I have chosen a 2022 word of the year. And that word is SIMPLICITY.
Today I’m going to share why I chose it and what it means to me. I’ve also got some tips for diving deeper with your chosen word, a journal that may help you connect with your word and links to my previous writing about chosen words for more inspiration.
Finding my 2022 Word of the Year
I played around with a few words in December but didn’t feel ready to settle on one. I contemplated something around play and playfulness as well as explore and adventure. And I also added simplicity, simplify, clear space, less and ease to my list of potentials. Then I took a break over Christmas.
In early January I was ready to come back to it and I think, in the end, simplicity chose me. It kept coming up in conversations and online content and I was intrigued by where it could lead me. I did some further brainstorming and research and then made the decision to make it my chosen 2022 word of the year.
What does it mean?
For me simplicity is all about keeping things simple and getting to the heart of the matter. I want to focus on what really matters and make things easier where I can. I’d love to do some decluttering and create some space in various areas of my life and I think simplicity can help me do that.
I have a tendency to overcomplicate things and overthink them and I definitely have too much stuff. I need some simplicity in my life.
Here’s a couple of quotes about simplicity I found that resonated with me:
“Simplicity is the soul of efficiency.” – Austin Freeman
“The key to finding a happy balance in modern life is simplicity.” – Sogyal Rinpoche
“Make it simple, but significant.” – Don Draper
“Life is really simple but we insist on making it complicated.” – Confucius
I am excited to see where simplicity might lead me in 2022.
Diving deeper into my word
After choosing a few words over the years I have developed something of a system for getting to know my chosen word. Here are some of the things I do:
Take some time to journal or list what it means to me
I look up the dictionary definition and write it down along with any synonyms that help me understand my word further
Then I look for quotes, affirmations and inspiration relating to my word (usually with a simple Google search or having a look through Pinterest)
I also try and check in with it with some regularity – I sometimes do this with:
blog posts
journaling about how my word has come up in my life
continually seeking out inspiration about my word
As I was beginning to do this work this year I decided to create a journal to keep me connected to my word throughout the year. It has space for getting to know my word and collect quotes and inspiration as well as 12 check-in pages (each one has a space for observations and a different journal prompt around my word). I’ll be using this journal throughout 2022. And I thought you might find it helpful too…
My Word of the Year companion journal is available in my Etsy shop so you can use it to connect to your chosen word if you wish. You can see the paper version here and the digital/eBook version here.
My Word of the Year Collection (and Monthly Mantras too)
I enjoy creating these posts each year. And love seeing my collection of words that are important to me build up over time. You can read more about my previous chosen words here:
In 2017 it was Daring and I also talked about my 2016 word which was Believe
That’s a lot of words and each time I’ve picked a word it has helped me explore life through a different lens and often taken me on a different path that I initially anticipated when I chose it.
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Have you chosen a 2022 Word of the Year? And how will you be connecting to it throughout the year?
Back in January I shared what Curiosity meant to me…
“For me, curiosity is all all about:
Exploring
Experimentation
Keeping an Open Mind
Creativity
Less Judgement
Wonder
Joy”
I’m glad I took the time to think about the meaning of it. I didn’t refer to the above list all that often through the year but I think this list still rings very true to me.
Almost a year on I’d also add that curiosity…
relieves/removes pressure
is playful
gives me space
and freedom
I feel like it’s been successful as a guiding mantra for 2021.
Where did Curiosity lead me?
I shared some thoughts in my August update about this but looking at the year as a whole I think Curiosity led me to…
I feel almost sad to be coming to the end of the year. There are no written rules to say I can’t keep Curiosity as my word for 2022 but I think I’d like to explore the possibility of something fresh and new.
I am sure Curiosity will continue to be an important word to me and help guide me at times of uncertainty. I think the benefit this year (in particular) was that in itself Curiosity isn’t fixed or determinate. And I needed that in 2021 when the world was uncertain and the rules kept changing and we weren’t entirely sure what was coming next or how we would get there. Curiosity gave me a pass to explore and experiment and let it grow as we went along. And as I start to ponder a possible guiding word for 2022 – that’s something I will consider. I want to choose a word that allows me space and freedom. Let’s hope I can find one just as good, if not better, than curiosity!
