Project Life

It's been a while as I have been playing catch up following the holidays but my 2013 album is now officially finished. 

Unfortunately I hardly took any photos in the penultimate week of the year so I ended up printing out lots from our week in England and filling both weeks with that.  There's a little bit of journalling and a brief look back.

I am so excited to be carrying this project on into 2014 but I have decided to make some changes.  The big change for me will be to update every month instead of week.  It's just a fact that some weeks are quieter around here and I don't like the look of too much journalling so I hope to give myself the space to be more creative with the spreads and to really produce something that I will enjoy looking back on.

Also, this year will be much more about us as a family - I want to get more of Nico and Pete in there and obviously the baby when it arrives.

So here is to a fantastic new year - look out for the first 2014 Project Life post from me in early February.

June Goals

Jar of Joy!

 

Here's a new idea I'm trying out this year after reading about it on the blogs this month.  Every time something nice or good happens, I write it down and pop it in this jar.  On New Year's Eve next year, I can open the jar and remember all the great things this year has brought.  It's also a great way to recycle that candle jar from the summer gift swap last year. 

Goals for 2013

As usual, the start of January was a real reflection point for me again.  I looked back on the year that was 2012 - a really big year for us and looked forward to 2013 which will be an even bigger year.  

Last January I embarked on all kinds of projects to try to achieve more and improve my life and myself.  I was successful in many of my goals, as I already talked about this week, and still have some to work on.  When I look at a circle of life worksheet I did last year though, I realize just how much happier I am!  The only area I feel needs a little work - my social life - has made it onto my new streamlined 2013 goals list but otherwise I feel I have much less need for the goals this year.

Don't get me wrong, I love my friends and I am way more social now that I have more friends here in Bremen but one thing really got to me over Christmas.  I sent a friend in England a Christmas card and, unable to send one to me as she hadn't my address, she sent one to my Dad's which missed us by a day.  Anyway, we picked up contact by email and it turns out she had some major life changes in 2012 and had a really tough time with it and I had no idea.  I'm not talking about late 2012 either, these things happened in May.  I felt like a really bad friend, living in a bubble miles away and not taking the time to talk to the people who have always been there for me.

This year will be different anyway with the wedding coming up which also means more regular visits home but one of my big goals for this year is to Skype more.  Not just with that friend but with other friends and family too.  The one and only thing I regret about moving to Bremen is that I miss friends and family and it always hits me when I see how much the kids in the family have changed since my last visit and with Skype there is no excuse not to sit here waving at them on the weekend - especially since they're too young for the phone at the moment.  

So, big explanation but I think the rest of my goals are self-explanatory so I'll get on with it:

• Get back to my goal weight
• Pay off two credit cards
• Plan the wedding!
• Stay in touch with friends and family more with Skype
• Keep working on my 28 / 29 lists!

There you have it - a much more streamlined version of last year but with the most important things on there.