We made it to 2025. Every year, around this time, I like to reflect on the year before and write about my goals for the new year. 

Last year, I had four goals. I wanted to start my curly hair journey, make time for friends, travel somewhere new and love myself more. I managed to accomplish maybe three of those things.

I've been blow drying and flat ironing my hair straight for over 20 years and fighting my natural texture. I wanted to embrace the natural waves and learn how to style it. This past year I've been experimenting with different products and brushes and techniques. I still haven't found the perfect combination, but it's a work in process. Here's a picture of one of the good wavy days.

I did more activities this year with my group chat friends and met up for random lunches and dinners with other friends. I even went to a concert and got to see Green Day, a band I used to love so much in high school. 

I did travel somewhere new -- kind of. A friend from high school and I were meeting another friend from high school in Las Vegas for the Lovers and Friends Festival. We hadn't seen each other in a really long time. And while it wasn't my first time in Vegas, it was my first time as an adult. Even though the concert was eventually canceled the night before, we still had a great time.

Loving myself is still a work in progress. I've started seeing a therapist and she's been helping me. We have only met a few times, so still working on getting more comfortable and letting down my guard.

So now, that brings us to my goals for this year. My goals have always been kind of broad and once I wrote them down, I never really actively worked at accomplishing those goals. I wouldn't even remember what my goals were until the New Year when I look at the previous year's post. Here are some things I would want to accomplish this year:

1.    Learn more about dry eye.  I have so many patients with dry eyes and I would love to be able to offer them more solutions, other than just telling them to pick up artificial tears. I hope to attend some CE classes and conferences, centered around dry eye this year and have our office at work become a Dry Eye Center of Excellence. 

2.    Declutter. I have a tendency to hold on to things, because I may need them in the future. And yes, sometimes that does happen. And something I've held on to for years, becomes useful. But, I do have a lot of stuff. And our tiny home doesn't have a lot of room for all my stuff. I need to learn to let some things go.

3.    Cook more. I'm such a bad cook. I want to get into the habit of making more food. Even if it's just for me, since my husband and kids don't always like the same food I do. I need to go and buy my own groceries and actually use what I buy.

4.    Read books. I haven't read a book in years. I've bought books. I've tried to read books, but I never finish reading a book. I need to start reading more books and make time to read more books.

I think that's a good start for my goals. What are you working towards accomplishing this year?

 

I say this every January, but, how is it 2023? That doesn't even look right to me.

Every year, around this time, I reflect back on the previous year and set some goals for the New Year. I started out last year with a sprained ankle, which actually turned out to be a fracture. It took a long time to get over that injury. I was still doing PT during the summer. So, a lot of what I was focused on, especially at the beginning of the year, was just getting better and being able to walk and drive again.

Last year, I set out to continue my fitness journey, work to become independent and to spend more time with my friends and family. Looking back, I feel I did a fairly good job at accomplishing those goals. Once I was able to walk again, I started working out again and even ended the year completing an 8 week Get Fit and Moving Challenge from Chloe Ting. Though, I did end up hurting my knee, so we'll see what happens with that. I also feel like I progressed in my goal to be more independent. I'm not 100% where I want to be, but I'm getting there. As for spending time with friends and family, I definitely feel like I took more time to hang out with people or at least reach out to people more regularly and I will continue to do that this year.

So, for goals this year...

1)  Continue my fitness journey - Yes, this is the same goal as last year. I started working out regularly in 2020 and I want to continue that this year. I want to work on getting stronger and more toned and maintaining my weight. I plan to continue my home workouts, but also look into adding some other physical activity. A friend and I were talking about maybe taking Pilates together. She also has been trying to get me to go to her Orange Theory classes. So we'll see!

2) Make more time for my hobbies - I find it relaxing to knit and crochet. So, this year, I want to make more time for that. I enjoy making things. I like making things to wear and little toys for the kids. And I feel like the more I do it, the better I'll get at it. Goal is to try and do some knitting or crocheting at least once a week. Instead of scrolling mindlessly through social media, I should be working on my knitting or crocheting. 

3) Be more social - This goes along with the goal last year to spend more time with people I care about. I can be so antisocial and often turn down invites to hang out. I'm an introvert and sometimes I'm happiest just being by myself. But I will make an attempt this year to hang out more. Do things with people. Make lunch and dinner dates. 

4) Travel more - I love traveling. We usually go to same places every year. This year, I'd love to have a chance to visit somewhere new. I always hear stories from people about all the places they've visited, and I get so jealous. I need to see if I can travel somewhere different this year. Start out with something small. Maybe a weekend trip to a city that I haven't been to. A solo trip has also been on my bucket list. So maybe this will be the year! We'll see!

I think that's a good start to some goals. Hopefully I can accomplish these. 

Do you set goals for yourself at the beginning of the year? What are you hoping to accomplish in 2023?

 

I honestly cannot believe it's 2022 already. I feel like 2021 went by pretty quickly.

I started 2021 with no real goals. Only with the intention of living in the moment. I'm not really sure I accomplished that. But I sure did end the year in a big way. Falling and spraining (or fracturing? Not sure yet) my right ankle pretty badly! I haven't been able to put weight on it or walk in three weeks!

