Resolutions and plans - 2020

I don't start thinking about New Year's resolutions till Christmas is well and truly packed away, but the tree is now back outside in the garden, the decorations in boxes which have actually been put away, not left sitting around, and it's time to think about the year ahead, and, taking inspiration from my diary, do some planning.


Looking back at old posts about New Year resolutions, I noticed some recurring themes. Every year I seem to start off with good intentions to get fitter, lose weight, de-clutter the house, and do something creative. I think it's fair to assume that none of these went particularly well last year, so I'll start this year's list with them.



Get outside more - fresh air and exercise are good for you, and I really enjoyed November's One Hour Outside challenge, so I intend to get out and about more, and work on upping my average Fitbit count.



Lose weight - it doesn't matter how much or how little but I'd just like to be lighter next Christmas than I am now - hopefully getting outside more will contribute but I'll be aiming to eat more veg and less stodge on a regular basis. Losing weight will also have an added bonus of being able to wear lots of things hiding in my wardrobe, and help with my next resolution.

De-clutter - the amount of  'stuff' we seem to have around the house grows and grows, especially with having emptied my parents' house and kept so many of their belongings, from china tea-cups to old suitcases. I don't want to throw anything away just to tidy up, but I need to take a long hard look at what I do decide to keep.

Get creative - I need to spend less time on Pinterest looking for inspiration and instead spend an organised amount of time on something arty; maybe an afternoon or two a week, make a mess, make mistakes but make something instead of just planning. This also links to de-cluttering, as I'm guilty of hoarding postcards, tourist leaflets, pretty paper bags etc with the intent of using them in collages; this year I'll put them all to use. I have abandoned sewing projects which I need to finish - again that will help with the de-cluttering. For now, I've picked up some knitting started in autumn with the hope of getting it finished before Spring.

None of this, though, is embarking on anything new, so here are a few things to add.

Change my dressing habits. Looking at a row of t-shirts on the washing line recently I realised my clothes have become dark and dull; greys and blacks and navy, plain or striped. I don't intend to splurge, or buy anything unnecessary (also of course I'm going to lose weight. Ha ha)  but when I do it will be bright and/or patterned.

I'm now back in a position to take holidays, so I should get something organised - a variety of short breaks, and at least a whole week away which I haven't taken in years. I want to back to favourite places, to swim in the sea, walk in forests, climb mountains, see dolphins, red kites, golden eagles. I want to try new experiences - take the tent away for a holiday rather than just a festival, stay somewhere 'weird' - maybe a treehouse, canalboat or yurt - and visit somewhere new. Now is the time to do such things, before I end up too old and infirm.


And there's a huge plan already around as a hypothetical idea - move house. Despite there only being two of us living here now, we feel like we need more space - particularly to have a designated bedroom for our grandson's visits. We've lived in our current house for 35 years, so moving will be a huge upheaval - again though, I think the time to do it is now, while we have the energy to decorate and alter somewhere to suit us.

If I manage to put even some of these plans into action it should be an interesting year. Watch this space!