It’s only for 3-6 weeks, but it’s a start and a break from my anxiety-panic. Win!
Anyway, my FO this week is another order from a member of my choir. Who knew singing could be so profitable?
The request was for a poncho for a little girl who has a tube going into her stomach, so she can’t wear jumpers to keep warm. Colour and pattern were left up to me so I went for a dragonfly poncho.
I think I might be having a purple and cream phase. It’s some generic spangly acrylic I had in my stash, which came out nice and soft after a quick wash.
Hopefully I can hand this over at choir on Monday and get it to its final owner asap.
Oh I also made a couple of birthday cards, one for my mum and one for a friend.
They both arrived on time, which makes me super happy. It must be a carry-over from my goal last year!
So that’s my week, hopefully my last without a job for a while. How’s your week been? Finished anything crafty? Let me know in the comments!
Welcome to 2019 everyone! I hope the holidays and new year were everything you hoped for.
It’s hard to believe a whole year has gone by since I decided on these goals – time just goes so quickly! But a year it has been so without further ado let’s get on with my final review.
1 New blog followed per week – 7/7 (yearly total 52/52) COMPLETE!
I made it!
2 New stitches/techniques learned per month – 1/2 (18/24)
This month I figured out how to do a long dc for my African Flower motifs.
No met goal here, but I have learned a lot and developed more confidence with my knitting.
3 Instagram posts per week – 14/15(147/156)
I was so sure I could meet this one, but Christmas and new year kind of knocked me off my game a bit. Still, I’m happy that I managed to post fairly regularly.
4 Exercise sessions per week – 22/18 (204/208)
Oooh so close!!
5 Blog posts written per week – 10/22 (161/260)
Wow, I really fell behind with this one. Even more than I thought.
6 Patterns written up – 5/6 (5/6)
I wrote up the pattern for my crochet crotchet, and then added on some bits to create a pattern for a pair of quavers.
I’m pretty pleased that I managed to get to 5, considering at the beginning of the year I believed I just wasn’t made for pattern writing!
7 Areas in my flat sorted – 7/7 (7/7) COMPLETE!
I sorted my kitchen cupboards and got rid of quite a lot. Vitamins and supplements that I took for about a month and then forgot about, a frying pan that was so worn out it was starting to rust, plus some tea that I’d had for over 10 years.
I don’t know if tea can go off and be bad for you, but I figured if I haven’t used it in 10 years then I’m probably never going to!
8 Minutes of writing per day COMPLETE!
9 pm bed time – 10/31 (103/365)
Well at least I met my mini goal of 100! Clearly I need to keep working on taking better care of my sleep.
10% of wages saved – 10/10COMPLETE!
I managed this every month so now I’ve got a nice chunk of savings in the bank.
12 Hand-written letters – 13/12 COMPLETE!
A lot of things came up around Christmas time so I didn’t get to send all the cards and letters I was planning to. Still, this goal is definitely smashed!
13 New recipes tried – 14/13 COMPLETE!
An experiment with leftovers led to a really tasty casserole this month, just nudging me over the goal line.
We all knew Christmas would make this one easier, but I never expected to smash my stretch goal quite so much! There was singing in various pubs, archery parties, cups of tea with friends, chips for breakfast, baby snuggles, and a cheeky Nandos. I’m ready for a wee break now!
15 Birthdays on time – 15/15COMPLETE!
The present for my friend in Germany went out super early this month and then my two friends with birthdays on new year’s eve pushed me over the finish line. I’m so glad I met this one; I always feel like a terrible human being when I miss people’s birthdays, so although I didn’t quite manage them all I’m still feeling good that I got so many on time.
16 Christmas cards made – 18/16 COMPLETE!
Done and done.
17 Birthday cards made – 9/17
Just one this month for my friend in Germany, although I forgot to take a photo of it.
18 Items decluttered – 18/18 COMPLETE!
My frying pan, tea, and bottles of old vitamins bring the total up to 18. I’m definitely going to keep on decluttering as and when the need comes up, I just love the freed-up space and the feeling of achievement that comes with it.
That’s 10 goals met, and a couple very nearly met, which is honestly much better than I expected of myself. It was good to have some goals to work toward and something to focus on, but I’ve got a lot of stressors going on in my life right now so I’ve decided not to do this again for 2019. For now I shall just be all smug and enjoy my success over the last year!
