Twelve Months In & 2017 Goal Review

Well, 2017 is over. I am FINALLY back at work, not sick, etc. etc. In a fun twist of fate KC got an awful stomach bug just as I was recovering from my virus. He's better now, but goodness. We'd like a break!

As the fog is lifting I am finally able to think a bit about 2017 in review. I missed my monthly linkup with Kristen and Gretch, so I'm going to recap my December and Yearly goals all in one swoop!

1) Goals for December:

2) Work on (MY FIRST!) December Daily album!

Check! I am ALMOST finished with it too, which is pretty good, all things considered!

3)3) Read books from under-loved genres (2017 goal)

I read another graphic novel, a historical fiction, and a contemporary adult novel. They were all pretty good too!

3) Try specific ideas from The Little Book of Hygge

We stayed home a lot, but didn't do anything specific from the book.

4) Try a new Christmas cookie recipe

Nope!

5) Get holiday or end of year cards sent out

See #8... :( 

6) Do #allthefestivethings

We did do this! Busy busy!

7) Go through 3 boxes (or the like) that we are storing. Purge, purge, purge!

Nope, though I did give my purses and tote bags a good re-organize!

8) Take a few things off of my plate - if I can...

See #5. 

9) Think about social media schedule for 2018

Not really.

10) Read and then read more

I did very well at this before I got sick!

11) Spend time on non-paper crafts

Nope.

12) Take more photos at home with KC/cats, etc.

I think we did ok at this!

Total: 6/12 - Not bad for a very full month of holiday things. I think I could have polished off a bit more had I not gotten sick. But what are you going to do? :) 

2017 Goals in Review:

What Went Well: 

KC and I started taking walks during the work day. I think this was tremendous for self care, and got us moving more. It's not "working out" but it is a sustainable step. I'll take it!

I worked hard on conquering my dental anxiety. I had so many appointments, and got a lot of work done. I feel less anxious now, and I am in a better place about it all. I didn't get it completely finished, but that was mainly due to lack of insurance money after a while. I go back this month. Feeling good about this despite the not-so-fun nature of it all.

We were able to make less plans for most of 2017. I tend to over-schedule and commit like crazy. So this was really lovely and needed to have a break. I think it really helped especially with divorce stresses, etc. throughout the year. The busier months were much more stressful.

I used YouTube a lot for my scrapbook and crafty ventures. I was so delighted and surprised to see over 100 followers at the end of 2017! I'm getting a bit more engagement, and making videos is becoming more second-nature as well. Thanks to all who have followed along there! :)

Along with being home more, we were able to focus on seasonal living a little bit better. We made a point to get out and do things related to the season or holidays. We ate with the seasons a bit more, etc.

I surpassed my reading goal for the year, and I read 58/50 books! Overall it was a very good reading year. I talked about my favorites from 2017 in this post. :) While I didn't read a book from every under-loved genre I mentioned, or as many classics or non-fiction as I wanted to, I still feel good about where I ended up, and I think I read more overall than I would have otherwise! I am also so happy with my book ban progress (coming soon, I swear!). I sold back so many books after reading!

Our decision to move in with my in-laws, (as crazy as it sounds!) was a great one. We are all so comfortable living together. They love our cats. We love having more family time. It's overall just more cozy and less stress. It is also definitely helping us to save for our first home. Our savings is looking so good, and we are hoping to start house hunting this spring! :) 

What I Hope To Keep Improving:

More exercise. I'm so happy with our walks, but I want to keep adding in more exercise. More walks, more yoga, etc.

Cooking and eating at home. 2017 was so much about self-care, but also about giving ourselves grace. It was a really tough year, and we didn't want to beat ourselves up about going out for meals, etc. We didn't go overboard, but didn't cook that much either. I would like to see a continual effort toward cooking at home more in 2018. I think we can handle another gradual shift! Baby steps! :) 

Travel balance. In 2016 we were traveling like crazy. In 2017... we traveled comparatively very little. KC and I have had chats about ideal amounts of time between trips. It's unclear what we'll do quite yet. But I think we are hoping for a few more trips this year. Even short/close by ones. :) Breaks are important!

