Goal Set 2019

Well we are officially into our first week of 2019, but I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t put any thoughts into new years goals. This year I wanted to keep it somewhat open ended and rather give myself room to explore where I want to be able to grow in 2019.  Below are some areas I am working on this year!
1) Make our house our Home
2) Get educated
3) Practice creative consistency
4) Improve my self care activities
5) Keep focus on my wellness journey

6) Quality time for the relationships that really matter in my life

And there you have it – and yes that is the easy part.

When I used to have a gym membership, I remember the first 3 weeks of January it was so packed I’d have to wait for a cardio machine!  But by February 1st, we were back to the regular gym crowd and having several treadmills always available to choose from.

It’s simple to write down the goals you want to work towards but actually reaching the goals is the hard part.  From my own experience, I know that if you really want to achieve something, you have to “be ready” to (aka your mind has to “be ready”). And by that I mean, put in the time and effort, do the hard things and be flexible on the path.

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So here are some tips to help you strive for progress while working towards your new year goals:
1️⃣ Use a Habit Tracker: a great way to mark that tiny step you took towards your goal is by tracking it. Checking a checkbox can be very satisfying and a great motivator for continued progress.
2️⃣ Set a Challenge for 30 Days: It could be that you want do 100 squats a day, cut out refined sugar or drink 8 glasses of water – try doing it for 30 days. Better yet start your 30 day challenge in February or March. It greatly reduces the stress around resolutions failing at the beginning of the year and also lets you try out something without a major commitment.
3️⃣ Reward yourself: I think this is the most important one.  Try setting mini milestones and associated rewards when you reach them.  It might be getting your nails done or buying new running new gear.  Celebrating even the tiniest of wins is great for productivity and performance.  Your brain will start to link pleasure with reaching a goal and continue to strive for that in the future.

Reflecting on 2018

Happy New Year!
It’s been an intense year for me.  And I didn’t want to end it without doing a little review. So here goes…!  (PS: I got the template of questions from here)

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What was the single best thing that happened this past year?

Finally, starting up on a new project, doing the work that I longed to do and knew I was 200% capable has been very invigorating.  Although it wasn’t easy and it was 3 years of putting my goals aside.  Just a reminder to myself.  Success doesn’t happen over night.  There was a lot of work involved. There was a lot of leaning on my support system. There was a lot of tears and stress. But at the same time I saw a strength in me that I hadn’t seen in a year.  I was yearning for something better and doing all the right work to get it.  But something inside of me told me that a positive attitude and optimistic mindset coupled with that hard work – would get me where I needed to be   All the success stories I read, positive quotes I wrote down, self reflection, optimistic thinking, blood, sweat and tears – it all worked together to get me the jump I needed.

What was the single most challenging thing that happened?

Taking care of E while on Mat Leave.  Everything was a challenge, feeding, napping, that she crawled early so I was always having to watch her all.the.time, the fact that she had a different attention span so even going to the library program was hard.  What I’ve learned about her this year is that she is determined, she knows what she wants and she’ll do whatever necessary to get what she wants.

What was an unexpected joy this past year?

Miss S’s growth and development – as our first born child, as a big sister, as a responsible member of this family. It was not something I was expecting but now I understand what parents mean when they say it’s such joy to see their children grow!

What was an unexpected obstacle?

“corporate hierarchy”

Pick three words to describe this past year.

Balance
Challenge
Strength

Pick three words your partner would use to describe your year—don’t ask them; guess based on how you think your spouse sees you.

Perseverance
Motherhood
Amazing

Pick three words your partner would use to describe their year—again, without asking.

Challenging
Fulfilling
Father

What were the best books you read this year?

Light is the New Black is hands down the most powerful book I’ve read in my adulthood.  On that note: I’ve created a list of books to read in 2019 (can’t wait to dig in)!

Who were your most valuable relationships with?

My Family
My Husband
My Daughters

What was your biggest personal change from January to December of this past year?

Getting back to fitness
Returning to work

In what way(s) did you grow emotionally?

I grew out of trying to please everyone for the sake of everyone else’s happiness.  Now I am doing what makes me comfortable to make sure I am the best mom/wife I can be.

In what way(s) did you grow spiritually?

After reading Light is the New Black I knew that there is help all around me and everything happens for a good reason and in good time. I leaned to pay more attention to my intuition and to the signs from the universe.

In what way(s) did you grow physically?

Found my fitness inspiration again

In what way(s) did you grow in your relationships with others?

The Misters and my relationship is transitioning from “surviving parent mode” back to a balance between parenting and love relationship.

What was the most enjoyable part of your work (both professionally and at home)?

Being creative, writing docs, interacting with people and learning new things everyday
Being a mom is my greatest joy and my greatest challenge

What was the most challenging part of your work (both professionally and at home)?