1 New blog followed per week – 4/4 (yearly total 41/45)
Done.
2 New stitches/techniques learned per month – 3/2 (17/22)
I learned two knitting stitches this month, and both back loop stitches; I learned how to p2tog and k2tog through the back loops. One in my Leafy Baby Blanket and one in the Sunrise Scarf
3 Instagram posts per week – 7/13 (133/141)
Nooot even close.
4 Exercise sessions per week – 20/20 (182/190)
Bang on this month, despite the wet, cold, miserable weather. I’m so glad I have all my equipment at home so I can workout in my nice warm living room.
5 Blog posts written per week – 14/23 (151/238)
This is a lot more than I expected to manage when I looked at my stats halfway through the month.
I am noticing a pattern of not very many posts at the beginning of the month and then more and more as time goes on. I should probably use this to my advantage and write some extra posts for scheduling when I’m in the flow.
6 Patterns written up – 3/6 (3/6)
No progress
7 Areas in my flat sorted – 6/7 (6/7)
I’m coming to the end of my contract at work and I wanted to check what I’m entitled to, but I couldn’t find the paper copy. Which is not surprising at all when you consider that my method of filing at home was to shove everything willy nilly onto a shelf. Hey, I can’t be Super Admin all the time.
Now I have all my important documents in a folder with labelled dividers.
Yes, it’s a Miffy folder. I see no reason why ‘grown up’ has to mean ‘boring’.
And all my delivery notes are in date order, until I figure out how long you’re supposed to hold onto these things before shredding. Any ideas?
8 Minutes of writing per day
Pretty much done.
9 pm bed time – 5/30 (93/334)
Something tells me I’m not going to meet this goal 😉 For December I’ll just aim to get the total to at least 100, I’ll count that as a mini achievement.
10% of wages saved – 10/10
Done.
12 Hand-written letters – 12/12 COMPLETE!
WOO HOOO! All done and I haven’t even written my Christmas letters yet. Success!
13 New recipes tried – 13/13 COMPLETE!
I met this goal with one of my favourite ever foods – cinnamon buns! What a way to cross the finish line.
14 Meet ups with friends– 14/14 COMPLETE! (stretch goal 22/25)
This month was more about one-on-one meet ups. I went over to a friend’s house for dinner and some drumming practice, both of which were excellent.
I also took a different friend to the Vanguard Centre for an archery session. I suspect he just wants to look like he knows what he’s doing when he joins in the group session for the first time, but I enjoyed spending time with him anyway. And he’s pretty good!
15 Birthdays on time – 12/15
I missed a birthday (because I blinked and it was suddenly 2 weeks later) so I might not meet this goal. I’m keeping my fingers crossed and my eyes fixed on the calendar so I don’t miss any more.
16 Christmas cards made – 12/16
Gosh I’m almost there. I’ve got a card making session this weekend so I should make it no problem.
17 Birthday cards made – 8/17
None this month, although I am still very pleased with my good luck card and I wish I could count it.
18 Items decluttered – 15/18
I’ve had these shoes for years, but I’ve only worn them once. Despite still being one of the most beautiful pairs I’ve ever owned, they are completely impractical and I can barely walk in them. They just had to go.
I also got rid of sooooooo much old paperwork after my sort out. I had a very satisfying half hour with the shredder at work making sure they were disposed of properly.
I am on track to meet a lot of my goals, which is pretty exciting! Just got to make sure I don’t lose steam now I’m so close. So how was everyone’s November? Did you meet any goals? Let me know in the comments!
1 New blog followed per week – 6/4 (yearly total 37/41)
I even managed to catch up a bit this month! So many fun new blogs to follow.
2 New stitches/techniques learned per month – 1/2 (15/20)
I learned about slipping the first stitch of every row when knitting, what this does to the look of the edging, and how it changes the way you seam.
3 Instagram posts per week – 12/13 (126/127)
I’m doing pretty well with this one.
4 Exercise sessions per week – 14/18 (162/170)
I would like to blame the weather and the clock change, but really I’ve just not been too bothered this month.
5 Blog posts written per week – 10/21 (151/210)
Not terrible, but not exactly great either.
6 Patterns written up – 3/6 (3/6)
No progress
7 Areas in my flat sorted – 5/7 (5/7)
No progress
8 Minutes of writing per day
Some progress, but not as much as I would like.