Organization & Packing. With a house buying and moving on the horizon, I need to buckle down on some de-cluttering, organizing, and re-packing. I started strong in Jan/Feb last year with this, and then quickly puttered out in favor of a more organized living space. I hope to get this under wraps at the beginning of this year.

I have a lot of thoughts on specific goals for 2018. I am excited to share them soon! 

How was December for you?

What did you accomplish in 2017?

What are your goals for this year?

I'm so excited to catch up with you all now that I'm feeling better! I can't wait to read about your goals! :) 

XO,

Alexandra

Eleven Months In // 2017 Goal Progress

What even were my November goals? Yikes, even with #lybholidayl (which I swear helped!) November was a bit of a train wreck. Between my parent's divorce trial, arranging airport shuttles for family (missing planes, etc.), and Scali going to the 24 Hour vet and needing monitored... it was seriously a crazy month. I don't care to re-live it.. so we're moving right on.

In order to keep up with my goals for 2017 a little better, I have been trying to do monthly mini goals. :) See my 2017 goals here.

It's DECEMBER. Dear Lord. Let's see how it went!

**I don't know why half of my IG photos are being weird...! : / **

November Goals:

1) Keep participating in the November Live Your Best (Holiday) Life with Shea!

Shea and I have been holding a "Live Your Best Holiday Life for Less" challenge in November. It is meant to reduce holiday stress by sharing one helpful prompt per day. It focuses on self-care, gratitude, planning, and festivity. I did this in November! I think I managed to do or tweak every single prompt, we are so excited to be just starting December's list! We'd love for you to join us at any point. It's a pop in, pop out, and make it work type of challenge!

2) Get Advent Calendar Together (this will be my first year making one!)

I had an idea, and squashed it. I started the new one, it went a lot better. I have most of the calendar ready, and should be able to add the missing items (later in month) before it is time. Not perfect, but it will be just fine! The goal is to have fun anyhow, right? I think it will be fun! :) 

3) Get "little gifts" ready for December

A post shared by Alexandra Consolver (@simplyalexandra12) on Nov 14, 2017 at 7:26pm PST

I got a few cards, and gifts ready to mail. I still need to do a bit of work on this though! :) 

4) Build in two extra de-stressing times per week (ideas: turn on music at work, color each night?, long bath, mani/pedi, reading, hallmark movies (media diet), 3pm music alarm, yoga on tuesdays, ) 

I didn't exactly keep great track of this one. I did set an alarm on my work email calendar to turn on music in the afternoons though, which I think helped. A lot of the #lybholidayl prompts helped as well. I think I did ok at this through almost the end of the month. :) 

5) Make pie crusts in advance of Thanksgiving!

Does the day before count? Honestly, I'm just happy that I made them again this year, the last few I did store-bought (which is totally fine! but not my personal preference) so this felt like improvement. Making them in the food processor is thebomb.com.

6) Work on a November Daily gratitude album!

A post shared by Alexandra Consolver (@simplyalexandra12) on Nov 28, 2017 at 2:49pm PST

I started this and did enjoy it! :) It was so different than October's album! I am finishing it up now and starting on December's! :) Want to see? Check it out:

7) Go through 3 boxes (or the like) that we are storing. Purge, purge, purge!

Laughs hysterically... why is this still on the list?

8) Unsubscribe from pesky email lists!

I UNSUBSCRIBED FROM SO MANY THINGS! :) 

9) Check more items off my fall bucket list

A post shared by Alexandra Consolver (@simplyalexandra12) on Nov 16, 2017 at 5:47am PST

I did check a few items off my fall bucket list! A few won't happen, a few that might before it is officially winter, but I feel good about it! :)

10) Read books from under-loved genres (2017 goal)

A post shared by Alexandra Consolver (@simplyalexandra12) on Nov 7, 2017 at 3:42pm PST

I read almost nothing in November. I read one whole book, not of a new genre, and started one that was in an under-loved genre. I guess that count by a pass, but I was hoping for a few whole books. Oh well. 

