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This is not going to be a post like most that I write. Nothing in here about budgets and New Year’s resolutions and killing debt. I’m sure my 25 loyal readers are devastated to hear this.
I have some weird fascinations and/or borderline unhealthy knowledge about several random things in life. They include Hallmark movies, Little House on the Prairie, House Hunters and My Lottery Dream Home, and Betty White. Continue reading
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2021 was nearly as rough as 2020. That’s all I’m going to say about that because I decided that despite some really tough challenges and situations that occurred this year, I’m going to choose an attitude of gratitude going into 2022. I am thankful for being able to spend more time with family and friends this year.
I’m not even going to go into too many details on my 2021 resolutions like I normally do. There were a lot of items on my 2021 list that I didn’t accomplish. A few I did though. Guess what? That means I’m still further ahead of where I was in 2020, and for me, that’s what it’s all about…continuing to move forward. Continue reading
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Christmas is less than a week away. I go into every Christmas season with the best of intentions of wrapping up my shopping early. I’m going to let you in on a little secret…that never happens. To be fair, my kids are weird. I try to ask them what they want and they say, Oh, we don’t need anything. Weirdos, right? Most young people are like, here’s my list, I double-spaced it for you so it’s easier to read and numbered the pages….
I am further along this year then I normally am though. The last physical gift I ordered was supposedly delivered today. I have another gift that I don’t technically need until New Year’s and other than that I just need some cash, a couple of gift cards, and stocking stuffers. Oh yeah, stocking stuffers. Sounds easy doesn’t it, but every year I’m pondering what to include in my boys’ stockings.
Hopefully I’ve included a few ideas that will work for you. What other suggestions do you have? And please let me know if you’ve wrapped up your shopping or not. I’d love to know that I’m not the only one out there still braving the crowds.
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Christmas is now less than 5 weeks away. Wow! I’ve not bought the first gift. I am a horrible procrastinator and my family is horrible at letting me know what they want for gifts each year. The combination of these two things is chaos nearly every Christmas season.
It’s also been an especially expensive year. I probably should stop saying “especially” because I honestly feel like I write that every year. I guess that’s the downfall of having an older car and condo. The good news is that my kids are grown and although I still buy gifts, I don’t go as overboard as I used to. That takes a bit of the pressure off.
I save up my various rewards points through the year. I have a credit card that pays some cash back every month, I have shop kick points that can be turned into gift cards that I use to buy Christmas gifts, and a couple of other smaller survey sites I can cash in. My insurance company usually pays out a little holiday dividend every December that is also earmarked for Christmas gifts. Continue reading
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How is it that there’s only 7 weeks left in 2021? This year has really flown by. 2020 was such a crazy year that had us all so isolated and stressed. I think many of us really had big hopes and dreams for a better 2021. And as life has opened back up a bit more with the loosening of Covid-restrictions, I do think it was a better year in a lot of ways.
I am currently sitting in a hotel room on a mini-vacation as I write this post out. I’ve been working crazy hours. Although our office never closed, there was initially some schedule shifting so that we were isolating from each other. Between alternating days in the office, catching Covid in March, and a lot more work created because of various Covid-relief funds coming into our office, it has put me WAY behind. Between a scheduled day off this week and a holiday closing the office one day, I decided to take a personal day on top of those and enjoy a 5-day weekend.
I’m splurging on a hotel for myself for 2 days and then I’ll stay with my son at his apartment for another 2 days before headed back home Sunday. My hotel splurge is being used as a mini writing retreat and for some overall relaxation. I have access to a gym, pool, my laptop and plenty of stuff to read. Most importantly, it gives me some quiet time to reflect on how this year went on a personal level for me and think about what I want for this next year.
Part of my reflection process is looking at the goals I set for 2021 and see how I’m progressing towards them. I won’t lie, it was a bit of a rough process.
I set some lofty financial goals that I am not going to meet (unless that Powerball hits in the next 7 weeks). I’ve increased my emergency fund a bit but made negative process on paying down my credit card debt. An expensive air conditioner repair, new tires for my car and several other pricey car repairs killed me this year. And honestly, although I plan on reduced Christmas spending this year, I’ll probably still be dipping into the emergency fund a bit to avoid any more damage to the credit cards.
Progress on my writing/blogging goals has been abysmal. I have less than a third of the views I wanted on my blog this year and less than a quarter of subscribers I was aiming for. This post will be the 13th post this year, a far cry from the 48 I was shooting for this year.
Hmmm…seems like a year of failures…or was it?
I will easily meet my reading goal of 24 books. I did submit 4 pieces of writing for publication consideration. I’ve taken a couple trips to see Michael at his new place, I’ve been able to tag along on a friend’s camping trip, had a couple of dinners out with friends again, and I’m enjoying this miniature writing retreat. My boys have both graduated from college and they’re working hard on their careers.