9 pm bed time – 6/31 (88/304)
Oh dear.
10% of wages saved – 10/10
Done.
12 Hand-written letters – 10/12
Nearly there! Being off work ill meant I got to reply to a letter the same week I received it! That never happens. Ever.
13 New recipes tried – 12/13
Nothing new this month.
14 Meet ups with friends– 14/14 COMPLETE! (stretch goal 20/25)
I can’t believe I’m so close to meeting my stretch goal too. Maybe I should have stretched further!
In October I went to my friend’s wedding and stayed all the way to the evening do (normally my social energy runs dry about halfway through the reception), and I went to the pub with some of my choir friends.
15 Birthdays on time – 12/15
I do actually have enough friends with birthdays late in the year to meet this goal, I just need to sort myself out and get them all on time!
16 Christmas cards made – 8/16
I got a jump on this one, although I’m not sure how many of the cards I’ll actually use. Explanation when I finish my next blog post.
17 Birthday cards made – 8/17
No progress.
18 Items decluttered – 13/18
I had been holding on to a biiiig box of stuff, hoping to either car boot or ebay it, but after a month of it sitting there I figured I probably wouldn’t ever get round to it. So the whole lot went to the charity shop; books, cuddly toys, some ‘interesting’ yarn, and some more clothes.
It’s certainly not the worst month I’ve ever had, but not the best either. It feels good to be so close to meeting a few goals, and I’m quite determined to kick it into gear and work harder on the rest.
How was your October? Did you meet any goals? Let me know in the comments!
Before I even start this I’m preparing myself for this month being a bust. What with my new role at work and a bunch of job interviews to prepare for, there’s been very little time for my goals.
9
That was a brand new target when we started.
15 Birthdays on time – 12/15
One of my friends in choir had a birthday and I got there in time! But I also missed a couple of others so not all great.
16 Christmas cards made – 3/16
Nope.
17 Birthday cards made – 8/17
Just the one, but that’s more than none.
18 Items decluttered – 9/18
Nah.
So yeah, a pretty naff month overall. But I’m still trying my best and that was the real goal all along 🙂
How’s everyone else’s goals going, if you set any? Got any exciting plans for October? Let me know in the comments!
A bit of an eclectic month, with masks, crochet, flowers, books, and archery making it in there!
4 Exercise sessions per week – 25/18 (144/136)
My Dad came for a visit last week, and of course you have to go out and do things, so my step count went waaaay up. But I also hurt my neck quite badly the week before and even the most basic movements were agony, so my exercise took a bit of a blow.
Pretty good on balance though.
5 Blog posts written per week – 13/22 (134/169)
Far too much doing and not enough blogging about it. But I’m still chugging along with at least a couple of posts per week so I’m happy.
6 Patterns written up – 0.5/6 (3/6)
I finally neatened up and finished the final draft of my waffle hat pattern. However many years later…
7 Areas in my flat sorted – 5/7 (5/7)
I had a very thorough sort of my bookcase, sent one box off to Ziffit for a wee bit of money, and gave the rest to a charity shop. I can fit all my books on the shelves again!
8 Minutes of writing per day
Pretty steady.
9 pm bed time – 12/31 (78/243)
An improvement on last month. The bad news being, it’s only because I hurt my neck and the diazepam made me super sleepy.
10% of wages saved – 10/10
Done.
12 Hand-written letters – 7/12
None this month.
13 New recipes tried – 10/13
The slow cooker got some use this month with a pork and cider stew. I went a bit overboard with the chillis, but a spoon of yoghurt soon sorts that out.
14 Meet ups with friends– 14/14 COMPLETE! (stretch goal 17/25)
Just one this month, a visit to my friend who hasn’t been able to get into her flat for over 2 years.
15 Birthdays on time – 11/15
No birthdays this month.
16 Christmas cards made – 3/16
Nada. Again.
17 Birthday cards made – 7/17
None this month.
18 Items decluttered – 9/18
Another load of books, and I gave away a little cat brooch that I never wear any more. My friend loves cats just as much as I do so I know she will love it and use it.
I definitely need to get a move on with my decluttering and card-making! Those can be my focus for September. The birthdays start up again this month so there should definitely be some movement to show in the next review.
How’s everyone else’s goals going, if you set any? Got any exciting plans for September? Let me know in the comments!