More on Word of the Year
So that’s my reflections on curiosity. This wasn’t my first rodeo for Word of the Year and I’ve shared previous words in these posts:
And I’ve also shared my original go at this project – 27 things aged 27!
I have a year to try and complete all 40 of these things. This year has some repeats of favourite activities (like my annual soundtrack, seasonal celebrations and a random me-day!) and some new ones too. A lot of sewing made the list this year. And lots of fun.
I’ve already made a start and ticked a couple of things off! (Can you guess which ones?).
And here it is – my 40 for 40 List
Reiki training
40 Soundtrack
Sew myself some clothes
Sew the rainbow quilt
Try stand up paddle-boarding
Volunteer
Something fun with the kiddo
Something fun with the husband
Afternoon tea with my friend Sarah
Try and escape room
Learn to say “um” less when speaking
Keep track of everything I read
Family holiday with Reggie
Family Trip Overseas
40 x Strength and Resistance Workouts
40 x Yoga practices
Try another NRAS course or similar
Visit Saffron Walden
Make the sewing with stretch dress
Wild/open water swimming
Watch 12 new to me movies or TV shows
Read 40 books
More mindset training
Visit Scotland
Random me-day trip/adventure
Seasonal celebrations – mark each season
Ride my bike
Host a workshop
Go to London
Visit Kent
Day or Week in the Life
The elusive Spa Day
Take a creative class
Organise all my craft supplies
Finish my sentence-a-day journal
Sewing Club – finish silver level
Sewing Club – Gold level
Write a letter to 50 year old Katie
Try hot stones reflexology
Get a facial
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I’m sure I’ll post an update here at some point and I will also share some of these things as I do them over on Instagram.
Have you ever done anything like this? What would be on your list?
It’s time for my 39 Before 40 Final Report. I set myself the task of achieving 39 things between my 39th and 40th birthdays and today I’m going to let you know how I got on.
I didn’t quite manage the 25 I originally intended but I’m happy to call this one complete with 18 posts written and published over the year. And that year included a chunk of national and local lockdowns and home learning for my son… I did what I could!
2 Release 3 FTGE (Find The Good Everyday) paid for products COMPLETE
I am so pleased that I opened my Etsy shop this year and have already reached 40 sales! I’d love it if you popped over for a look. And I overachieved here – releasing more than 3 products.
3 Mindset Training COMPLETE
I have realised this year that mindset is a constant work-in-progress and it’s something I want to prioritise regularly going forward.
4 39 Soundtrack COMPLETE
I love this one and recommend you give it a go! I pick one (sometimes 2) songs each month that I’ve been listening to or that remind me of something we’ve done or even shows/films we’ve been watching. Here’s the 39 Soundtrack on Spotify.
I started the course and got 2 of the 3 items made which is awesome. There is one more item from the course to make – I have the pattern and supplies ready to go and it’s on my 40 for 40 list!
7 Take Reggie on “holiday” COMPLETE
Reggie is our greyhound. We took him away to Norfolk for 2 nights in an Air BNB and we all enjoyed it!
8 Go to Skye COMPLETE
I’m so happy we got to do this in the Summer. I loved Skye and would love to revisit as there is so much to see and do. I shared a few snaps on Instagram here.
9 Ride a Horse Do a 20k step day COMPLETE
I didn’t get to ride a horse but I did do a 20k step day when we were in Skye (visiting Dunvegan Castle, the Coral beach and the Fairy Pools) and I felt that definitely deserved a place on this list!
10 Visit Norfolk COMPLETE
We did this in May and took Reggie.
11 Plan an epic 40th COMPLETE
We had dinner out (with cocktails!) at the newly opened Cosy Club, I treated myself to some new clothes and we went away to Kent for a few days – it was really lovely.
12 Spa Day Personal Shop (With a Stylist) COMPLETE
The Spa Day got cancelled again! (We originally bought the Spa Day package in November 2019. Hoping it will happen while I’m 40.) Instead I got an online shop with a stylist to help me pick some new items for my wardrobe. It was lots of fun.
16 Europe city break First 100 Days Journalling Project COMPLETE
This was a pandemic related switch.
