18 Things in 2018

11th January 2018 Uncategorised

I promise this is the last ‘new years’ post. As I mentioned in both my 2018 blogging goals post and my 2018 book challenge, I’m not one for resolutions. I know, I know. I seem to be doing EVERYTHING except New Years resolutions, but I was tagged by Lucy over at Real Mum Review in her 18 things in 2018 post and I loved the idea. It’s just 18 things that you hope to achieve in 2018, so as I’d not really done anything personal yet I thought I would give it a go. If nothing more, it will be nice to look back on this in December and see how I got on.

BE LESS WASTEFUL

This is one I already mentioned elsewhere so it needed to start of this list really didn’t it. How much waste we seem to generate is getting out of hand so this is all about being more mindful. Choosing items with less packaging, less airmiles and generally making sure we upcycle and reuse anything we can.

FINISH MY POST GRADUATE

I started my post-grad in photography almost a year ago now but haven’t gotten past the second module (slapped wrists!). Therefore although I have 3 years in which to complete it in, I want to get it done by the end of this year. Not only to get it out of the way, but also I really want to learn what’s included in the course! Therefore, I am going to set aside one evening a week to looking through the module and plan my actions etc. Which brings me on nicely to number 4:

LEARN SOMETHING NEW

I love learning new skills and particularly love anything creative. Therefore I’d like to take a few little classes. Something along the lines of calligraphy, or crochet, or I even have a pyrography kit at home (as you do) and therfore would love to learn how to use it. This leads me perfectly onto:

KNIT MORE AND GENERALLY BE MORE CREATIVE

I miss knitting and sewing as I just don’t seem to have the time to do it anymore. Therefore I really want to spend more time knitting and generally being more creative. I have so many patterns I want to get to, time to take a little time to do exactly that. Which brings me onto:

PLAN AHEAD

This is not only about planning for work, but also planning in general. For example food planning to keep costs down but also it seems like all I do at the moment is either look after the kids or work. Therefore, I need to plan my time more effectively to free up some time doing the things I love. That not only includes all things craft as already mentioned, but also to……

READ EVERY DAY

As I already mentioned in my book challenge, I love reading. Therefore 2018 WILL be the year I start reading more. To help with this not only will I be doing my 2018 book challenge, but I will also be reading every day. Some days that may only be a single chapter at the end of the day, but I’m going to be working on the basis that every little helps!

MAKE A BUDGET AND STICK TO IT

This have changed dramatically in the past 12 months. One of the things being I have gone from a very well paid corporate job, to being self employed. I do have a little part time PAYE job just to have a little guarenteed income each month, but on a whole it’s down to me. That means that financially that things are a lot tighter than they were previously. Therefore, one of the main aspects of my planning will be to make a budget and work hard to make sure we stick to it. That may mean getting creative with days out and meal plans!

LOSE WEIGHT

Now, bare with me while I get a little cliche. I know loosing weight is always top of the resolution list, but at the end of the day I do really want to start losing weight this year. My baby is not 18 months old and I’m still a good 5 stone overweight. Not only is this not good for me, but it’s not the example I want to set my kids. I want to keep up with them and play on their level without my weight being a factor. Do I want to loose it all and be a size zero. No, of course not. What I want to do is be healthy.

DRINK MORE WATER

To help me on the way to being more healthy, I want to drink more water. I am for at least 1.5 litres of actual water a day as the amount of (decaf) tea and coffee I drink, I’m sure that will more than make up for the other half!

MOVE MORE

What else will help is to generally move more. I’m one of those people who can eat like an angel, but if I don’t get moving then it won’t actually make much difference. Therefore I want to get out and about more and generally start moving. I can’t do anything high impact until an appointment in February when I hear back about a potential operation, but I have no doubt there is plenty that I can do in the meantime. No more excuses!

MEAT FREE MONDAY

Another thing I want to do both for health and ethical purposes is to have one day a week where we don’t eat meat. I have read so many benefits to going meat free, even if it is only one day just to give your body a break if nothing else so that is what I aim to do.

HAVE A DATE DAY ONE DAY A WEEK

This isn’t nessessarily outside of the home as we have neither the time, the funds nor the babysitters for that. However, what we can do is commit that one evening a week we will just spend time together. That means putting down the tech and doing something we enjoy like watching a moving, playing a board game or even just sitting listening to music while having a drink. The point is just to take time to reconnect as a couple and make sure each other knows they are appreciated and loved.

BE PRESENT MORE

Taking that on step further to the whole family, I want to be more present. As a blogger I do a lot of work on my phone etc. That means that it’s easy to take a quick peek which then turns into 20 mins on a regular basis. Therefore this year I want to be more aware of this and make sure I remain present when with my family.

TAKE DAY TRIPS

As a family we love to get out and about. There’s nothing better than being outside (if the weather permits it!). Therefore, that’s what we want to do more of this year. Basically get outside and explore by taking more day trips. We’re National Trust members but didn’t visit a wide variety of places last year, though those we did visit we did a lot. This year though I want to look at variety!

DO MORE CRAFTS WITH THE KIDS

Not only do I want to get more crafty but I want to get more crafy with the kids too. The Bear loves anything creative and Henry is finally at a stage where he won’t destroy everything on sight, so with a little care we can start doing more. His attention obviously isn’t at the same stage as hers – both because of his age and his personality – but there is lots that we will be able to do.

VISIT FAMILY

We have family up and down the country and now that Henry has hit 18 months, it’s a lot more accessible to us. Therefore this year we want to get out and visit people more. Rather than expecting people to come to us. While we’re there, of course there will be plenty of exploring to do.

INVEST IN NEW MAKE UP

This is a bit of a random one but I have the same make up that I used back in uni. And let’s just say that I graduated a LONG time ago, like over 10 years ago. Therefore I want to sort through the make up I have and chuck most of it away. Especially as I obviously don’t use it! I would then like just a few choice pieces. I don’t wear it often, therefore I really don’t need a lot.

LISTEN TO MUSIC MORE

Last one…..I don’t listen to music anywhere near enough. My default is to put on TV as background noise and entertainment. Therefore in 2018, I want to make more of an effort to listen to music. Oh, and to also start listening to audiobooks and podcasts. There’s a whole entertainment world out there outside of the TV just waiting to be discovered!

That’s it. For someone who doesn’t believe in resolutions, I seem to have managed to find myself quite a few goals instead!