Gosh I’m a week late already! But I didn’t get back from camp til Saturday (and I needed Sunday to recover) so I’m letting myself off.
1 New blog followed per week – 4/4 (yearly total 29/29)
I branched out a bit this month and followed some papercrafting blogs.
2 New stitches/techniques learned per month – 2/2 (12/14)
This month I had a look at Bosnian crochet and the extended single crochet stitch. I swear I’ll get on and post about them soon…
3 Instagram posts per week – 10/14(98/89)
Not too bad, considering I wasn’t feeling it at all.
4 Exercise sessions per week – 19/18 (119/118)
I’m still keeping up with my walks. In fact it’s been going so well that I’ve upped my daily step goal from 6,000 to 7,000. Still not back up to 10,000 yet because I’d rather go super slowly and make sure I don’t re-injure my knee, but I know I’ll get there eventually.
5 Blog posts written per week – 16/22 (121/147)
I’m actually surprised I managed this many, what with being at camp for a week. It really helps to do a bundle of Tangle of the Week posts at once and schedule them in so I’ll try to keep doing that.
6 Patterns written up – 2.5/6 (1.5/6)
I typed up the pattern for the bunny lovey I made this month.
7 Areas in my flat sorted – 3.5/7 (3.5/7)
Nope, but I am proud of myself for unpacking and putting everything away the day after I got back from camp. I seem to be turning into a somewhat tidy person!
8 Minutes of writing per day
Not at all when I was at camp, but I did okay the rest of the month.
9 pm bed time – 7/31 (66/212)
Same as last month.
10% of wages saved – 10/10
Done.
12 Hand-written letters – 7/12
It’s a set activity at camp to send a postcard home. I’ve been a leader for 12 years now and I still send mine!
13 New recipes tried – 9/13
This month I discovered honey mustard chicken thighs, and I cannot stop making them. Once I ran out of lemon juice and tried it with white vinegar instead and it still tasted amazing, so it’s a double win!
I also tried a slow cooker turkey lasagne, which worked out okay. I do love using the slow cooker, but in this case I think the proper oven version is better.
14 Meet ups with friends– 14/14 COMPLETE! (stretch goal 16/25)
Seeing as I finished this one so early, I’ve set myself a stretch goal. I’m going for 25 because I like round numbers.
This month I met up with my friend who’s having a baby, we went for ice cream and a walk, and had a good long natter.
We also had a day out to Millport (my favourite place) with my women’s singing group and a male singing group, which was possibly my favourite thing ever. We got to sing all day, have a barbecue on the beach, drink buckets of tea, and laugh til my sides hurt.
15 Birthdays on time – 11/15
No birthdays this month.
16 Christmas cards made – 3/16
I was so close. I went to a friend’s place and took my Christmas card set with me, but then I got there and realised I’d left all the backing papers at home! All my motivation disappeared after that.
17 Birthday cards made – 7/17
None this month.
18 Items decluttered – 7/18
I took back some clothes I had bought but later realised I didn’t like. My usual practice is to leave them lying around for months until it’s too late to return them and I have to send them to a charity shop, so I’m counting this because I got them sorted out in time!
Not terribly great progress this time, but I don’t mind too much as I knew camp would have an effect on quite a few of them. This month (now the normal Scottish weather has returned) I’m going to focus on getting these Christmas cards made and getting to my bed on time.
This is getting silly now. I’m sure I only posted my May review last week!
1 New blog followed per week – 4/4 (yearly total 25/25)
Done. This one is going so well 🙂
2 New stitches/techniques learned per month – 1/2 (10/12)
This month I had a go at Bavarian crochet. Like most things, it’s not as difficult as I thought it would be. I’m thinking of making a cushion cover with my little test sample.
3 Instagram posts per week – 6/12(88/75)
I slipped this month, but I’m still ahead of my overall total so yay I suppose.
4 Exercise sessions per week – 23/16 (100/100)
Woo hooo I’ve caught up with my overall total!
I’m going out on my lunch break every day, and it feels really good to be getting back into moving regularly. At the moment I’m meeting my step goal at least six days every week, which hasn’t happened for nearly two years.
5 Blog posts written per week – 13/20 (105/125)
Below target, but still better than I thought. One thing 18 for 2018 has taught me is that I’m actually a lot more productive than I think I am in several areas.