17 Grow the FTGE newsletter and mailing list COMPLETE
I really enjoy sending my monthly newsletters. I create a freebie to send out each month. It’s usually journalling prompts or a worksheet to help you find more good in your everyday. It makes me happy each time someone signs up! If you don’t already get the newsletter you can sign up here.
18 Visit Bury St Edmunds/Suffolk COMPLETE
We visited Bury St Edmunds and stopped there for lunch and a walk on our way to Norfolk in May.
I was so convinced that I would do this but it just didn’t happen. I found more enjoyment working on items for my Etsy shop than I did pitching for work. So I embraced my word for the year – curiosity – and I followed my nose. This may be something I come back to in the future but it wasn’t the right time this year.
21 Submit the kiddo’s high school application COMPLETE
This was done back in October and we were very pleased to find out he got his first choice school in March.
22 Family Movie Night with a Theme COMPLETE
We watched Harry Potter, made Butterbeer and had HP related snacks! (M&S sell chocolate frogs and other wizard treats!)
23 A Me Day for Whatever I like (follow my nose!) COMPLETE
I originally intended to take myself off for an adventure but instead I read a whole book (that I’d been eagerly awaiting) in a day!
24 Do some work on the house NOT DONE
I had a list of things we wanted to do but it didn’t happen. We started looking into a new kitchen and other things we wanted done but were never quite motivated to crack on with the projects. Hopefully soon!
25 Solstice and Equinox adventures COMPLETE
Winter – made a wreath
Spring – purchased a beautiful Willow wreath
Summer – went on a lovely walk with the family
Autumn – got my hair done and worked on Autumn items for my Etsy shop!
26 Find fun ways to use glass jars COMPLETE
I ended up playing with glass jars for my Crafternoon in aid of Mind.
27 Host a Crafternoon to raise money for Mind COMPLETE
I did this in November. I really enjoyed hosting and would definitely consider doing it again.
28 Food bank donations COMPLETE
I set up a monthly financial donation to our local food bank at the end of last year.
29 Share my RA story NOT DONE
I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) in March 2020. I’ve had a blog post drafted about this for a while and I had planned to share it around the time of RA Awareness Week in September but I don’t feel quite ready to share yet.
30 Read Untamed COMPLETE
I read it, loved it and recommend it!
31 Monthly RAKs – big and small COMPLETE
I didn’t always do these monthly but I did at least 12 over the course of the year. I really enjoyed this one. It was fun coming up with different ideas. I did giveaways on Instagram and through my newsletter and chose someone who purchased from my Etsy shop to win a £5 voucher.
32 Try dairy free (for a week? Or month?) Try Second Nature COMPLETE
I changed this one to trying a 12 week programme around nutrition and mindset. It was good – I learnt a lot and have recently started a repeat of the 12 weeks to build on what I learned the first time around.
33 Bring back a meat-free-day each week Try More Meat Free Recipes COMPLETE
I didn’t keep track of this so I don’t know if I managed a meat free day every week. But we did try more Meat Free Recipes and make sure we add some to the meal plan every week.
34 Review this list monthly and make plans COMPLETE
I didn’t use any ‘formal’ way to review but I regularly checked the list to see how I was getting on. And this 39 Before 40 Final Report counts right?!
35 Aim for 30+ rejections pitches and learn from them NOT DONE
As I said for Number 20 – this didn’t happen. I did send some pitches and followed them up. But in the end I found more enjoyment and satisfaction from working on items for my Etsy shop so I focused my time on that instead.
36 NLP Training Taster COMPLETE
NLP stands for Neuro-Linguistic Programming. I did this in January. It was interesting and something I would consider exploring further in the future.
37 Be a guest blogger/tutor/speaker COMPLETE
I was a guest on the Creative Productive podcast and also did an Instagram Live with the host Sarah (@stationerymagpie). I was a guest tutor for the Bring Back Paper membership. And I did an IG Live with Alexis all about Instagram and how I use it.
38 Make Hot Chocolate bombs with the kiddo COMPLETE
This was fun and we’ve made more since. Maybe we should make some for Christmas presents this year?
39 Get kiddo ready for high school (uniform/kit, equipment etc) COMPLETE
We did this and we are continually working on getting him set up for success.
