals.

First, let's review the past year. Unfortunately, I threw out our 2015 poster before remembering to photograph it with the accomplishments checked off. But here's the photo from the beginning of our year:

We were about halfsies on our goals this year. James started law school, earned his 3rd Dan, and read 6 out of his intended 10 new books. As a family, we moved to Durham and went on a family camping trip. James and I went on a date every week, and met our temple attendance goal. As for me, I earned my 4th Dan, read 5 new books (+started a sixth) and learned to make sushi (simple rolls, at least). Plus had a baby!!

This year, I feel like our goals (mine, at least) are a bit more modest, and at the same time, a bit more realistic. I present our 2016 poster:

For James:

• Obtain a 1L job (aka legal internship this summer)
• Obtain a 2L job (for next summer)
• Read 10 new books
• Change oil in car
• Read the Book of Mormon
• Join a legal journal

For Valerie:

• Referee at the NC State Championships
• Read 5 new books
• Create a photography portfolio, utilizing monthly blog posts
• Read the Book of Mormon
• Teach Joel the alphabet
• Win NaNoWriMo (aka write 50,000 words)

For our family:

• Family camping trip
• Washington D.C. trip 
• Donate 4 handmade blankets to a charity
• Take Joel & Xander to the zoo
• Go on a date every week
•  Attend the temple at least thrice

It promises to be an interesting year! Candidly, the main focus of my life right now is my children. Mothering is a full-time job for me, so anything else I get done on the side is a major accomplishment. Still, I look forward to 2016. I can't wait to see what it offers us.

New Year's at The Holley House

Happy New Year from our Holley House!

For the last several years (since...2010, I think?) I have created a New Year's poster filled with goals and aspirations for the year. My roommate of the time was the one who started it, but it's been something I've really enjoyed, so I've created my own posters every year since. The poster-project has a couple of rules:

1. The goals must be achievable within the calendar year.
2. The goals must be measurable. (Nothing vague.)

Last year, James and I created a poster together, and I rather liked how it turned out, though several of our goals fell by the wayside (like every year). We put James's goals on one side, mine on the other, and "family" goals in the middle. You'll see that we also added one "Surprise!" that had been intended for the following year. Behold:

New Year's goals from 2013

James's Goals:
-Earn 2nd Dan (check)
-Receive sport poomsae certification
-Attend non-classical concert (check)

-Nail a 540 ° kick

-Compete at Nationals in sport poomsae (check)

-Get a 4.0 semester (check)

Valerie's Goals:

-Two Prelims (check and check)

-Referee at Nationals (check)

-Learn a Back Walkover

-Rock Concert (half check...does the Piano Guys count?)

-Write "The Seventh Guardian" (sigh...in progress)

-Learn Spanish

Family Goals:

-Get Married! (check)

-Get pregnant (check)

-Caribbean cruise (check)

-Buy a house (check...though not one of the original goals!)

-Go to Broadway (check)

-Compete on Demo Team at Nationals (check)

-Go on a date every week (complete with 52 tick marks...each one: check!)

-Attend the temple at least once a month (check x12)

We feel pretty good about our family goals! As for the individual goals, there are things that were out of our control (James's sport poomsae certification, for instance. We were planning to attend the sport poomsae training at Nationals...which ended up not being provided. Lame sauce.) Some things (like my back walkover) just got neglected. But overall, it was a busy and productive year for us.

As we approached making our poster for 2014, we wanted to select goals that meet the rules (achievablility and measurability), that seem realistic for us, but which will still challenge us physically, mentally, and spiritually. Presenting, the Holley family goals for 2014:

James's Goals:
-Graduate from BYU magna cum laude
-Read 10 new books (complete with 10 tick marks)
-Get down to 175lbs
-Learn how to do a popup
-Teach Baby J at least one ASL sign
-Get at least a 168 on the LSAT

Valerie's Goals
-Referee at Nationals
-B-2 certification
-Write "The Seventh Guardian"
-Return to pre-baby weight
-Compete at USG (Utah Summer Games)
-Learn to do a Back Walkover

Family Goals
-Have a baby (yes, we know it's inevitable at this point)
-Family Camping Trip (we define this as a trip including both Baby J and Shadow)
-Start preparing for Black Belt Testing
-Take Baby J to the Zoo
-Plant a fruit tree
-Go on a date every week (complete with 52 tick marks)
-Go to the temple at least once a month, with the additional goal of at least one of these trips being to the Brigham City Temple.


