10 To-Do's For February
This year I’ve decided to change how I try and reach my goals and what I want to achieve. Instead of setting giant goals that spread over the entire year I’m taking things month by month and it feels so refreshing, I’m not sure why I’ve not done this before as it makes so much more sense as things change in our lives constantly which often leads to those big goals not making much sense anymore and then ultimately we feel like a failure when we’ve not achieved them. In January I didn’t really set myself that much to do as I simply wanted to get back into work and read a couple of books, both of which I did but for February I’ve got a few more things I’d like to get done and they look a little something like this.
JOIN THE GYM…AGAIN
My OCD has been quite bad lately and there are a few things that I know help ease things and one of them is exercise. The dogs get me out every day that it isn’t raining as there is no way those two even think about going out in the rain so it’s not like I’m sat down all day but I’m also not breaking a sweat when going for a dog walk and I crave those endorphins that I get when I do. If you’ve been a reader of this blog for a while then you will know that I used to go the gym a lot and it was something that made a huge difference to my mental health, it’s not a cure-all by any means but it helps me a huge amount. I cancelled my membership when I moved and we got Josie because I didn’t have the time whilst she was still a young pup but now both the dogs are older and generally well behaved I have a little more time to myself. I’ve started off by taking out a trial with the gym that I used to go to see if it’s something I’m actually going to make time for as I don’t fancy wasting £30 a month if I’m not going to go. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my trial so far though, I’ve been swimming and I’ve also been doing the Couch to 5k app as I’m determined to be able to run 5k by the end of the year.
WEAR MAKEUP MORE
This one I realise sounds a little strange and given the amount of time I spent prattling on about makeup I actually rarely wear the stuff these days, which is why my favourites are usually the things that I’ve worn for years. And I’m not sure why this is because whenever I do wear makeup I feel so much happier and I love the process of applying my most loved products. But I’ve got seriously lazy with my beauty routine and I need to get back into the habit of applying a little something in the mornings, even if it’s just a tinted moisturiser and a few lashings of mascara. The fact that I don’t wear makeup every day now is something that would shock 20-year-old me as I used to heavily rely on makeup to feel confident and wouldn’t ever step out the house without a full face. So in some ways it’s a positive that I'm now so much happier in my skin as I no longer feel like I have to wear makeup but I do need to stop being so lazy day to day.
READ TWO BOOKS
My Goodreads challenge is quite small this year, after all, I only read 3 books in 2018 so I didn’t want to set myself up for failure. I read two books in January and I’d like to do the same for February as whenever I’m in a good rhythm with reading I’m always so much happier, I also find sitting down with a book inspires in so much when it comes to my own work. In January I read;
DOLLY ALDERTON - EVERYTHING I KNOW ABOUT LOVE: I actually started this book last year but I couldn’t quite get into it properly so I gave it another try at the beginning of the year and once I got a few chapters in I loved it. Now I don’t think it’s quite as groundbreaking as everyone made it out to be but it is an enjoyable read and there are so many things I think most women can relate to. The way Dolly talks about love is very honest but there are some parts of the book that are pretty unrelatable for me. However, that isn’t to say you can’t enjoy something if you can’t relate to it. The way this book has been laid out and edited makes it a really easy read which would make it a great option to ease yourself into reading or to take on holiday.
WILL YOU LOVE ME? - BARBY KEEL: When I saw this book with a little Italian Greyhound on the cover I knew it was something I was going to end up reading. That being said the cover is a little misleading as it’s about an ex-racing greyhound, not a little iggy so an odd cover choice but either way I enjoyed this book a lot. It’s a heartbreaking read, to begin with following Bailey the hound and the awful things that happened to him but when his rescuers, Barby, and her animal sanctuary take him in things soon change. It really shows the power of animals and how they can save us even when we are the ones saving them. If you someone who loves greyhounds then it's a great read if you can get past the first bit.
DECLUTTER
The topic of decluttering is something that comes up quite often on this blog as it’s something that I seriously enjoy as I’ve done a complete 180 with my relationship with material items. I don’t think I’ll be someone who only owns things that have a purpose as I enjoy having personal trinkets around but I would like to get rid of the things that are hanging about that I don’t have any real love for or use. One of those areas for me is always my wardrobe, I try to own as little as possible (within reason) and only buy timeless pieces but there is always those things that I don’t find myself wearing as much as I initially thought so I usually go through the process of putting them into a box in the spare room and if I don’t reach for them or even think of them within a few weeks then I’ll either sell them on or donate them. Another area that my boyfriend and I need to tackle together is our spare room, like most spare rooms it’s become a dumping ground for anything that we’re not sure what to do with (it's oh so ironic I wrote about putting clothes in there). So many things need to be thrown away and then there are a lot of things that we need to find a permanent storage solution for but it's something we always put off as it's not the most exciting task but it's got to be done.
little resolutions
Finish the work day with a tidy inbox
Read in the evening.
Use hair masks more, the blonde has finally taken a toll on my ends.
Listen to podcasts more when working.
Take better care of my plants.
Discover new music and stop listening to my favourite albums from 2005 (please tell me I’m not alone?)