6 Patterns written up – 1.5/6 (1.5/6)
No movement.
7 Areas in my flat sorted – 3.5/7 (3.5/7)
No more this month. I blame the sunshine :p
8 Minutes of writing per day
Still not every day, but I’m certainly working on it more often.
9 pm bed time – 7/30 (59/181)
Another improvement on last month, but obviously I still need to work on this more.
10% of wages saved – 10/10
Done.
12 Hand-written letters – 6/12
None this month, but I’m writing one at the moment.
13 New recipes tried – 7/13
Nothing here either. I’ve bookmarked a few to try, but didn’t actually get time to try them out.
14 Meet ups with friends– 14/14 COMPLETE!
We’re only halfway through the year and I’ve already met a goal! I can’t believe it, especially as it’s this goal. I’m really not as unsociable as I thought.
This month brought it home with a night at the pub after my choir’s summer concert, and a starlight swim on the coast, which was utterly wonderful.
The scenery was amazing, the weather was gorgeous so the temperature was just right, I battered my fear of heights into submission and jumped off the 3m diving board, and spent some lovely time with lovely friends.
15 Birthdays on time – 11/15
Ooh I’m getting close with this one. Three friends had birthdays this month and I managed to make them all.
16 Christmas cards made – 3/16
Just no. It’s too hot to be thinking about Christmas.
17 Birthday cards made – 7/17
Three birthdays, but only two cards made this month. I’m not sure how the third friend feels about birthday cards, as she’s a professional declutterer, so I made her some fairy cakes instead.
18 Items decluttered – 6/18
No time this month, I really must get on.
I don’t like the way I pretty much missed June. Honestly, it went so quickly we were at the 2nd before I even realised it was July. This month I’m going to set aside some regular time to focus on my goals, and hopefully being a bit more mindful will stop time whizzing past me before I can properly enjoy it.
How was your June? Did you meet any goals? Let me know in the comments!
A somewhat pictureless post for now, as I managed to crack my phone screen in my pocket and of course that’s where I keep all my photos!
1 New blog followed per week – 4/4 (yearly total 21/21)
A reader pointed me to some more tatting blogs this month. I love looking at the photos and wondering how long it’ll take for my tatting to be half that good 😉
2 New stitches/techniques learned per month – 1/2 (9/10)
The month whizzed by and I only had chance to learn the mattress joining stitch. It is wizardry though so I’m not disappointed!
3 Instagram posts per week – 14/13(82/63)
I felt like I hardly posted at all, but I more than met my goal. Maybe it’s just because I didn’t post regularly.
4 Exercise sessions per week – 22/18 (77/84)
Sunshine helps so much with this one! It’s far easier to get outside for a walk when it’s not raining sideways or freezing cold.
As well as the canal, I found a public park quite near my work so I’ve been heading there for some walks as well.
5 Blog posts written per week – 13/23 (92/105)
Er yeah. I’ve actually written a few that I haven’t posted yet, but I still definitely fell short. I knew this one was coming though; I really lost my blogging mojo this month. I feel like it’s back again now so here’s hoping I can catch up.
6 Patterns written up – 1.5/6 (1.5/6)
Nada.
7 Areas in my flat sorted – 3.5/7 (3.5/7)
I wish I had taken a before photo of my yarn stash so you could see the difference right now. It’s even colour coded!
8 Minutes of writing per day
Mostly done, it just wasn’t blog-writing.
9 pm bed time – 4/31 (52/151)
Well. Better than last month, I guess?
10% of wages saved – 10/10
Done and done.
12 Hand-written letters – 6/12
One more added to the pile.
13 New recipes tried – 7/13
After nabbing some chorizo at the farmers market I found a recipe for chicken and chorizo jambalaya. Never heard of jambalaya before so I had to try it, and I’m glad I did because it was lovely!
14 Meet ups with friends – 12/14
My choir put on a ceilidh (kay-lee) and I only meant to go for an hour or so, but I ended up dancing the whole night away.
I also got in another birthday meet up, as this was the first date I could get in at the archery centre. I loved it of course, and the awesome thing is so did my friends! Plus I got this badass picture of me.
15 Birthdays on time – 8/15
There have been no birthdays this month, which feels odd after the first 4 months of the year.
16 Christmas cards made – 3/16
I whacked out a couple more, it is so strange making Christmas cards in the sunshine.
