2023 Goals: An Update + My Final Goal

So here’s one of the biggest hassles about losing a blog – you lose the ability to easily link to old content! I didn’t realize how frequently I referenced previous posts until I started writing new posts and wanted to add hyperlinks to old posts…that no longer exist! *Sob*

Thankfully, I have all my text from the old website so I’m going to go ahead and repost my 2023 goals list – along with my progress report notes – for future reference.

1. Track my visits with Mom and Dad. Done. I had a little notebook stashed in the front pocket of my planner and recorded every single visit/event (location + a quick blurb about what we did together) during their winter stint in Nova Scotia. We “monitor what we measure” and I love having a recorded (written) snapshot of our time together in the winter of 2023.
2. Plan our summer. Done. It was still hard and exhausting, but I think the kids will look back on it as being a really great experience. I think of summer as “their season” since it’s always intense for me and I’m mostly relieved to survive it!
3. Get laser eye surgery. Done (May). This ended up being more of a shemozzle than I expected (I had to have PRK instead of LASIK) but slowly and surely things are getting better.
4. Do some exterior landscaping on our back/side yard. Done! This was a big undertaking. In addition to regrassing a huge portion of the lawn and putting in a paving-stone pad, we’ve added twinkle lights to the storage shed and painted a hand-me-down fire pit. Having friends over for s’mores has been delightful!
5. Go see the summer production by the local theatre company Two Planks and a Passion. Done. I took the kids right after our June stomach bug. The show was fine. It was an original musical of the Wind in the Willows story. It was a very short show and I took the kids to the preview performance so tickets were inexpensive. I felt a bit guilty going without John since this was always “our” thing, but in retrospect taking the kids to a preview was the perfect solution. This show wasn’t nearly as epic as their regular productions (I think I would have felt a bit cheated to pay full price and see this show, which only ran about an hour), the kids enjoyed it, and I can cross a goal off my list.
6. Get away – solo with John – to a new destination. Done! Rome was incredible (I’ll get all the other recaps up and back-dated eventually). It was the trip of a lifetime.
7. Run 10 km. Not done/not going to do it. I was doing so well before my eye surgery and had worked up to running 7 km. I’ve done a few shorter distances in the last few months, but haven’t run at all this month. I’ve been pretty tired emotionally and physically and think walking + yoga will be the most restorative forms of exercise to round out the year.
8. Hang something over the couch. Done! After five years of a GIANT blank space, we mounted a mirror to the wall.
9. Get a pedicure. Not done/not going to do it. I invested in a new bottle of nail polish (on sale for $2.99) and have committed to doing more at-home pedicures instead!
10. Get a duvet cover and insert. It’s complicated…The giant blanket we currently have works fine; it’s a nuisance to wash, but I only do that monthly and it’s not enough of a nuisance that I feel like shopping for a new set and I’ve had issues in the past with duvet inserts sliding inside the covers. I’m going to give myself a DONE, though, since we bought a comforter for our daughter A’s room. After it was updated (see Goal #11), we found a PERFECT blanket at a thrift store (~$12!!) and it pulled her whole room together.
11. Paint/makeover A’s room. Done! I am in love with this space and it’s maybe my favourite place in our whole house to hang out these days. I can’t wait to take some proper pictures for a before/after post. We settled on one accent wall of Tropical Pool, and the rest is in White Dove and it came out perfectly.
12. Enroll L in swimming lessons. Done. In the end, both kids did swimming lessons this summer. I don’t think swimming is “their” sport and that’s okay. I just need them to be able to swim confidently for safety reasons. I’m not sure I’ll pursue lessons another year, but I’m so glad I was able to coordinate time in the pool in 2023.
13. Order my 2022 photobook. Done.
14. Re-read the Lord of the Rings Trilogy OR The Chronicles of Narnia series OR a trio of old classics. Done. I read Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre and Pride & Prejudice. These were all re-reads for me. I loathed Wuthering Heights the first time and it did not improve with a second reading. Sadly, I had enjoyed both Jane Eyre and Pride & Prejudice the first time I read them (in my teens), but was NOT a fan during my second reading. Win some, lose some. But this was a 0-3 record which = a reading strikeout.
15. Go see a musical. Done. I can’t believe I managed to cross this off THREE times in 2023. Admittedly, they were all local (small) productions, but they were still great. A and I went to see High School Musical at the local high school, then our whole family went to see Newsies together, and then the Wind in the Willows production (see above). We thought we might get to add another entry in this category as Come From Away is playing in Halifax this November but the only tickets left are like $500 each so…no, thanks.
16. Make a new friend. Done. I feel like this has been a really great year for establishing new connections, including someone who feels like a “kindred” spirit a la Anne and Diana.
17. Try three “new-to-me” eating establishments in our local area. Done. One was fine, one was not great, and one was amazing.
18. Take each child on a special solo date. Done. I took A to High School Musical and took L out for lunch + time in the playroom at Mcdonald’s (he loved it, and I 100% consider this a solo date).
19. Buy a new nude bra. Done! Bonus points because I got two high-end, brand-new bras at a thrift store for $3.50 each.
20. Use my fancy dishes. Done? I haven’t made much of an effort here, but I HAVE used my pottery bowls more frequently and I moved all my charging cables into a cute dish in my bedside table. I don’t really own “fancy” dishes…but I have made a bit more effort to use existing, nice serving bowls.
21. A goal to be added, upon reflection, in March 2023. I added a goal of reaching out to more “distant” friends/family each month via text. This is going well and I’ve kept up with this goal. I will not continue doing this monthly in 2024, though. I think it would really start to feel forced in the long term.
22. A goal to be added, upon reflection, in June 2023. My second flex goal is to read the New Testament before the end of the year. I am running behind on this. It’s okay. I’m reading my Bible and that is the only relevant goal (though I would still like to get all the way through the NT before January 1st).
23. A goal to be added, upon reflection, in September 2023. Drumroll…

