I think as life is getting busier, I'm starting to feel more organised or at least starting to work out the things I want to do and set mini-plans in my head. I think it's probably come after a year of feeling a bit like I'm in a spin as I adjusted to life as a Mum of two. It's like as I'm getting more and more used to it, I'm becoming more aware of how important it is to set plans or goals and work on them far in advance if I ever really want to achieve them.
And it's not all fancy plans and goals - some are little things like being more organised for the boy's birthdays or making sure we have nice days out together in the summer. Because, as lovely as everything was last year, I did feel like I spent a lot of it feeling really last-minute, so this year I want to work on feeling somewhat more organised and prepared.
With this in mind I've deiced to write a list of just 10 things that I'm looking forward to in the year of 2017.
1. Summer! Being outdoors, exploring and just 'being'.
Is it possible to be homely but also love exploring? Because as a family are very much like that. We love our home and we invest a lot in to it, but we also love being outdoors together. Some of our favourite memories from last year were just the random days we spent exploring places like National Trust properties or grounds and having picnics by the lake in the sun. Honestly I'm not sure there's much better than feeling the sun against my skin, hanging out together as a family and breathing in fresh air.
2. Planning and saving for more house renovations.
I have dreamt of having a white kitchen for a long time. I have a vision in my head and I can't wait to see it made into a reality. After re-saving, we we're just about to start the ball rolling with having our current kitchen made over in to our dream kitchen when my Husband has just thrown a bit of a curve ball and suggested we wait and go for a side extension where our garage is and even make it two storey and then do our kitchen with it. That's a whole lot of planning and a whole lot of saving, but we're passionate about our home and the space we live in and it's all very exciting to start planning for this year even though we won't see it for probably a few more.
3. Watching the boys grow and their brotherly bond develop even more.
I'm not saying it's always going to be full of 'Aww' moments. They're young boys - they're going to be mischievous and boisterous and they're going to team up with each other and then they're going to squabble I'm sure. But I'm so looking forward to watching their bond develop and them become closer and closer, I'm already seeing it change as Logan has hit toddlerhood. Ethan is starting to really enjoy having a brother and I'm loving seeing them enjoy having each other.
4. Holidays and travel and more exploring
I never used to be a travel/holiday person but since having my own little family, I've really seen the importance of holidays, especially since our incredible experience at Walt Disney World. I'm still a homely person, but I get so excited about staying somewhere new for the chance to discover and learn more about different places. This year we're booked in for a family holiday to Greece with Adam's side of the family in September which we're excited for and we're just in the middle of deciding and sorting out other plans for the year too.
5. Learning more about myself
I feel like in 2016 I really discovered more about myself, I left 2016 as a more confident and content person and with less anxiety. I worked on so many personal self-goals and I achieved them all. I pushed myself out of my comfort zone over and over and it really did me the world of good. I want to continue with this.
6. Continuing what I'm doing
Honestly I love writing this blog of mine and I love taking photographs and making videos. I am so enjoying making more day in the life / everyday family vlogs and connecting with those of you who are kind enough to watch my videos and read my blog posts. I personally love having all of my content to look back on because as family we love looking back at old photos and videos and seeing how we've changed and how much the boys have grown. I am determined to keep doing what I love.
7. Cutting out more noise
I'm interested in this whole minimalism thing. I like to think less is more and believe in quality over quantity to a degree. I've decided to cut back on the unnecessary in my life in certain areas. I've turned off notifications online that I don't need to spend time looking at, I've unsubscribed from emails and I've unfollowed hundreds of accounts that I haven't looked at in a while. I've always been quite minimalistic with our home, I don't hold on to things I don't really need. Though I do with the boys things for some reason. But as life has got busier, drawers and cupboards have got full off bits and bobs we really no longer need, so I'm hoping to find some time to go through them and have a good old sort out. I just want to be more aware of keeping things around me that add value to my life and that make me happier.
8. Letting go of Mum-guilt and self doubt more
I'm under no illusion that Mum guilt is here to stay, but I feel like lately I've been able to control how intensely it gets to me. I wrote about motherhood and balancing it all the other day and about how I feel I am working on letting go of unnecessary mum guilt. I think self-doubt falls under this too and both I feel I am starting to see differently to how I used to. I hope to make 2017 the year I learn to stop feeling so guilty for things I really shouldn't.
9. Reading more and learning more
Instead of filling my time with flicking through social media, I want to dedicate time to reading more books and learning new things. I want to read more about mindfulness and practice it more. I want to start reading full books again and spending time opening up my mind to being more present. Social media can be too noisy sometimes.
10. The little moments and making more memories
It may sound a bit like a given, but really this is most what I'm looking forward to. The laughs, the giggles, the smiles, the moments where it all feels exactly as best as I could ever have imagined it. It's the little moments that make up all the big moments that are me feel happiest. I'm really just looking forward to more of the same.
Update: I mentioned at the start of this post about looking forward to more exploring and being outdoors together as a family - well I've just ordered our joint National Trust Memberships cards and I can't wait to start using them! They were about £8.50 or so a month, but I've just seen that there's currently a giveaway for a 12 months National Trust Membership being run over at sunnybankforestry.co.uk, so if you and your family are looking to sign up for National Trust membership it's worth entering that first. :)
And it's not all fancy plans and goals - some are little things like being more organised for the boy's birthdays or making sure we have nice days out together in the summer. Because, as lovely as everything was last year, I did feel like I spent a lot of it feeling really last-minute, so this year I want to work on feeling somewhat more organised and prepared.