But, even with that, I am going to set some goals for this year. Not sure how this year will turn out, but hopig I can accomplish these before the year ends.

1.  Continue Working Out

I had started to get pretty regular with working out before I fell. I was feeling stronger and felt like I was getting more toned. When my foot is better, I am hoping to be able to pick that back up and grow even stronger.

2.  Be More Independent

This not being able to walk or drive or do things for myself has been super frustrating. Once my foot is better, I want to be able to do more things for myself. Stop being scared to drive to new places. Learn to actually cook more than just spaghetti! Go on more solo trips.

3.  Spend More Time With The Ones I Care About

People come and go in your life and I want to appreciate those who are in my life now. I hope to plan more lunch dates and weekend trips. Mom and daughter and Mom and son outings. Show the people I care about how much they mean to me.

I think those are some good goals to start out with. Though the main goal for me right now is to have my ankle heal!

Have you set any goals for the year?

Happy New Year! I haven't blogged about anything in so long. I just did not have any motivation last year and honestly, wasn't sure if I was going to keep this blog up or just take it down.

I reread my goals post from the beginning of 2020 and I was so hopeful. I mean I guess I did accomplish some of them. I definitely tried to work out more and participated in a few Chloe Ting Challenges. But, still not on a regular basis.

I wanted to be present with my family more and ha, those six weeks that our office was closed, I definitely did get to spend a lot more time with them!

With 2021 not really being too different from 2020 so far, I wasn't sure if I was even going to set any goals. Who knows how this year will turn out?

So, for now, I am just going to try and Live In The Moment. Stop trying to plan for things so much and just try and enjoy each day as it comes. Hard to do but will definitely try.

Can you believe it's 2020 already?! It really feels like 2019 went by so fast!

I'm starting the year off sick. I've been battling bronchitis for like three weeks now! I've gone to Urgent Care and the ER and have tried a whole slew of medications and nothing has helped! So, that leads me to my first goal of the year. Well, other than getting better!

1)  To start a regular workout regimen

Up until now, I've never really worked out. I might do a random exercise DVD here and there, but nothing on the regular. As I'm getting older, I realize I can't keep living like I did 20, or even, 10 years ago. Plus, I have family history of pretty much every health issue out there. I need to start taking better care of myself.

So, this year, I will start something. I haven't quite decided yet  I have a couple friends who do Orange Theory. I'm just not sure that's the right fit for me. I have another friend who has been doing a pole dancing class. That looks fun. But, I don't want people judging me for taking it. I also looked at Pure Barre. But the closest class is 40 minutes away.

Once I figure it out, I’ll share on the blog and/or social.

Wow! It's 2019 already! I don't know about you, but I am glad 2018 is over. It was such a challenging year. And while it had its ups and downs, I am ready for a fresh start.

The year started out pretty rough. I spent the first month just feeling sad and not sure what I wanted to do. I spent a good bit of it just crying and being mad at myself for being so sad. I took some time off work and went on a quick trip with my sister up to New York City. It was a lot of fun and a much needed break.

February, I decided I needed a change. I was tired of working every single weekend and feeling left out at home. I just felt so disconnected with my family and I started looking for a new job. I had a few job opportunities that opened up, but none that really worked for me.

I can't believe it's 2018 already! It seems like 2017 went by so quickly!

As in years past, I like to reflect on the previous year and set some goals on things that I want to accomplish for the new year.

I started the year off with the intention of traveling more and trying to visit as many national parks as we could. In the beginning of the year, we did pretty well and took advantage of the Free Admission Days at the national parks. But things slowed down after Spring Break and we didn't do much travel once the summer was over. Luckily, we did get a chance to take our annual trip to the Outer Banks and Disney World.

I'm happy to announce that I have been selected to be a member of the Chick-Fil-A Mom Panel for 2017-2018. This will be my fourth year on the panel.

My entire family loves Chick-Fil-A! We probably eat Chick-Fil-A at least once a week. It's a great option when we don't have the time to cook or when we're traveling. There's something there for each of us to eat.

I celebrated my being selected for the panel by having breakfast at Chick-Fil-A last week.


As a member of the Chick-Fil-A Mom Panel, I'll post news about new menu items, services, and other fun things from Chick-Fil-A!

My last few weeks of December was busy, busy, busy! But, I'm back!

The kids are back to school today and I finally have some time to sit and blog!

How were your holidays? Mine was fun! I got a chance to catch up with my sister, who had moved back up to New York at the end of 2015. She had quit her job in Brooklyn and is considering moving back to the DC area, so I'm excited!

Christmas was a little somber. We spent time with both my side of the family and my husband's and that was nice. But, we found out that a family friend was recently diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. That came as a big shock to everyone.

As for resolutions, I usually reread what I wrote around this time the previous year. And as always, I didn't accomplish any of the goals that I had set for myself.

This year, I'd love to travel more. Last year, we had a great two-week visit to the Outer Banks. We also surprised the kids with a trip to HersheyPark and to Penn's Cave. And of course, we took our annual trip to Disney World! I'd love to be able to take the kids on more road trips this year!