11) Spend time on non-paper crafts

Nope. Paper is my jam... so... maybe next year.

12) Learn more/implement ideas related to hygge

A post shared by Alexandra Consolver (@simplyalexandra12) on Dec 1, 2017 at 7:40pm PST

We made a reading nook, and have been using it on and off. We did try a new recipe at the end of October that simmers for awhile and is very hearty so it felt pretty hygge. Having our tree up early with the lights also felt hygge. One of our festive activities and another recipe are both from the Little Book of Hygge, so I am excited for those this and next week! :) I want to keep going, but we did try some. :) 

Total: 10/12 - feeling really good about this, especially because it was a pretty tough month. I think that #lybholidayl really helped as well. I am excited to finish out the year strong. Even if I don't check some long-standing items off of it just yet.

Other Things That Happened:

A lot more family stress. I spent a lot of nights very anxious, very worried, wondering who is telling the truth, if it matters, and how to best help out my sister Olivia. Ready for the divorce to be "over" or at least resolved... which sadly has been drawn out... and will now continue into 2018. Our family is not in a good place. I still find that offering help or suggestions, or trying to create conflict to avoid passive aggression it hasn't been going well. Maybe slightly better...? And I'm often left feeling worse than I did before I stepped in.

We saw Murder on the Orient Express. It was pretty good! I thought it was true to the book, though a bit less suspenseful. The cinematography was lovely, and the cast was great. The movie itself was just a bit slow for me. Overall I recommend if you are interested.

We celebrated my MIL's birthday. We had some family dinners which was nice! :) 

A post shared by Alexandra Consolver (@simplyalexandra12) on Nov 18, 2017 at 11:58am PST

We saw Waitress the musical, and it was amazing. 5 Stars. It is touring. Go. See. It.

A post shared by Alexandra Consolver (@simplyalexandra12) on Aug 27, 2017 at 7:20am PDT

Scali, our little pirate cat was having some urinary issues. I'll spare you the details... but we did go to the emergency vet, lose quite a bit of sleep, and stress over him for a few days. He's ok now, and I appreciate all of your comments and concern! :) I had more notes from you all than people I know IRL... *shrugs*

We saw our first holiday performance of the year. We actually got free tickets (cool!) from my FIL's office. It was called Cantus: Three Tales of Christmas. It was really lovely acapella, all males, which was really a fun change. It was a nice break.

A post shared by Alexandra Consolver (@simplyalexandra12) on Dec 1, 2017 at 12:15pm PST

Goals for December:

1) Work on (MY FIRST!) December Daily album!
2) Read books from under-loved genres (2017 goal)
3) Try specific ideas from The Little Book of Hygge
4) Try a new Christmas cookie recipe
5) Get holiday or end of year cards sent out
6) Do #allthefestivethings
7) Go through 3 boxes (or the like) that we are storing. Purge, purge, purge!
8) Take a few things off of my plate - if I can...
9) Think about social media schedule for 2018
10) Read and then read more
11) Spend time on non-paper crafts
12) Take more photos at home with KC/cats, etc.

How was November for you?

What did you accomplish?

What are your goals for December? Have you started thinking about 2018 yet?! *gasp*

Linking up with Kristen and Gretch for, What's New With You tomorrow.

XO,

Alexandra

Ten Months In // 2017 Goal Progress

It is my favorite part of the year, the festive months, the cozy months, the chilly months! YAY! I finally feel "right". 

In order to keep up with my goals for 2017 a little better, I have been trying to do monthly mini goals. :) See my 2017 goals here.

I don't have a lot of goal-related photos this month, but I do have some photos of what we've been up to at the bottom. :) 

Goals for October:

1) Read/start 1 non-fiction book.

Yay, I started reading another book on Hygge! I am enjoying it... but also... a little annoyed with the author. It's kind of like a memoir.. Too soon to say.

2) Read 2 or more Netgalley books!

