2017 Resolutions

I debated doing these this year because last year was one of those years where things happened that caused my goals to fall by the wayside. I decided to go more general and achievable just to motivate me. I want to feel more in control of my life this year.

1. HOUSEHOLD

a. Create a budget, or at the very least a general plan for where our money is going. I’m cautiously optimistic about this year, but I don’t want caught out by surprises like last year.

b. Try to cook something new from scratch each month. I want to expand our selection and find some easy and inexpensive meal options.

c. Work on organizing the house, particularly the spare room and cupboard under the stairs. Those are currently our places to shove things out of the way, and it’s getting to me.

d. Display the decorations we have where they can be seen. We’ve got a fair amount of art work, and it’s not really out anywhere. Seems like a waste

e. Complete at least 3 projects around the house. There are lots of possibilities, including wall mounting the TV, boarding more of the loft floor, making kitchen curtains, painting, putting up shelves, adding a medicine cabinet, and changing the upstairs sink to a single tap. None of these are pressing matters, but they would make a difference.

f. Go through my media, use it, and decide what to do with it. This includes books, DVDs, CDs, and video games. Not going to have set amounts, but I want to make some progress.

g. Organize my clothing. It’s been rather haphazard for a while. I’ve got drawers and hanging space that I just need to utilize.

2. CRAFTS

a. Complete at least 4 of the kits I currently own. I have loads of them, including cross stitch, sewing, and knitting (like the never-ending Christmas jumper). Some are really fast, and others will take more time.

b. Use some of my stash to make something from a pattern or tutorial. I’ve got loads of yarn, fabric, wool roving, embroidery floss, and assorted odds and ends. And I have a ton of ideas on Pinterest and in books to inspire me.

c. Design a crafting pattern of some sort. Probably cross stitch, knitting, sewing, or needle felting.

d. Craft at least one gift. This can be part of achieving one of the above goals.

e. Try at least one new craft. I’m looking into doing a silver clay workshop. It’s a concept that really interests me.

3. PHOTOGRAPHY

a. Just take pictures and have fun with it.

b. Install and use Lightroom and Photoshop on my current computer.

4. WRITING

a. Develop one of the writing ideas I’ve had floating around. It could be a novel, picture book, or comic. I just want to make progress to the point where I feel confident showing it to someone.

b. Write some blog posts. I’m thinking maybe posting at least a couple times a month for now.

5. FUN AND SELF CARE

a. Complete an adult jigsaw puzzle. I’ve got a difficult puzzle in progress in the spare room. It’s one of those Lost in a Jigsaw puzzles. I’m thinking of cheating a bit by looking at the solution.

b. Complete at least one dot to dot, coloring page, or Sudoku a month. I’ll probably end up doing more, but I don’t want to feel forced.

c. Plan some type of exercise. I know it’s good for my health and mood, so I need to make it happen.

d. Finish my college photo album. It’s been hanging over my head for far too long.

6. TRAVEL

a. Plan a family holiday of some type. We’ve got a few places in mind. They might not all be new for me, but they’d be great experiences.

b. Go on a short break. I’d like that to be somewhere new for me.

7. DEAR D

a. Do some more crafts with her. She’s got some kits, and I’ve got supplies. We’ve had some successes last year, so I want to keep it going.

b. Do more cooking with her. It’s a great skill to encourage independence.

c. Encourage her to help more around the house. Again, life skills are important. (And I wouldn’t mind having less to do myself.)

d. Primary school admissions. The biggest decision is if we keep her in the private school I’m working at or move her to a state school. There are benefits and drawbacks for each.

e. Get her to write her name independently. We’re working on it, and I’m pretty sure it will happen this year without much trouble.

8. S AND I

a. Plan some dates or activities together. I’m not setting up an amount, but just want to make sure it happens.

I’ll update as I progress. Good luck with your resolutions!