MY FINAL GOAL IS TO:

“Spend out” on lunchbox items.

I love to be frugal and that has definitely extended into kid lunchbox territory over the years. Don’t get me wrong…the kids have always eaten “well”, they just don’t always find preferred items in their school lunches. This year I’m being more intentional about what I buy/send and that occasionally translates into spending a bit more at the store. (I realize I am tremendously fortunate to be able to make this sort of financial decision and the shocking price of groceries is having devastating impacts on so many families.)

A few weeks before the school term started I sat down with the kids and we brainstormed their favourite fruits/snacks/main items/cracker varieties/yogurt flavours/dessert options (I didn’t end up listing those in my planner – they basically like ALL desserts).

I aim to always have something from their “favourite” list stocked at all times. I still shop sales, but I’m more intentional about what fruits and veggies I buy, what crackers I send, etc.

In another shift, I am now open to packing slightly different lunches!

For example, A loooovvvess Greek yogurt. L does not. So A gets Greek yogurt, and L gets a yogurt tube. A likes Goldfish; L likes rice crackers. So, in general, I send them the cracker they prefer. A likes ham sandwiches and does not like tuna (you know where this is going, right? – L loves tuna and doesn’t like ham). Previously I would just do the same lunches for both kids. They survived and they did eat what was sent, but it actually feels like LESS pressure to tailor their meals to better suit their preferences. They’re happy, I’m happy.

It’s also interesting that I “thought” I knew what my kids liked but when we sat down to have a dedicated family discussion it was fascinating what things filtered to the top of their “favourites” list. (They both used to always complain when I sent mini carrots, but then both mentioned mini carrots being one of their favourite veggie options?! And cucumbers? Apparently, they love cucumbers and just never bothered to tell me.)

I aim for at least one hot lunch a week which is just leftovers in a Thermos. But, again, we sat down and discussed what hot lunches they prefer to take to school and I plan accordingly.

So far, so good. I know it’s still early in the school term but I’m excited about this subtle, yet effective, change in lunchbox strategy.

Your turn. If you prep a lunchbox for yourself or a child, what are your go-to items, tricks/hacks, or other special mentions? If you set annual goals, how is your progress in 2023?

Header photo by S’well on Unsplash