Summary
So that’s my 39 Before 40 Final Report. In summary:
I’ve completed 35 items on the list – really chuffed with that.
Of those 35, 7 were changed from the original list for various reasons and I am okay with that.
4 were not completed but I’m at peace with that.
I’ll be back soon to share my 40 for 40 list which I’ve already made some progress with!
Back at the start of the year I shared my chosen word/theme for the year. My chosen word is CURIOSITY. And now it’s time for a word of the year update.
Seasonal journals – I created Spring Goodness as a practice run and then Love Summer to sell in my etsy shop. An Autumn version will be coming soon!
Creating my etsy shop – trying not to get to hung up on what’s right and just experiment
Looking at nutrition and wellbeing from a curious perspective to try and lessen my all-or-nothing mentality
Getting back into sewing and making new things – I took a Learn to Sew course Autumn 2019 and loved finally being able to use a sewing machine. Over lockdown with a focus on home learning and not having enough space for sewing it fell by the wayside but I’m gradually getting back to it now
Trying different planning methods – it’s good to try new things but in this case I realised bullet journalling really suits me and I started a new bujo last month (I’ve previously blogged about bullet journalling here and here).
I’m more aware of the word Curiosity and tend to notice when it comes up in conversation or discussion – it helps me tune in and learn more about curiosity!
Any negatives?
I do wonder if I use the excuse of curiosity to keep exploring new things rather than cracking on with existing hobbies. And if sometimes it lessens my focus?
But all in all I think it’s been a great word for me and I am glad I chose it.
Plans for curiosity for the rest of the year
I want to continue to use it as a lens and theme for the year. Something that I think about when new opportunities arise and also when issues and challenges come up in daily life… looking at things from a point of view of curiosity rather than judgement helps me to be more open minded about how I deal with problems. At least that’s what I hope!
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Did you pick a word for 2021? If so – how’s it going? Has it had an impact on your life?
Today I want to share some Summer Bucket List Ideas with you.
What is a Summer Bucket List?
It’s a list of activities to do over the Summer season.
Some people have life-long Bucket Lists (a list of things to do before they kick the bucket.) There’s even a film starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman called The Bucket List.
I love creating seasonal bucket lists – they help me to make the most of the season and to celebrate what’s unique about each one.
We usually display ours somewhere the whole family can see it. This reminds us of what we want to do and gives us ideas when we’re stuck for ideas.
So onto the ideas…
Summer Bucket List Ideas
Make a Summer plan (draw up or use a calendar, mark out any plans you already have and then start filling in gaps with your Bucket List items)
Have a picnic
Visit the beach/seaside
Go camping
Eat in-season produce
Try tie-dye
Water balloon/gun fight
Get (or give yourself) a pedicure
Meet friends at a park or garden
Go on a bike ride
Make summer themed cocktails and/or mocktails
Play mini golf
Watch the sunrise or sunset
Have a barbecue
Make a Summer fruit salad
Go swimming
Take a walk in a shady spot
Create a summer playlist
Go out for ice-cream
Collect seashells and sea glass
Try a new summer activity like stand up paddle boarding or surfing
Visit some stately gardens (they usually have a great cafe for a meal/cake!)
Make ice lollies
Read a book set in Summer
Make some summer themed art
Make the most of Summer
There are even more Summer Activities suggested in my LOVE SUMMER guided journal which you can purchase from my Etsy shop.
I’ve created the journal to help you make the most of the Summer season and as well as creating your Summer Bucket List it will help you to:
think about goals and intentions for the Summer
plan out fun summer activities
create a summer happy list – of all the things you love about Summer
come up with a self care plan for Summer (including a list of Summer specific self care activities)
make a Summer playlist (there’s even a Find the Good Everyday Love Summer playlist)
Hello. It’s time for a 39 Before 40 Progress Report. This is a fairly long one so you might want to grab a cuppa. Read on to see how I am getting on with the 39 things I want to achieve by the time I turn 40 (in October 2021).
39 Before 40 Progress Report
1 – Blog 25 times IN PROGRESS
I’m up to 11 posts (including this one). 14 to go with just under 6 months remaining. That’s doable! I’m aiming for 2-3 posts each month.