17 Birthday cards made – 5/17
No birthdays means no cards made either.
18 Items decluttered – 6/18
I had a sort out of my wardrobe and got rid of some dresses and tops that I will never wear again. It’s still pretty crowded in there though so maybe I should have another look through! I’m also getting rid of some yarn I knew I would never use.
Another up and down month this time, but I was never aiming for perfection. The focus for June is to sort out my flipping bed time!! I’ve set a permanent alarm on my phone for 8pm, to kick in my night time routine and hopefully get me ready to face plant my bed by 9. Keep your fingers crossed for me!
How are everyone’s goals going (if you set any)? Did you have a good May? Let me know in the comments!
1 New blog followed per week – 4/4 (yearly total 17/17)
I found a tatting blog! Lots of handy tips there for one of my many new hobbies.
2 New stitches/techniques learned per month – 2/2 (8/8)
This month I drafted a post (but haven’t got round to posting it) about increasing stitches in Tunisian crochet, and I’ve also started to learn some tatting.
3 Instagram posts per week – 15/12(68/50)
This was definitely much easier when I had a challenge to follow. April went by so quickly I went a whole week without posting anything because it felt like just a couple of days. I caught up though after looking back over my posts and realising that I hardly ever remember to post my finished items; a few FO posts and I was back on track.
4 Exercise sessions per week – 16/16 (55/66)
The archery centre ran an extra session on bank holiday Monday, and that absolutely counted as a workout. 90 minutes of non-stop firing and retrieving arrows is TOUGH!
I also discovered there’s a canal about 10 minutes away from work, so on the rare days it’s not raining I’ve been going there in my breaks for a walk down the towpath. It somehow makes the work day more enjoyable.
5 Blog posts written per week – 16/20 (79/82)
Even though I wrote a couple of posts for my other blog as well as this one, I still fell a wee bit behind. Not too badly though.
6 Patterns written up – 1.5/6 (1.5/6)
I finally whacked out the pattern for my mini octos. Yes it’s the simplest pattern ever, but I worked it out for myself so I’m proud of it.
7 Rooms in my flat sorted – 2.5/7 (2.5/7)
I had a sort through my bookcase, but that’s not really a whole room is it?
8 Minutes of writing per day
I’m getting better at this!
9 pm bed time – 2/30 (48/120)
Oh dear…
10% of wages saved – 10/10
Done
12 Hand-written letters – 5/12
Yes, I’ve written to the same friend twice. Still counts.
13 New recipes tried – 6/13
The yellow sticker box actually helped me out this month, as I bought a few things and then looked up how to use them when I got home.
First up was avocado pesto pasta. I’m happy about this one because all I’ve ever done with avocado before is use it on toast in place of butter – tasty, but not really a recipe! The one downside to this is that avocado blackens even when it’s whizzed up in pesto. I took some leftovers to work the next day and it looked utterly disgusting, although it still tasted just as good.
Next up was sausagemeat pasta (or rice, if you can’t find the pasta. Ahem).
This was a happy accident, as I didn’t read the label properly and thought I was buying sausages. Somewhat disappointed when I got home and realised my mistake, but it worked out in the end because this stuff is GORGEOUS.
14 Meet ups with friends – 10/14
My birthday helped a lot with this goal. I’ve been out for meals, gone to a bouncy castle theme park, and met various friends in various coffee shops.
Me, exhausted after an hour of bouncy castle-ing
I also went to my cousin’s hen party and worked my way through the most enormous stand of cakes. Good times.
15 Birthdays on time – 8/15
Despite Easter messing with the post, my sister’s parcel arrived in time for her birthday, hooray!
It was my cousin’s birthday the following week, and her custom kindle cover arrived in plenty of time. Can we take a moment to be impressed that it fits perfectly, when I never actually saw the kindle and just worked off measurements my cousin sent me?
16 Christmas cards made – 1/16
I’ve actually made one! Although I forgot take a photo. Maybe I’ll update when I get home tonight.
17 Birthday cards made – 5/17
I am really proud of the owl card I made for my cousin.
My camera couldn’t really pick it up, but the moon behind them is gold card. The black owl really stands out against the moon and the white stands out against the purple background. I just love it.
And this was my sister’s card
Can you tell I got a Big Shot for Christmas?
