2013 : Striving (#GetGrooving)

My last post considered what 2012 had been like for me and my family.  I was proud of our progress in most aspects of our life.  I, again, have had no time to sit down and write this week until now, but I have been thinking about what I would like to try and achieve in 2013. 

 

Participating in Kate on Thin Ice's #GetGrooving (Groovy Mums) helped me to focus my 2012 'Hopes and Aims' so I will be doing the same for 2013.  No one can predict the future.  How many of you have had things happen this year that you had no clue would ever occur?  Most I would think.  But a little planning never hurt anyone.  And things won't happen unless YOU make them.

 

With exception of all the normal things you hope a year will bring; good health; happiness for your friends and family; world peace; a lottery win; this post is all about the things that I can make, or help to make happen.

 

2013 Hopes and Aims

 

Family

 

* Holiday of a Lifetime - To really make it that.  As this is the only time, I believe, we will be able to take J1 on this holiday we need to make it count.  Do absolutely everything we ever dreamt of doing and on coming home, have not one single regret. 

 

* Bike Rides - With the award of a bike for J1, we will be able to do that very simple pleasure of going for a family bike ride.  I want to ensure we do this regularly.

 

* Physiotherapy - For J1's physical strengthening to continue to improve through vigilant physiotherapy at home and school.  Great progress has been made with this and it needs to continue as he is growing fast.

 

* Social - We have started to get out and about much more socially as a family and it has been fun and it will be lovely to keep this going. 

 

* Swimming - Again this another simple family activity that has been a little difficult for us to achieve.  However, we have found a swimming pool with reasonable disabled facilities and if we enlist extra hands we can do this as a family.  J2 is also scheduled to start swimming lessons in March.  Safety first for our little fearless one.

 

* Home - Continue to improve our home and garden, including de-cluttering.

 

Really these all come down to one thing - enjoying our time together as a family.

 

 

Personal

 

* Writing - I have a few writing goals for 2013 :

 

- Continue with Camomile Crescent

- Enter at least two writing competitions

- First draft of my novel (when J2 starts Nursery in April)

- To attend a writing workshop in January (booked) and Britmums in June

- Research the book industry in general

 

* Blogging

 

- Continue to blog at least 2-3 times a week

- Raise profile of Lynsey The Mother Duck, via Facebook, Twitter etc

- Get a personalised design for my blog

 

* Social Media & Charity Work

 

- Continue to help the Charity GRACE with their Social Media. 

- Set up a GRACE blog

- Learn more about Social Media as a profession

 

* Running

 

- Continue to run at least twice a week for general health and fitness and maintain weight

- Join a running club or set up a 'running buddies' scheme

- Try and set up a 5K race whereby all racers jog with someone in a wheelchair

- Enter 5K and 10K races all year

- Complete half marathon in March

 

There are also two from last year that are important to ensure happen again this coming year :

 

* A weekend for just The Hubby and I

* One Spa session every three months (only achieved one of those this year - must do better!)

 

Again this might seem like an exhausting list but I will be focusing on them in small bite size pieces.  Most things can be achieved with good organisation, clever use of time and a bit of determination.

 

Have a think about what you want from your year - those things that you can have control over.  What can you make happen?  Baby steps of progress can make the world of difference to a mind that is feeling low, and once you start, you never know what you can achieve.

 

If you need more inspiration take a look at all the posts over at Kate on Thin Ice and see how others are getting on!

 

 

 

 

 

2012 : Achievement

I have been intending to join in with Kate on Thin Ice and the fantastic #Get Grooving initiative for a few weeks now.  Time has not been on my side.  However, although I may not have penned my post, it has been formulating and evolving in my mind, so I am not surprised that at my first opportunity to power up the laptop I have felt compelled to get it written.

I first started joining in with the 'Groovy Mums' blog hop at the end of last year and into the beginning of 2012 because it was a way of tracking what I was doing with my life.  I was entering a second year of being a stay-at-home mum.  I was used to not getting up and going out to 'work' and settled into my 24/7 job of raising two children. 