Working with new people
Not being considered for more growth, well more than what was given to me
(…and that’s OK more for me to work on so I can prove people wrong!)
Being a mom, is probably the most unrewarding work

What was your single biggest time waster in your life this past year?

My phone

What was the best way you used your time this past year?

My commute.  I used it for reading, for writing, editing photos, for listening to podcasts/music, to learn / get education, chatting with the Mister, planning or just taking a nap!

What was biggest thing you learned this past year?

My mind is incredibly strong and what I/You think is what I/You become

Create a phrase or statement that describes this past year for you.

“Just keep moving”.  Whether is the last km of a run, getting something completed before needing to catch my train, drinking an extra glass of water,  being a little more patient … You’ve got to just keep moving.

Christmas Movies to Watch (when the kids are in bed)

I am really not a RomCom kinda of girl.  I used to be all about he scary movies – but then I became an adult and couldn’t take them any more lol.  Thankfully the Hubz and I have the same taste in movies which is either sci-fi, political drama or unbelievably inappropriate comedy.  And thats what this list is about.  These movies are the perfect thing to watch when you need to add an extra shot (or 3) of Baileys to your hot coco.  Or who am I kidding, maybe it’s straight up whiskey LOL.  They are movies to watch when you magically go the kids to bed (at the same time).  When you want to watch something light but still partake in the Christmas feels.  This list is for you (and for me because… let’s be real).  So whip up a batch of these healthy-ish cookies and turn on your movie streaming network of choice :)

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3 EASY Festive (Non) Baking Ideas + Our Christmas Decor

It’s that time of year where all I want to do is eat all of the sweet treats and go to all the potlucks.  One day I would love the idea of being one of those mom’s that adores baking and cooking up a storm…buuuttt I already know that I am DEFINITELY one of those women who eats EVERYTHING on the dessert table so I really have to keep my sweet treat making in check!  Aaaannnd I am always nervous I’ll mess up the recipe so I love the idea of #Bakinghacks :)

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Stockings | Evergreen Garland | Floral Clip Ornaments

I do have some lunch and dinners planned with friends and family before Christmas, so I figured it would be a great option for me to flex my creative (non) baking muscle without worrying that I’ll eat everything on my own.  I found some awesome options for faux-baking/pre-made cookie decorating LOL.

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Fairy Lights | Garland | Frame

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Pom Pom Garland

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Elf on the Shelf

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Floating Shelf | Mini Wicker Baskets (Similar) | Frames | Mason Jar

Ok so on to the no-bake-treats and cookie decorating ideas.  I saw these and thought I would love to add a Christmas touch to our beloved peanut butter cookies.  We literally make these cookies all year round.  They are more or less guilt free and have no white sugar or flour. Just dip them in some melted dark chocolate and sprinkle some red, white and green sprinkles and they are a perfect holiday treat.

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The Hubz loves turtles so these would be for him (I am not a fan of caramel) these are super easy and take literally 10 minutes.  I can’t believe I’ve never made them before.  I am just not sure if I should used salted or unsalted pretzels?

Lastly I have to at least attempt to make these DIY thin mints.  I love girl guide cookies and being able to make these at Christmas (or even all year round would be brilliant).

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Check out our christmas decorations from last year!

Our Halloween 2017

Given that we are already a week into November – I am totally over due for sharing our halloween shenanigans.  There is waaayyy too much sass and last minuting in this house for a coordinated family costume idea but the fact that we ALL got into the spirit was good enough for me.

Both of my camera batteries were dead so I was only able to get a few quick shots of our costume’s with the Mister’s camera phone (which was incredibly fuzzy for some reason).

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Fidget Spinner Pops Dr. Fairy Lil Kaduu & *Takes a deep breath* Daenerys Stormborn of the House Targaryen, First of Her Name, the Unburnt, Queen of the Andals and the First Men, Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, Breaker of Chains, The Mother of Dragons

I did however get some action shots of our pumpkin carving.  It’s the hubz chance to get creative but this year we let Miss S choose the pumpkin face design.

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Dear tomato “plant”

I am sad to report that my tomato plant called it quits over the weekend.  I came home on Saturday afternoon to see that the plant stalks had fallen over.  To be honest I knew that maybe the plant was not doing so well as it started looking more like weeds than the large leaves I was hoping to see.

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I didn’t bother stalking it as the instructions didn’t say to but I do regret not moving it to a larger pot and updating the soil.  I’ll definitely needed some more love and planning.  And I probably should’ve have watered it more often #BadPlantMom

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I’ve definitely picked up a few tricks for next year, such as spacing the seeds, using more than one planter, starting from a seedling and maybe trying a few varieties.

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My gardening goals are on hold until next year – time to start pinning and planning for next spring!