18 Items decluttered – 4/18
I emptied the shelving rack in my bathroom, got rid of things I was clearly never going to use again, and organised everything else so it’s all in a logical order. Very satisfying.
The bookcase also received a thorough sorting out, as I was having to double-shelve some books and I hate not being able to see what I’ve got. Some have been returned to their original owners, some have been sold to Ziffit, and the rest went off to the charity shop.
I’ve really slipped in some areas (looking at you, 9pm bed time), but then in others I’ve done much better than expected. The 14 meet ups with friends seemed a bit ridiculous when I chose it, a kind of ‘stretch goal’, but we’re not even halfway through the year and I’m almost there.
Maybe the real goal is just to write down when I meet my friends so it stays in my mind and I don’t see myself as such an unsociable hermit.
1 New blog followed per week – 4/4 (yearly total 13/13)
This month I branched out a bit and followed a sewing blog, , as well as a couple more yarny people and a zentangler.
2 New stitches/techniques learned per month – 2/2 (6/6)
I’m still to write up posts, but this month I learned how to knit cables (at last!) and the very basics of patchwork.
3 Instagram posts per week – 27/12 (53/38)
Thanks to March Meet The Maker, I totally smashed this one. It’s been really fun interacting with people on there and making new friends, I’m definitely going to keep up posting (although not every day) and keep that community growing.
4 Exercise sessions per week – 7/18 (39/50)
I’m still trying to get back to running regularly, but so far I’m only managing once a week. I’d forgotten how tough it is to build up a habit from scratch, but I’ve done it before so I know I can do it again!
5 Blog posts written per week – 24/22 (63/62)
Getting the hang of this!
6 Patterns written up – 0.5/6 (0.5/6)
Turns out my waffle hat was a bit short and the shaping at the top was odd so I’m re-making it and tweaking as I go.
7 Rooms in my flat sorted – 2.5/7 (2.5/7)
I realised I had gone about this the wrong way by starting with my box room; it’s the space that needs the most work and it was really draining my energy that I didn’t seem to be getting anywhere.
So this weekend I did the hallway (the easiest space) and the bathroom. It feels so good to finally cross some of the list and I’ve got my mojo back to keep plugging away at the box room. It will not defeat me!
8 Minutes of writing per day
I’m getting much better at doing this, and it’s true that the more you use a skill the more it grows. As well as this blog I’ve gone back to my old blog and started writing stories again.
9 pm bed time – 15/28 (46/90)
Yeah, it’s a goal to aim for.
10% of wages saved – 10/10
Done at last, although my car is still doing its absolute best to bankrupt me. Heap of junk.
11 Items listed in my shop – 0/11
I’m actually putting this goal on hold for a few weeks, for a good reason. There’s a blog post coming that’ll explain. 12 Hand-written letters – 4/12
Just the one this month, which I suppose is on target. I do like writing to my friends, I really don’t know why I don’t do it more often. 13 New recipes tried – 4/13
I managed to find another keeper this month with DIY KFC. It’s so long since I had KFC I can’t tell if it tastes like the real thing, but it does taste gooooood and that’ll do for me!
This looks overdone, but it was just perfect
14 Meet ups with friends – 5/14
One of my friends had a significant birthday so she had a wee party at her flat, and last weekend we had a bestie date with Black Panther and ice cream.
I also had another friend over to my flat for a catch up, which I very nearly cancelled because I was feeling particularly introvert-y, but I’m glad I didn’t.
15 Birthdays on time – 5(or 6?)/15
The significant birthday friend got her card and present a day early, how’s that for organised!
There’s one I’m not sure of and I’d like some opinions. It was my Dad’s birthday on a Tuesday, and I posted his card and present on the Monday, first class so it should have got there on time. But it didn’t. Thanks, Royal Mail.
So do I count it because I posted it on time, or not because it didn’t arrive on time? Let me know what you think!
16 Christmas cards made – 0/16
Still none so far.
17 Birthday cards made – 4/17
I made a unicorn-ish card for my friend to go with the unicorn mug I bought for her present.
I also made and sent my sister’s card last week, as her birthday is the day after Easter and I know the post is unreliable (even more than usual) around Easter time.
18 Items decluttered – 2/18
The KFC recipe required so many new spices/flavourings that I had to sort out my current spices so I could fit them in. I had some stuff in there with dates in the early 2000’s. So I cleared those out and even alphabetised the ones I had left. Much better!