I craved some structure however.  Groovy Mums encourages you to look at ways to improve things in your life, and subsequently the lives of those around you.  To take steps to improve yourself, no matter how small.  To think about what you want out of life and think about how you can get it.

At the beginning of the year I set down a list of Hopes and Aims for 2012.  It was quite an extensive list and incorporated aims for us as a family and for myself personally.  After my initial post I wondered if I had aimed for a little too much in one year, given that I have a severely disabled son and an extremely hot headed Toddler to look after.

Then I slapped myself on the wrist.  That sort of attitude was not going to get me anywhere.  Instead of looking at the lengthy wish list as a whole, I decided I would focus on one or two items each month.  I am not going to go into a long detailed run down of them all, there are various posts already with updates.  The long and short is I achieved them all bar TWO.  And with that I am pretty damn proud.

What I am more proud of is, as I have been thinking about all of this, the realisation of all the extra things that have been achieved this year.  Not just little insignificant things either.  Big things :

* I started publishing some fictional writing.  I have never done this in the past purely due to fear.  I have also started working on a few 'novel' ideas that have been rattling around in my mind.  I have subscribed to a Writing Magazine, which has introduced me to lots of ideas, information and the idea that I might enter work into competitions. 

* I attended my first blogging conference and met some wonderful fellow bloggers.  This was also a nerve-racking step but I am so glad I took it.  Roll on BritMums Live 2013.

* We took the bull by the horns and applied for some specialist equipment for J1.  These were things that we had only ever believed to be 'wish' items, but I am so happy that we persevered.  They are going to make such a huge difference to all of us because they will open up activities for us to all enjoy that we have never been able to before.

* We also took the plunge and booked a family holiday of a lifetime.  We could have always been 'put off' by the amount of research and fact finding it requires but many incidences this year have made me very aware of how grown up J1 is becoming and we became determined that it could be made to happen.

* The Hubby and I have both found an individual hobby each to enjoy.  Mine is running.  I set a goal of participating in The Great South Run in October and am pleased to say I completed it.  My next goal is our local Half Marathon in March.

* I have started doing some volunteer work for a fabulous cancer charity GRACE.

So I think, as we hurtle towards the end of 2012, that if I had to use one word to describe our year it would be 'Achievement'.  This is very pleasing and I would like to think that as a family we can give ourselves a big old pat on the back.

What word would sum up 2012 for you?

If you want to make changes to your life, no matter how big or small, take a look at the inspiring posts from Kate on Thin Ice.  Kate encourages you to always keep going, even if you feel you may be treading water.  When you think about it, usually turns out you are achieving more than you think.  Link your posts to inspire others, or get inspired if you are lacking motivation.

Now I need to start thinking about what we can achieve in 2013 - the possibilities really could be endless...

What Has Made Me Cheerful This Week?

It is that time of the week once again to thrust out the negative and focus on the positive with Michelle at Mummy from the Heart for :

Reasons to be Cheerful (#R2BC)

This week has been pretty action packed so without further ado, this is what has made me Cheerful this week :

* I successfully completed The BUPA Great South Run.  10 miles on a chilly, but thankfully dry morning in Portsmouth.

* The Great South Run afforded The Hubby and I a rare weekend alone together.  We caught up, laughed, and had a lovely time just the two of us.

* It is Half Term, which although manic is a pleasure. 

* A friend has asked if I could do some social media volunteer work, for the charity GRACE, which I am really excited about.

* I have also been talking to the same friend about being involved with another exciting project, but details are still top secret at the moment.

* My Sister in Law is recovering at home from her massive surgery of last week so we went and collected my beautiful 18 month old nephew to look after for a few days, to ensure she has proper peace and quiet at home.  He is adorable and it is lovely to see him and J2 at the age where they can play nicely together.

* I managed to get an instalment of Camomile Crescent written and published within a week, rather than the usual two.  The mind is in overdrive of plot lines now, for that and some other WIP I have on the go.

* Lynsey The Mother Duck blog has received a record number of views for the month, which always thrills me.

If you want to know more about the Reasons to be Cheerful blog hop and would like to check out other cheerful bods, fly over to Mummy from the Heart.