I read two Netgalley books, yay! Both Christmas ones, but that's ok! :) Check out SUYB next week for details! :) 

3) Get some of my favorite albums on vinyl!

Crickets. They are still just hanging out in my cart on Amazon...

4) Read 5 total books 

Just three so far.

5) Clean up / use second room (dust shelves, purge magazines, put away packed items, hang up bulletin board, make reading nook...)

We actually did pretty well at this. At the very end of the month. While cleaning for our Halloween party, we got everything quite a bit cleaner and more organized! I still need to do a magazine purging session, but we'll count this as a pass!

6) Finish planning our Halloween Costumes/party details!  (eeee!!!)

We did this! We changed our minds a few times the week of Halloween... but... I love how things turned out! :) Check out yesterday's post for details! :) 

7) Go through 3 boxes (or the like) that we are storing. Purge, purge, purge!

Ummm... We definitely sorted through some trouble spots, but no official boxes/bags. Fail.

8) Learn how to use another program for editing my videos!

I figured out how to use my phone to do all of my editing, or when there's not enough space on my phone... to use my FIL's Mac. :) 

9) Check some items off my fall bucket list

Yes, we are making progress on this one! We've checked 9 of 27 off, and have plans to do more as the weeks go on! :) 

10) Work on new cleaning schedule

I did make a new draft of this. Our schedule is kind of weird compared to the cleaning schedule we used to use and love.. so I'm not sure, it might need more tweaking. But hey, progress. :) 

11) Read books from under-loved genres (2017 goal)

I am in the middle of a non-fiction, a historical fiction (partly, it has flashbacks, that counts right?!), a book of poetry, and a classic. I think that's close enough to call it good. :) 

12) Read/start 1 classic novel

I'm still in the middle of Alice in Wonderland/Through the Looking Glass and In Cold Blood. :) I didn't feel the need to start a THIRD classic. LOL.

13) Learn more/implement ideas related to hygge

Still reading my second book on the topic. I've been turning on lamps at home more, as well as trying to cozy up with the cats, watch movies that are comfort movies for us *cough* The Hobbit *cough*... and generally spend evenings at home when we can. We've also been making some cozy meals like a new stew recipe. :) Feeling good about the cozy. Definitely room to increase it though! :) 

Total: 10/13 - feeling really good about this. It's a big weight off of my shoulders to have a new way to edit videos. Even though I haven't read a lot, I was glad to check off some Netgalley books. Excited to be living fall 2017 to the fullest. :)

Other Things That Happened:

A lot of family stress. I spent a lot of nights very anxious, very worried, I think that's probably why I got sick. Ready for the divorce to be "over" or at least resolved soon. Our family is not in a good place. The trial is next month.. so hopefully that will at least make a few things official. :( And generally when I try to offer help or suggestions, or create conflict to avoid passive aggression it hasn't been going well. And I'm often left feeling worse.

... but... 

We got to see Olivia do some junior cheerleading at a high school football game! She had a blast! 

Blast from the past tonight! 🚀 Hanson celebrated 25 years of music. They played Penny & Me. So I was happy. 💕😊 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #flashesofdelight #liveauthentic #instadaily #thatsdarling #hanson #hanson25 #lfk #blastfromthepast #poptart #concert #90smusic

A post shared by Alexandra Consolver (@simplyalexandra12) on Oct 12, 2017 at 8:40pm PDT

We went to see Hanson!

We got to see @vancejoy for the 4th time tonight. Played 3 new songs. 😱 Weekend. Made. Thank you @965thebuzz #nocostumeparty 💕🎶🎃👻 . . . . . . . . . #flashesofdelight #liveauthentic #instadaily #thatsdarling #concert #vancejoy #kclive #kcmo #965thebuzz #buzzfamily #music #weekend #weekendvibes #friday #fridaythe13th #friyay

A post shared by Alexandra Consolver (@simplyalexandra12) on Oct 13, 2017 at 9:19pm PDT

We went to see Vance Joy!

We went to the renaissance festival and had a lot of fun. 

