Today is my birthday, friends, and that means it’s the day of reckoning for accomplishing the 25 goals I wanted to accomplish before I turned 25.

1) make Hands Occupied (HO) more personal (starting with this list!)

2) work with more innovative craft materials

3) find a Chicago-based doctor

 4) loose weight & eat healthier in general

5) stop showering daily

6) install mobile & iPad themes on HO; improve its menu structure

7) grow a successful vegetable garden

8 ) make more large-scale projects

9) learn to take better photographs for Hands Occupied

10)learn to take even better photographs for HO/take a photography class

11) try to exercise 3 times a week

12) get a logo for Hands Occupied

13) finish library school

14) start learning Spanish

15) learn woodworking basics

16) start sewing clothes, not just costumes

17) read more for relaxation

18) improve posture

19) find a yoga class and regularly attend

20) get sponsors for HO

21) start getting & staying a month ahead with HO

22) submit more features to other blogs & feature other bloggers more

23) develop a HO email newsletter

24) stop biting nails!

25) make more Chicago friends

Some of the goals I have the most success with, despite my personal skepticism about being able to accomplish them, are weight loss, stopping nail biting, exercising, and growing a vegetable garden. As I write this, I’ve lost almost 20 pounds since December. Losing weight is one of those things that I have tried here and there, but really wasn’t able to create significant success with until recently. Over the years, I’ve tried veganism, avoiding carbs, and a few other things. The Weight Watchers system has been working really well to this point. The next step of the process will be losing the last couple pounds I’d like to loose, and then I’ll have to learn how to maintain it.

Another goal I finally had to get to the point of extreme frustration with was nail biting. As I’ve said in past posts, I tried painting my nails every day, using super glue as a top coat, and I even paid to get fake nails put on. None of those really worked for me, until recently. The acrylic nails started popping off suddenly just 8 days after I got them put on, so I finally made the conscious choice to keep my hands out of my mouth. I still paint my nails every day, but whenever I feel the urge to put my hands in my mouth, I do something else. I flick my nails, and if the urge persists, I ball my hands into a fist. When I hit a wall with trying to stop biting my nails, I read the book The Power of Habit of Chharles Duhigg. There’s a section of the book explicitly about nail biting, and transferring the habit into another behavior is the best way to change it. It’s working for me so far, knock on wood! The last successful goal I’d like to share before resuming birthday fun is my successful vegetable garden – it really is thriving! I’m still pretty amazed at what I’ve been able to accomplish in my 24th year.