I'd also like to get better at knitting and crochet. It would be nice to get to the point where I can open up a little Etsy shop and sell whatever I make. I'm hoping to tackle cable and fair isle knitting this winter.

As for the blog, again I still want to do a redesign and change the name. I need to narrow down what I want the focus to be on and go from there.

Do you set resolutions for yourself? What are your goals this year?

It's hard to believe but 2014 is over and it's the start of a new year!  2014 was full of ups and downs for me and my family.  My youngest celebrated her first birthday, as did my niece.  We had a fun summer full of trips to museums and amusement parks.  Plus, we took a week-long trip to Disney World in the fall.  We also had health scares with my Dad being hospitalized a couple times and surgeries for both him and my mother-in-law.

And so, I'm looking forward to starting anew.  I don't usually make resolutions but I have a few that I want to try and achieve this year:

1.  I want to be more present with my family.  -  My kids think of me as always being on my phone or on the computer.  Even when I'm supposed to be spending time with them, I'm not really spending time with them.  I need to pay 100% attention to them.  Time goes so fast.  Already my oldest is 10.  Soon, she'll be a teenager and may not want to spend time with me.  I need to be with her now.

2.  I need to get in shape.  - Yes, this is something a lot of people say they want to do.  But, it's true.  I don't really exercise at all.  The most walking I do most days is to the school and back to pick up the kids.  I need to be more active.  I used to take walks with my kids when I only had one of two.  Now, that I have four, I just don't really do anything anymore.  I need to strive to achieve some sort of physical activity at least three times a week.  What kind of activities do you do?  Give me some ideas!

3.  I want to redo this blog.  - This started out as just a place to post reviews.  I'd love for it to be more than that.  I'm hoping to do a whole redesign and name change this month.  I'm still brainstorming on ideas, but check back soon!

I don't want to do too many resolutions.  I feel if you make too many, you may not end up achieving any.  So, I'll start with these three.

Have you made any resolutions?  I'd love to hear what you're hoping to achieve this year!  Maybe we can help each other reach our goals!

(Miss Part 1 of my recap? Go here to read it!)

After leaving the conference room to feed the baby, I came back to find everyone else on a snack/bathroom break.  I took the opportunity to take some pictures and to take a look at the display of homemade crafts from the #DisneySide @Home Celebration Parties held around the country earlier this year.  They had asked hosts to mail in any crafts we had made for our parties for a chance to be featured on a MomTV show and to win a gift card.  I had mailed in a couple crafts, but wasn't featured on the show.

#DisneySide @Home crafts

Sadly, my one picture of all the crafts is blurry!  I started taking closer pictures of the crafts when I spotted the goody bag I had made for my #DisneySide @Home party!  One of the girls didn't come, so I had submitted the craft.  You can see other pictures of it in my #DisneySide @Home party post.  I haven't put up a tutorial, but if anyone is interested, leave me a comment!

My #DisneySide @Home Party Craft

It's been more than a month now since I attended the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration (SMMC) On-The-Road conference in Philadelphia.    It was a wonderful event full of fun, learning and surprises.  They packed so much information in those 5 hours that I've had a hard time trying to organize it all and get it down in one post!  I figured I'd break it up into a couple posts.

This was my first time attending a conference of this kind.  I've attended conferences for work but the main goal there was just to get in and earn your continuing education hours.  There isn't that much networking that takes place.  Some attendees don't even listen to the lectures and aren't very enthusiastic at all about the subjects being discussed.  The Disney SMMC event was entirely the opposite.  Attendees were encouraged to network and told to bring plenty of business cards.  The speakers had our undivided attention and instead of being on our phones and laptops to tune out the speakers, we were taking pictures and posting what they had to say.

It's only the beginning of May and so far, this month has been turning out to be pretty exciting!  My sister is getting married on Saturday.  My youngest will be turning one at the end of the month.  I'll be celebrating my 11th wedding anniversary later this month.  And I just received an invitation to the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration "On-the-Road" event in Philadelphia!

This invitation means so much to me!  So far, blogging has been a part-time thing.  It used to be I would blog all the time about whatever was happening with me.  But, once I got married and got a job and had kids, I pretty much stopped.  I had a short-lived free samples blog for a little while, but I didn't always have the time to update it.

Now, that I only work part-time and spend the rest of my time home with the kids, I have been wanting to expand this blog.  I've wanted to make it more than just random product reviews and make it more of a lifestyle blog and a business.  But, I wasn't sure where to begin or if it was even possible.

Knowing that the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration "On-The-Road" event is invitation-only and that I was picked over so many others who applied gives me some validation and makes me feel so honored to be invited!  I can't wait to hear from the speakers and learn how to grow my blog and business.  And I can't wait to meet all the other bloggers -- many whom I've already been following!

The event takes place in mid June.  I'll be sure to post here about the event and you can follow along with me on Twitter (@mandarin831) and on Instagram (@mandarin831).  You can also follow the hashtag: #DisneyOTR.  I can't wait to share and implement everything I learn!