Patchin’ 🎃🎃🎃 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #fall #pumpkinpatch #pumpkin #hayride #instadaily #liveauthentic #notentirelyperfect #flashesofdelight #thatsdarling #darlingweekend #family #familyfun

A post shared by Alexandra Consolver (@simplyalexandra12) on Oct 22, 2017 at 5:23pm PDT

We went to the pumpkin patch.

We had a super fun Halloween party with our friends & got to see Olivia on Halloween! :) Check out the details, here.

Goals for November:

1) Keep participating in the November Live Your Best (Holiday) Life with Shea!
2) Get Advent Calendar Together (this will be my first year making one!)
3) Get "little gifts" ready for December
4) Build in two extra de-stressing times per week (ideas: turn on music at work, color each night?, long bath, mani/pedi, reading, hallmark movies (media diet), 3pm music alarm, yoga on tuesdays, ) 
5) Make pie crusts in advance of Thanksgiving!
6) Work on a November Daily gratitude album!
7) Go through 3 boxes (or the like) that we are storing. Purge, purge, purge!
8) Unsubscribe from pesky email lists!
9) Check more items off my fall bucket list
10) Read books from under-loved genres (2017 goal)
11) Spend time on non-paper crafts
12) Learn more/implement ideas related to hygge

How was October for you?

What did you accomplish?

What are your goals for November? 

Linking up with Kristen and Gretch for, What's New With You tomorrow.

XO,

Alexandra

Nine Months In // 2017 Goal Progress

Whew, I'm so glad that it is finally October, this month starts my very favorite time of year! :) I did pretty well with my September goals, and am excited to accomplish more this month! :)

Goals for September:

1) Finish up planning for NYC! - make it legit, no slacking AC!

Check! Whew, we did so much planning! We booked our hotel. I took a bunch of time to narrow down my bookstore list, art museum list, and restaurant lists. I added hours/days that places were open/closed. I added info about free nights, etc. I mapped out things that were happening on specific days (a rough schedule) and made sure to note free nights/closed days for things on it. I then had KC help me put those items on a map so we could sort of divide things up by area. This might sound excessive, but it's good to have an outline, even if we decide not to stick to it. I don't want any more trips where we show up somewhere and the thing is closed. We also purchased more tickets for Top of the Rock and Wicked. :) 

2) Read 2 or more Netgalley books!

Check! I feel like everyone comments on this section, but Netgalley is hard to keep up with sometimes! We all have queues that are huge. I have new books I want to request, but I wanted to check more off my queue first! I managed to read 3 Netgalley books in September. I read Girl Off the Grid, The Yellow Envelope, and The Beautiful Ones. All pretty different, but I enjoyed them all!

3) Get some of my favorite albums on vinyl!

Not quite. I added some to my Amazon cart, but I haven't pulled the trigger yet. I keep spending my fun money on TONS of clothes and PL things... *whistles innocently*.... so, this will have to wait until next paycheck!

4) Read 5 total books 

Check! September was another really good reading month! I read 13 books (a few were in my August post from the first few days of Sept.) I read A Man Called Ove, The Falconer, The Vanishing Throne, The Fallen Kingdom, The Bookshop on the Corner, The Dry, Girl Off the Grid, The Summer I Turned Pretty, It's Not Summer Without You, We'll Always Have Summer, Passenger, The Yellow Envelope, and The Beautiful Ones. Come back on 10/9 to see my reviews for SUYB! :) 

5) Clean up / use second room (dust shelves, purge magazines, put away packed items, hang up bulletin board, make reading nook...)

Not quite. We started clearing this area. I sorted through my magazine shelf. KC hung up some fairy lights... but we haven't moved much beyond that. We have ambitions to get some floor cushions and pillows to plop in the corner. But we need to find some, buy them (WHY SO EXPENSIVE?!), and then move the ULTRA heavy desk... we'll see how this goes. :P

6) Plan out super fun Halloween Costumes  (eeee!!!)

