Pura Vida

After what ended up being a stressful year, we've survived the holidays, made it through the January blahs, and I took a wonderfully relaxing vacation last week.

Through the holidays and then my birthday, I struggled when people asked me what I would like for gifts.  I've realized that I don't want things anymore.  Not in the sense that I'll throw out everything I have, but that I'm a good place in life.  I have everything I need, the things that I do buy don't necessarily make my life better.  The things I want now are things with meaning, things that are thoughful, things that show people care and are thinking of me. (Failing that - things I can eat and drink).  What I really want is peace, tranquillity, and happiness, and good feelings.

We just returned from Costa Rica, and they have a phrase there that I discovered perfectly sums up what I want.  PURA VIDA.  Pura Vida literally means "Pure Life" but it is used as a greeting, a farewell, and as an answer. It means life is good, everything is great.  A tour guide there told me it is the Costa Rican version of Hakkunah Mattatah.  I want to feel that sentiment every day.

So that is my goal for this year - to embrace that idea and make that the way I live my life. (Notice I set Birthday goals, not New Year resolutions?  Way less preassure that way.)

So how am I going to do ge there?  I have a few ideas, but this is definately not a final list.

• I'm going to embrace Yoga as an outlet for relaxation and meditation
• I'm going to eat more vegetables, cook at home more, and minimize junk and fried food.  (I'm considering a challenge to see if I can go one year without a french fry, but I'm not totally sold on that yet.)
• I'm going to be more considerate of where I spend my money, and focus on only buying high quality products that I either absolutely love, will make my life better, or will last a long time
• I'm going to spend as much time with my puppy as I can, and see what she has to teach me.
• I'm going to make a consious effort to drink more wine with people over good conversation on hot summer nights.
• I'm going to stop caring that my home doesn't look like an interior designer smiled at it, and instead appreciate that it is a reflection myself, my husband, our travels, and our life together.

Cheers to a happy 2014 everyone!