2 – Release 3 FTGE (Find The Good Everyday) paid for products IN PROGRESS
I have something coming very soon. A Summer Guided Journal and Summer Self Care Kit. I also hope to release an Autumn themed project in September.
3 – Mindset Training IN PROGRESS
I did Sophie Cliff’s Master Your Mindset course in November 2020
I also did Sophie’s First 100 Days journaling project
And I am currently working my way through Jamie Varon’s Live with Intention course
I think mindset is a constant work-in-progress and I am grateful that these trainings have helped me to continue working on it.
4 – 39 Soundtrack IN PROGRESS
This is such a fun one. It’s shaping up to be a list of songs that hold specific memories this year rather than a collection of my favourites. Previous annual soundtracks have been a mix of both. You can see what I’ve picked so far here.
No progress on this yet. I’ve not been doing very much sewing at all lately. I am still hopeful to make a start though – perhaps over Summer.
7 – Take Reggie on “holiday” IN PROGRESS
Reggie is our greyhound. We have something booked. Just a short overnight break quite close to home to have a practice run and get him used to travelling and staying somewhere else with us.
8 – Go to Skye IN PROGRESS
We’ve got something booked for later in the year. Fingers crossed it goes ahead!
9 – Ride a Horse
I have no immediate plans to do this. It may get swapped for something else. Or I might just get something booked and do it as things start opening up again.
10 – Visit Norfolk IN PROGRESS
This one is tied in with number 7 (taking Reggie on holiday!)
11 – Plan an epic 40th
I’ll wait a bit longer before I make any plans for my 40th in October – who knows what the rules will be by then?!
12 – Spa Day
This is booked for the summer and I am really hoping it will go ahead as it’s been a long time coming. My friend and I originally had a spa day booked for March 2020 and it’s been postponed a few times already.
Hoping to do this as the world opens back up. I’d love to do something in person rather than online.
15 – Instagram growth – reach 1k and grow my community IN PROGRESS
I’m getting there with the 1k… please come and follow me if you don’t already. And I’ve been trying to share posts and stories that help people feel part of the Find the Good Everyday community. I love having chats with people in my comments and DMs there.
16 – Europe city break First 100 Days Journalling Project COMPLETE
I switched this up as I don’t think a Europe trip will happen this year. I changed it to a project I’d already started at the time and have since completed.
17 – Grow the FTGE newsletter and mailing list IN PROGRESS
I really enjoy sending my monthly newsletters. I create a freebie to send out each month. It’s usually journalling prompts or a worksheet to help you find more good in your everyday. It makes me happy each time someone signs up! If you don’t already get the newsletter you can sign up here.
18 – Visit Bury St Edmunds/Suffolk
We may do this as part of our take Reggie on holiday, on the way to Norfolk. Or it may be a seperate day out. But I plan to do it over the next few months.
19 – Reach my Find Your Happy Sales Target COMPLETE
I am so chuffed to have met my mid-range target for sales. I do still have some copies left though with no immediate plans to reprint the paper copies. You can learn more about Find Your Happy here and purchase a copy here. Every purchase makes me so very happy! I really appreciate each and every one.
20 – Be Published and Paid
I’m working on this by pitching to publications.
21 – Submit the kiddo’s high school application COMPLETE
This was done back in October and we were very pleased to find out he got his first choice school in March.
22 – Family Movie Night with a Theme COMPLETE
We watched Harry Potter, made Butterbeer (here’s our recipe!) and had HP related snacks! (M&S sell chocolate frogs and other wizard treats!)
23 – A Me Day for Whatever I like (follow my nose!)
I haven’t done this yet due to the lockdowns and schools being closed but I hope to schedule this in before the Summer holidays and take myself off on an adventure!
24 – Do some work on the house
I really want to get some work done on our kitchen but we need a surveyor/engineer to have a look because it involves knocking down a wall… the first step is to make some phone calls and find someone to come and have a look.
25 – Solstice and Equinox adventures IN PROGRESS
I made a wreath for Winter Solstice and purchased a beautiful Spring Wreath for the Equinox. And I enjoyed spending time outside on both of those occasions too. Summer Solstice and Autumn Equinox to go!