2014 is going to be a big year for us! Of course, the biggest event is the upcoming birth of our firstborn, for which we could not be more excited. We'll have to see how all our goals balance out with having a baby. Still, we feel that all of these goals are doable in the coming year. And we are excited by the challenge! Bring it on 2014!

Life of Late

Some of the things that have been occupying the time of the Holley family lately:

-I attended the inaugural Salt Lake Comic Con with my co-author Sam Stubbs, where we occupied a booth for three days promoting our books. It was awesome!

-James is back in school at BYU, enjoying some of his classes (being bored by others). While the transition was difficult (I was soooooooo spoiled having him to myself for two months this summer) its been good because....

-I've started actively writing my third book again. Seeing as how Book Two is being released in November (two years, four months after the release of the first book) I am eager to complete the trilogy in a timely manner.

-James and I are both facing a slight change in our schedules at the studio. This past week, I took on a new class: coaching the school demo team. I'm eager for the new challenge. Starting in a week and a half, James will also be taking on a new class, his first "curriculum" class (he's been teaching Weapons for some time, and working as an assistant instructor in several other classes). Even though I will be there as his assistant, it's exciting, for me at least, to see James really growing into his own as an instructor.

-We've started preparing for Halloween. More on this once we actually start decorating and whatnot--which cannot come soon enough, as far as I'm concerned.

-Oh yeah, it was my birthday a few weeks ago. It was lovely. My birthday was on Sunday, so on Saturday, we went on a double-date with our friends the Pages, on Sunday my mother made birthday dinner, on Monday we went out to dinner and I got my first present from James, a printer, and on Tuesday, I got my second present, a couples massage, which was heaven. I felt very spoiled.

-We have been thoroughly enjoying our Shadow puppy. He is darling. We've had a few mishaps, but pretty minor stuff, considering that he's 6 months old and new to our family. He and I go on walks when James is at school, and he is the most curious creature I think I have ever encountered.

That's the bulk of it. We stay busy teaching and learning at the studio, plus school for James and writing for me. That and enjoying one anothers company. And Shadow's company. :)

A New Era

No, I am not writing about a Church magazine.

I am writing about a major shift in my life--though to anybody else, it probably won't seem like a very big change.

Today is my last day working as the Program Director at Beyond Sports Taekwondo. Friends, don't be alarmed. I will still be teaching and attending at the studio. But I have handed over all my office duties, effective today.

It's been a decision long in coming, and not an easy one to make. I love the studio, and I hope they will continue to thrive without me in the office. However, there are hopefully to going to be other, really major changes in my life in the near-ish future, which I am planning and preparing for now.

The biggest concern right now is my writing. I have had very clear inspiration that I am supposed to write, and I intend to follow those directions. Dropping 10+ hours a week of work allows me the time I need to write my third book before the really major changes come along.

So, Taekwondo friends, this means I'm no longer your touchstone for all things studio-related. All friends, this means if I seem a little absent-minded occasionally, it's probably because I'm writing furiously in my head. I am hopeful that this will be a positive change. Regardless, I know that it's the right thing for me!

Music, Food, Books, Writing, and Thoughts

I've been wanting to write a blog for several days now, but I've been struggling with a lack of anything profound to say. So welcome to a rambling blog about a bunch of random (and mostly unimportant) things that have been on my mind.

1. Music

I have a complete obsession with The Piano Guys. I've been following them pretty much since they got started two years ago, and I was a huge fan of Jon Schmidt long before that. Their music inspires me. Their music unfailingly makes me happy. I really enjoyed their newest video, a cover of "Home" by Phillip Phillips--a song that I insisted go on our wedding playlist, even when James protested that it didn't really have anything to do with a wedding. But I won that one, mostly because we both like the song so much. And even though I don't prefer TPG's version over the original, I like it equally well for different reasons.