I’m making some pretty good progress so far, I think. April is birthday central for my family so all the birthday goals should jump up for next time. I just need to keep working on the others as well.
How are your goals going (if you made any)? What do you think about counting my Dad’s present toward the total? Let me know in the comments!
So I meant to post this before I headed back from NZ, but I was just so busy having fun that it didn’t happen! Then came 40+ hours of travelling. Let’s not talk about that. So now I’m back on UK soil let’s have a look at my 18 for 2018 goals
1 New blog followed per week – 4/4 (yearly total 9/9)
Done, done, done! Mainly crochet, but I’ve also found some amazing Zentangle blogs.
2 New stitches/techniques learned per month – 2/2 (4/4)
Still going with Tunisian crochet! This time I learned the purl stitch and how to Tunisian in the round, finally making use of that double-ended hook!
3 Instagram posts per week – 12/12 (26/26)
I’m actually surprised I managed to meet this one, considering I posted very little when I was in NZ. But meet it I did so onwards and upwards!
4 Exercise sessions per week – 16/16 (32/34)
It seemed rather optimistic packing my running gear, but I actually went for a run while I was away! There was also LOTS of walking so I’ve had a pretty active month 🙂
5 Blog posts written per week – 20/20 (39/40)
A confession for this one: for the first couple of weeks of February I only wrote two or three posts. The other 14-15 were zentangle posts that I wrote during my looooong stopovers in Sydney/Melbourne airport. So I met my goal, but it didn’t really help with building a habit.
6 Patterns written up – 0.5/6 (0.5/6)
I was hoping to work on this during a stopover, but sadly it didn’t happen.
7 Rooms in my flat sorted – 0.5/7 (0.5/7)
Still plugging away at my box room, and I also had a sort out of my books and DVDs.
8 Minutes of writing per day
Getting better at tracking this one, but still not perfect.
9 pm bed time – 7/28 (31/59)
Yeah, not even a little bit. For 6 days of this month I was so busy crossing time zones I had no idea when 9pm even was. Then for half the month I was staying with a family friend and they do not sleep early. So no.
10% of wages saved – 0/10
Well.
After having paid quite a bit of money to get to NZ, the clutch died on my car. Then the following week my MOT was due, and you bet that hunk of junk didn’t pass first time. And then I was on holiday, where you have to spend money to get places and do things.
So my saving for February is a big nada.
But, this has helped me realise how privileged I am. I know there are many, many people in the world who can’t even afford tickets to New Zealand, and here I was able to buy the tickets, fix and MOT my car, and still have some spending money left over. Even though I’m not ‘rich’ by Western standards, I know I’m one of the very lucky few in this world who hardly ever have to worry about being able to afford the basic necessities. I need to remember and appreciate that more often.
11 Items listed in my shop – 0/11
Nah.
12 Hand-written letters – 3/12
I managed to get one written before I left for hols, and I sent a couple from my travels!
13 New recipes tried – 3/13
Things have been tight money-wise this month, so I haven’t been able to go and buy specific ingredients for new recipes. Hopefully next month will be a lot less expensive and I’ll be able to shop for what I want instead of whatever the supermarket has reduced.
14 Meet ups with friends – 3/14
I’ve been out for drinks with a friend, and oh yeah I flew to New Zealand for a wedding!
15 Birthdays on time – 4/15
My brother’s card arrived bang on his birthday, I’m so proud!
This is usually the point in the year when I give up on being on time for people’s birthdays because I’ve already missed so many (a lot of my loved ones were Winter babies!), but this year I’m feeling good and I’m determined to keep up with this.
16 Christmas cards made – 0/16
Still none so far.
17 Birthday cards made – 2/17
The only birthday this month was my brother’s, which I bought a card for, so nothing new to add on this one.
18 Items decluttered – 1/18
It hurt me to do it, but I’ve thrown away my old pair of converse trainers. There were holes in the soles, frayed ends on the laces, and my right little toe poked out of the side where the canvas had worn away. I should have binned them a long time ago, but I do so love my converse.
Next up will be taking out the books and DVDs I no longer want.
Lesson learned this month: international travel can interrupt the best-planned goals, but that’s totally okay. Also, always have a stash of money ready for when the car goes wrong. Again.
I need to pull my finger out and get on track with more of these in March. Wish me luck!
Quiet Water Craft 
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