Life is all about balance. I’ll be honest, this is something I struggle with constantly. I could have kept up my crazy work pace and skipped this vacation and saved quite a bit of money but what would that have done to my mental health? My father-in-law died unexpectedly a few weeks ago and there’s nothing like losing someone you love and adore to put life in to perspective. So I’ll take this time for me, and I’ll enjoy my visit with my son, and I’ll keep making big goals for myself. Maybe one day I’ll get to the end of the year and look back and think, Wow, I hit every goal I set for myself this year! I hope I don’t though because if I do then I probably lowered my goals/aspirations and I’m not okay with that.
Are any of you reflecting on this past year? Are you getting ready to set next year’s resolutions or goals?
If you’re at all familiar with me, you’ll know I love HGTV…almost as much as my Hallmark channel. One of my favorite shows on HGTV is My Lottery Dream Home with David Bromstad. It’s basically House Hunters for recent lottery winners.
Part of the fun is watching a random episode and trying to guess which season it is by the different number of tattoos David Bromstad has because he’s added quite a few over the 7 seasons that it has been on. The best part of the show for me though is imagining the type of house I would shop for if money was no option. I also like guessing who is going to blow through their lottery winnings and who won’t. C’mon people, if you were about to be evicted from your 1 bedroom apartment and you’re shopping for a $900,000 home with your $1 million dollar lottery ticket….guess what? You’re going to end up right back in that 1 bedroom apartment sooner rather than later because you still have no concept of how to budget your money! Continue reading
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Life is busy. I think more of us than not live lives filled with crazy work schedules, tons of extra-curriculars (especially if you have kids), and lots of stress because of these crazy schedules. Being asked how you are and responding Crazy busy, used to be a badge of honor almost. I think society is shifting a bit though. I’m not sure if it’s because of Covid or something else but I think it’s good that people are wanting to slow down the pace of their lives.
I have lived a crazy busy life for just about as long as I can remember. I blamed it on being a single parent for awhile. Working full-time and then juggling in all the kid responsibilities was hectic. This got even more crazy once the kids got into sports and other extracurriculars like junior firefighters. It seemed like I lived at either the office, in my car, or on the sidelines of a sports field for several years. Continue reading
Fall starts in a little over 3 weeks…September 22nd this year to be exact. I can’t even express how happy this makes me. Fall is my very favorite time of year. Jeans, boots, sweaters, bonfires, roasted marshmallows, colorful foliage, hot lattes and cider. I think you get the drift. Fall is also a great time to practice Hygge.
First off, if you’re not familiar with hygge then you’re most likely reading/saying it wrong. It’s actually pronounced Hoo-gah.
But what is hygge? I couldn’t find just one definition that seemed to fit so I’ll give you my definition. It’s a Danish word that basically describes a way of living that embraces being cozy and calming and living more simply. Fall just seems to be a perfect time to slow down and start appreciating a slower life pace. Continue reading
I was finally able to visit one of my relatives a few weeks ago. It’s probably been a year and a half or longer since I’d been able to do this with the whole Covid thing. It was a very quick but nice visit. As I walked back into my condo Saturday evening, my first thought was Man, I need to clean and organize my house so it looks like Aunt Sue’s.
I will be the first to admit that I did not get the “clean and organized” gene in our family. I want to be clean and organized. Walking into friends or family’s houses that are like that makes me feel calm and relaxed. Sadly, that’s not been motivation enough for me to change my messy habits.
My house is not the only thing that’s cluttered though. In fact, I would even venture to guess that the frequent status of my house is a by-product of other things in my life that are cluttered. I suspect that if I straighten out some other areas, I’ll find it easier to deal with the physical clutter going on. Continue reading
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Do you ever think about habits? A habit is basically something that you do often or regularly enough that you can often do it without thinking. Your morning routine is a good example, most of us probably perform the same or at least a similar list of activities each morning. My list includes showering, brushing my teeth, scooping the litter box and grabbing my large Diet coke from Dairy Queen on the way to the office. Okay, Dairy Queen isn’t really on the way to the office but it’s the route I take, lol.
Habits can be good or bad. Lately I’ve noticed that I have developed some really bad habits. I’ve been working way too many hours, which leads to me being starved by the time I leave the office so I either grab some fast food on the way home (expensive and bad for me) or eat a frozen pizza or bowl of cereal when I get home. It gets worse…then I veg out in front of the tv until midnight before finally heading to bed to do it all over again the next day. Here’s the result of these bad habits: I’m busting the budget eating out, I’ve gained 25 lbs, my writing goals have gone by the wayside, and I’m burnt out at my job. Continue reading