2. Food

I get bored with food easily. Eating the same things over and over again without alteration makes me crazy, and if I don't get something different, I feel utterly lackluster. The problem is that is often ends up with us eating out more often, because that satisfies my need for variety, however, it creates the problem of us eating out too much.

In an effort to resolve the issue, I've started seeking more creative meals to make at home. Nothing that I haven't made before, I just have to think about it a little more. Recent efforts have included homemade pizza, salmon & asparagus, and just last night, chicken salad on croissants. All have turned out well, satisfied my cravings, and made my husband happy. :)

3. Books

I recently read "Bitterblue" by Kristin Cashore, which is the sequel to a novel called "Graceling" that I read sometime last year.

I really enjoyed the first book, and while I found "Bitterblue" to be engaging, it was also really messed up. At the same time that I picked up "Bitterblue" from the library, I also got the prequel, "Fire." James asked me last night if I'll be starting to read it, and I replied that maybe I'll pick it up again another time, but after the psychological nastiness of "Bitterblue", I'm a little iffy about another book in this series. At least for the time being.

On the day before Mother's Day, James took me to Deseret Book. I picked up "Choosing Motherhood" at random, and could not put it down--even after taking it home!.

I am in love with this book. It's a selection of stories by women (mostly from Yale) who all had education and successful careers, but who each, through different circumstances and series of events, chose full-time motherhood instead.

I love the idea of choice. None of these women felt like they had to be stay-at-home moms. None of these women caved into pressure from family or church leaders (indeed, most of them felt the opposite sort of pressure from their coworkers and colleagues). Each of them sacrificed their own personal goals and ambitions for their children--and none of them regretted that choice.

I strongly identify with these women. Not because I have any difficulty with the idea of becoming a mother; on the contrary, it's something that I am anticipating with great excitement and eagerness. No, I identify with the choice. I desperately crave our children. But having them, staying at home with them, will mean the sacrifice of other things that I greatly enjoy and value. I have a full and rich life, I have talents with great scope, I have prospects and ambitions. I want to be an acclaimed author. I want to become an international referee in Taekwondo. I want to serve as an adoption advocate the way I have in the past. There are many other things which I hope to accomplish in my life. And the thing is, I know that if it is God's will, I will accomplish those things. But there is a time and a place. And when my children are in my home, my place is with them. My time is for them. I choose to give my life--my time, my talents, my education, everything the Lord has blessed me with--to those precious souls He entrusts to me.

My sister-in-law Shaylee blogged (raved might be a better word) about this book, "The Gift of Giving Life" and so, having sufficiently piqued my interest, I decided to pick up a copy. I'm still only about a third of the way through it, but I'm finding a lot of things that I really enjoy and appreciate about this volume.

There is great emphasis placed on natural childbirth, though I notice the authors are careful to caveat with the notion that any birth experience can be a spiritual one. It's been interesting for me, because I have always believed strongly in natural childbirth (though I will probably always deliver in a hospital. Both James and I are of the "just-in-case" mentality) and I really appreciate feeling like I'm not a totally backwards nut for not wanting drugs and interference when I give birth. I do have to say (don't take it personally, Shaylee!) that some of the ideas presented in "The Gift of Giving Life" are a little weird for me to digest (blessingways? I can't quite get my head around that one) but overall, I'm really enjoying the book, especially the spiritual and scriptural connections that I've been making.

4. Writing

I should actually call it Publishing, because I haven't really been doing a lot of writing lately, but I have been doing a lot of detail-follow-up nonsense with regards to the publication of my second book, The Scourge of Narak. I received the almost-final draft of the cover art a couple of days ago, and I'm really excited--I'm looking forward to sharing it soon! I've also been seeing drafts of the new maps, which is nearly as exciting as the cover art. There is just something special about seeing artwork somebody else has created based off ideas from my head.



I guess that's all for now. I will probably have some big-ish news next week, but in the meantime, live life to the fullest, and have a great day. :)