26 – Find fun ways to use glass jars COMPLETE
I ended up playing with glass jars for my Crafternoon.
27 – Host a Crafternoon to raise money for Mind COMPLETE
I did this back in November. I really enjoyed hosting and would definitely consider doing it again.
28 – Food bank donations COMPLETE
I set up a monthly financial donation to our local food bank at the end of last year.
29 – Share my RA story
I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) in March 2020. I’ve got a blog post drafted about this but it doesn’t feel quite ready to share yet. I might share it around the time of RA Awareness Week which is coming up in September.
30 – Read Untamed COMPLETE
I read it, loved it and recommend it!
31 – Monthly RAKs – big and small IN PROGRESS
I wasn’t as consistent with this to begin with and got a little behind. I’ve got one month to “catch up on” and will continue them monthly. Most recently I gave away a Gratitude Journal on Instagram and a Happiness Toolkit to a newsletter subscriber. I’ve done some RAKs offline as well.
32 – Try dairy free (for a week? Or month?)
Haven’t tried this yet. I think it will be a week to begin with and I’ll see how I go from there.
33 – Bring back a meat-free-day each week
I’ve got meat-free dinners on the menu plan each week but I don’t always make sure I’m meat-free for lunch as well so I need to revise the menu plan to reflect that. One of our favourites is this Smoky Chilli recipe by Jamie Oliver.
34 – Review this list monthly and make plans IN PROGRESS
I’ve not been “formally” doing this but I do have a paper version pinned up and I check/update it every few weeks or so. Plus I’m writing this 39 Before 40 Progress Report!
35 – Aim for 30+ rejections pitches and learn from them IN PROGRESS
This was in relation to pitching to publications. I realised recently that the wording was putting me off so I’ve changed it to sending pitches rather than waiting for the rejections. Part of pitching is undoubtedly receiving rejections which is why I chose the wording originally – to accept that it was going to happen. But I prefer the pro-active wording of tracking the number of pitches I send rather than the responses (or non-responses) I get back.
36 – NLP Training Taster COMPLETE
NLP stands for Neuro-Linguistic Programming. I did this in January. It was interesting and something I would consider exploring further in the future.
37 – Be a guest blogger/tutor/speaker COMPLETE (but would love to do more!)
I was a guest on the Creative Productive podcast – the episode went live in November and you can listen here. I also did an Instagram Live with the host Sarah (@stationerymagpie). And I was a guest tutor for Jocelyn at The Reading Residence Bring Back Paper membership in January – chatting all things journalling.
38 – Make Hot Chocolate bombs with the kiddo COMPLETE
39 – Get kiddo ready for high school (uniform/kit, equipment etc)
I’m not sure I am ever going to be emotionally ready for this one but we will be working on this over the summer months ready for September.
Summary
So that’s my 39 Before 40 Progress Report. In summary:
I’ve completed 13 items on the list – a third complete at the halfway point.
I’ve made a start or have things planned for another 13 things.
Which leaves 13 things still to start and get ticked off.
If you’ve read this far – bonus points to you! I know it’s been long but I share my birthday projects and progress for accountability and I appreciate you, as the reader, helping to hold me accountable!
I’ll be back with another update, once I’m 40, later in the year!
It’s time to share my Spring Activity List as well as some extra ideas to consider if you create your own list!
If you’ve been around a while you’ll know I’m a huge fan of celebrating each season and partaking in seasonal activities to make the most out of each one.
If you’re new here, HELLO! Lovely to see you. I hope you enjoy this post. I’ve shared more Seasonal Activity Posts at the bottom of this one. And please consider signing up for my newsletter where I regularly share seasonal prompts and other ideas to help you get more joy in your everyday!
My Spring Activity List
Some of these activities aren’t specifically related to Spring but they are things I want to achieve this season.
Get outside daily for a walk and out for a longer walk at least weekly
3 Random Acts of Kindness (one each month)
Get something booked for a night away with the doggo (and the husband and kiddo too!)
Catch up with friends that I haven’t seen for AGES!
Keep a Spring Journal…and look at creating a Summer version that people can buy and fill out for themselves
Get my hair cut, my brows sorted, a pedicure and have reflexology treatment (I’ve missed them so much during lockdown!)