Not quite. We chose a theme for our party (we had friends vote), I loved how Audrey does a theme and it makes everyone get a bit more invested in the costume aspect. :) So, we'll see how it goes. The theme is "Magic" as in anything that is magical (Harry Potter, LOTR, Magicians, GoT, etc. etc. etc.) Millions of options. KC and I have a few that we are leaning toward, we're hoping to pick soon so we can start scoring thrift stores for the perfect items.

7) Go through 3 boxes (or the like) that we are storing. Purge, purge, purge!

Nope. We finally donated a few boxes that have been taking up our space by the doorway! Woot. I went through a few boxes/piles of miscellany that were lying around... however I don't feel like I really went through any of our boxes that we moved/stored... which is the real goal. So not quite yet.

8) Learn how to use another program for editing my videos!

Not quite. I found a new program I think will work, I just need to get my videos downloaded to a computer to try it (I had previously been uploading them directly to YouTube, which was way easier). The new program seems straight forward, but I haven't had time to look at the audio portion yet.

9) Spend more time moving/outside, when the weather is nice - enjoy it!

Check! We were hit or miss with our walks at the beginning of the month. We ended up going on about 10 walks, and I did yoga 3/4 of the Tuesdays! I would also like to say that I did a marathon shopping day with my mom and Olivia. We stood/walked/tried on clothes for about 7 hours. Not bad for my steps that day! I would like to amend that the weather has not been nice, it has been atrociously hot.

10) Work on new cleaning schedule

Le ugh. Nope. 

11) Read books from under-loved genres (2017 goal)

Check! I read a mystery and a non-fiction book. I started a poetry book, and a few contemporary YA/General fiction (which is not my normal genre, though not one I listed as under-loved specifically).

12) Brainstorm some ideas for fall!

Check! I made a huge list of ideas in my planner, and I chatted with KC about it (it is his favorite season). I added his ideas too. I feel like half of them are food-related items, or watching movies... but that works. :P Check out my fall bucket list! I think that doing an October Daily (album) will definitely help me focus on the season! :) 

Total: 6/12 - I didn't do that many things this month, but I feel like a lot of them I made SOME progress on, instead of not even trying. Which I feel really good about. September was a good month! :) 

Rationale/News: September was a really nice, calm month. I did some PL, I did a lot of reading, we watched some movies with KC's parents. I did some social things, I did a lot of planning for NYC. I went to the dentist for my cleaning, and I did yoga on some Tuesdays. Overall I'm feeling really really good, and very excited to continue the year because I LOVE fall and winter and the holidays on deck!! :) 

Other Things That Happened:

I shopped. A LOT. Posts coming soon, I promise. I'm kind of a perfectionist about clothes posts which is dumb..but you know... 

View from the Brooklyn Bridge. 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #brooklynbridge #brooklyn #latergram #travel #ttot #nyc #newyork #wanderlust #instadaily #flashesofdelight #liveauthentic #thatsdarling

A post shared by Alexandra Consolver (@simplyalexandra12) on Oct 1, 2017 at 2:51pm PDT

We went to NYC! We had so much fun!! I'll have a recap up soon! :) In the meantime, keep up with me on Instagram! 

Goals for October:

1) Read/start 1 non-fiction book.
2) Read 2 or more Netgalley books!
3) Get some of my favorite albums on vinyl!
4) Read 5 total books 
5) Clean up / use second room (dust shelves, purge magazines, put away packed items, hang up bulletin board, make reading nook...)
6) Finish planning our Halloween Costumes/party details!  (eeee!!!)
7) Go through 3 boxes (or the like) that we are storing. Purge, purge, purge!
8) Learn how to use another program for editing my videos!
9) Check some items off my fall bucket list
10) Work on new cleaning schedule
11) Read books from under-loved genres (2017 goal)
12) Read/start 1 classic novel
13) Learn more/implement ideas related to hygge

How was September for you?

What did you accomplish?

What are your goals for October? 

Linking up with Kristen and Gretch for, What's New With You tomorrow.

XO,

Alexandra