With this in mind I've deiced to write a list of just 10 things that I'm looking forward to in the year of 2017.
1. Summer! Being outdoors, exploring and just 'being'.
Is it possible to be homely but also love exploring? Because as a family are very much like that. We love our home and we invest a lot in to it, but we also love being outdoors together. Some of our favourite memories from last year were just the random days we spent exploring places like National Trust properties or grounds and having picnics by the lake in the sun. Honestly I'm not sure there's much better than feeling the sun against my skin, hanging out together as a family and breathing in fresh air.
2. Planning and saving for more house renovations.
I have dreamt of having a white kitchen for a long time. I have a vision in my head and I can't wait to see it made into a reality. After re-saving, we we're just about to start the ball rolling with having our current kitchen made over in to our dream kitchen when my Husband has just thrown a bit of a curve ball and suggested we wait and go for a side extension where our garage is and even make it two storey and then do our kitchen with it. That's a whole lot of planning and a whole lot of saving, but we're passionate about our home and the space we live in and it's all very exciting to start planning for this year even though we won't see it for probably a few more.
3. Watching the boys grow and their brotherly bond develop even more.
I'm not saying it's always going to be full of 'Aww' moments. They're young boys - they're going to be mischievous and boisterous and they're going to team up with each other and then they're going to squabble I'm sure. But I'm so looking forward to watching their bond develop and them become closer and closer, I'm already seeing it change as Logan has hit toddlerhood. Ethan is starting to really enjoy having a brother and I'm loving seeing them enjoy having each other.
4. Holidays and travel and more exploring
I never used to be a travel/holiday person but since having my own little family, I've really seen the importance of holidays, especially since our incredible experience at Walt Disney World. I'm still a homely person, but I get so excited about staying somewhere new for the chance to discover and learn more about different places. This year we're booked in for a family holiday to Greece with Adam's side of the family in September which we're excited for and we're just in the middle of deciding and sorting out other plans for the year too.
5. Learning more about myself
I feel like in 2016 I really discovered more about myself, I left 2016 as a more confident and content person and with less anxiety. I worked on so many personal self-goals and I achieved them all. I pushed myself out of my comfort zone over and over and it really did me the world of good. I want to continue with this.
6. Continuing what I'm doing
Honestly I love writing this blog of mine and I love taking photographs and making videos. I am so enjoying making more day in the life / everyday family vlogs and connecting with those of you who are kind enough to watch my videos and read my blog posts. I personally love having all of my content to look back on because as family we love looking back at old photos and videos and seeing how we've changed and how much the boys have grown. I am determined to keep doing what I love.
7. Cutting out more noise
I'm interested in this whole minimalism thing. I like to think less is more and believe in quality over quantity to a degree. I've decided to cut back on the unnecessary in my life in certain areas. I've turned off notifications online that I don't need to spend time looking at, I've unsubscribed from emails and I've unfollowed hundreds of accounts that I haven't looked at in a while. I've always been quite minimalistic with our home, I don't hold on to things I don't really need. Though I do with the boys things for some reason. But as life has got busier, drawers and cupboards have got full off bits and bobs we really no longer need, so I'm hoping to find some time to go through them and have a good old sort out. I just want to be more aware of keeping things around me that add value to my life and that make me happier.
8. Letting go of Mum-guilt and self doubt more
I'm under no illusion that Mum guilt is here to stay, but I feel like lately I've been able to control how intensely it gets to me. I wrote about motherhood and balancing it all the other day and about how I feel I am working on letting go of unnecessary mum guilt. I think self-doubt falls under this too and both I feel I am starting to see differently to how I used to. I hope to make 2017 the year I learn to stop feeling so guilty for things I really shouldn't.
9. Reading more and learning more
Instead of filling my time with flicking through social media, I want to dedicate time to reading more books and learning new things. I want to read more about mindfulness and practice it more. I want to start reading full books again and spending time opening up my mind to being more present. Social media can be too noisy sometimes.
10. The little moments and making more memories
It may sound a bit like a given, but really this is most what I'm looking forward to. The laughs, the giggles, the smiles, the moments where it all feels exactly as best as I could ever have imagined it. It's the little moments that make up all the big moments that are me feel happiest. I'm really just looking forward to more of the same.
Update: I mentioned at the start of this post about looking forward to more exploring and being outdoors together as a family - well I've just ordered our joint National Trust Memberships cards and I can't wait to start using them! They were about £8.50 or so a month, but I've just seen that there's currently a giveaway for a 12 months National Trust Membership being run over at sunnybankforestry.co.uk, so if you and your family are looking to sign up for National Trust membership it's worth entering that first. :)
Some lovely things to look forward to Alex! How exciting about a new extension! I love planning new interiors for our home x
ReplyDeleteLove this post, I'm looking forward to (hopefully) moving home! EEP
ReplyDeleteSo many lovely things to look forward to and I can't wait to read all about them. Your kitchen plans sound great with another extension, X
ReplyDelete