Find dog friendly places we can go to eat (pubs with beer gardens, cafes with outside seating etc)
Have a Ploughmans lunch!
Finish the Live with Intention course
Leave the county to visit somewhere else (I’ve only left my county once since March 2020)
Have a weekly Artists Date/Me date – try to come up with some Spring themed ones!
Start sorting out my craft supplies
Extra Spring Activity List Ideas
If you’re keen to create your own Spring Bucket List these ideas might be fun too…
Plant flowers or seeds
Go on a bike ride
Go in search of lambs and other cute baby animals
Visit an open garden
Create a fairy garden
Spring clean and declutter
Celebrate Earth Day on 22nd April
Have a picnic
Visit a play trail / larger play area
Paint pebbles and rocks
Fly a kite
Visit the zoo or farm
Feed the ducks
Eat in-season produce
Try Couch to 5k
Write a poem or story about Spring
Redecorate a corner of your home with a fresh Spring feel
Today I want to talk about creating helpful habits. This is something that’s been on my mind for a while.
For many of us, our habits have changed a lot over the past year. A lot of us have been spending more time at home than usual and our routines have been turned upside down and inside out! As we begin to emerge from lockdown life it’s a great opportunity to be mindful about our habits and which new ones we want to create.
In my recent Find the Good Everyday newsletter (I send them monthly – you can sign up here) I chatted about deciding which way we want to ease back into non lockdown life…
So I thought I’d round up some posts I’ve already written about building habits and share some tips and ideas for creating your own helpful habits.
Tips for Creating Helpful Habits
I think a good place to start is to decide what helpful habits you want to develop (or revisit) and then work out how to fit them into your days.
You could also come up with a list of habits you don’t want to return to and come up with ideas that you can replace them with. And then what habits you had in place before lockdown that you want to return to.
And then make a plan – know which habits you want to work on, decide on a plan of action for them and find a way to keep yourself accountable.
Remember to start small – don’t try and change too many things at once. Pick 1 – 3 things to work on at a time. And once you’ve got those working start adding others.
I’d love to know if you have any tips for creating helpful habits? And please do let me know if you try any of the suggestions or books above and how you get on with them.
Best wishes for building helpful habits that make your life happier!
I do love to collect words! These themes or mantras work well alongside my personal values and my core desired feelings to help guide me when I need focus and as a reminder of what’s important.
Curiosity – Why I Chose my 2021 Word
Curiosity kept popping up for me towards the end of 2020. I saw a few quotes I liked about it and it kept winding its way into conversation around me. I attended (virtually) a couple of different year end review workshops and did some work around vision boarding and goal setting and curiosity popped up each time.
So before 2020 came to a close I decided that it was a good word to guide me in these strange, uncertain times and officially* chose it as my 2021 word. (*wrote it down, saved related images to a Pinterest board and told my husband.)
I think the reason it resonated with me was because I’m quite a curious person anyway (also known as: nosy and enjoys exploring) and it feels flexible. It doesn’t feel at all demanding or set in stone. The word itself allows for exploration, experimentation and an open mind. Which is exactly what I think I need this year when I really have no clue how the year is going to pan out:
Will we get to travel again?
How long will lockdown last?
What will happen next?
The Meaning of Curiosity
Firstly – wouldn’t that ^ be a great book title? That would draw me in straight away!
For me, curiosity is all all about:
Exploring
Experimentation
Keeping an Open Mind
Creativity
Less Judgement
Wonder
Joy
Here are some quotes I found that helped me get a feeling for what curiosity means to me:
“Creative people are curious, flexible, persistent, and independent with a tremendous spirit of adventure and a love of play.” – Henri Matisse
“The sky tells me there are no limits and curiosity tells me to explore.” – Duncan Sham
“Be curious not judgemental.” – Walt Whitman
“When you replace judgement with curiosity, everything changes.” – Robyn Conley Downs
“The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity.” – Dorothy Parker
I’d like to display my 2021 word somewhere to remind me throughout the year. And I wonder if it’s time to create some new Word Pebbles for the latest words I’ve collected!
*
Have you chosen a word for 2021? If so I’d love to know what it is. If you haven’t and this idea intrigues you it’s definitely not too late!
