Tag: goals

6 Goals For 2019

Blogging / 5 years ago / RelentlesslyPurple

I’ve set myself 6 goals for 2019. I’m not usually the type to go making resolutions but I do have a few aims for this year, they are all realistic goals I hope to achieve.

6 Goals For 2019

1. Read 20 Books

I found my love of reading again in 2018 and managed to work my way through several Dick Francis books and both books by Fiona Morgan. In total, I read about 10 books last year which I’m really pleased about! The Mr helped me decide a number and we set a goal of 20 books for 2019. A realistic goal in between blogging, crocheting and life. I used to read so much that this has to be at thetop of my 6 goals for 2019.

2. Continue Learning Crochet

I still consider myself a newbie when it comes to crochet. I’ve made a few scarves, blankets, cardigans and a few amigurami makes over the last 2-3 years. Having taught myself using YouTube and Pinterest for how to’s and ideas to help, my confidence has really grown, especially in 2018. I’m proud to say I actually designed my very own Purple Crocheted Summer Cardigan. A huge achievement for me! I can’t wait to learn and make more.

3. Blog More

Over 3 and a half years I’ve created over 450 blog posts! Another big achievement for me. I’ve slowly got more confident with my writing but my personal posts have been lacking a little in 2018. Lots of lows made blogging a chore at some points but I’m determined to log more on the blog. This is my space but I let the worry of a certain person reading my thoughts hold me back. I’m determined to write how and when I want in 2019 and to write a lot more!

4. Quit Smoking

I am slowly feeling calmer and coping better so I am hoping this will help me quit smoking in 2019. I intend to buy another vape soon and hopefully, that will help. Even if I just manage to cut down to start with I will be happy!

5. Craft More

We love to craft and made a fantastic cardboard box dragon in 2018 that the girls really enjoyed. I want to do more crafting like this and share our makes on the blog!

6. Be Me

I’ve slowly started finding me again this year and I want to be more me. For years I was convinced I was a waste of space. Nothing I did would ever be good enough but with the support from the Mr, the girls and a few close friends I’ve slowly learnt I am enough. I may find it difficult to start conversations, I may be awkward, forget plans or to return messages but I do care. I’m always around if someone needs me, they only need to shout. I will always do my best to try and do the right thing even if it turns out not to be. I know I’m not perfect but I’m determined to love my flaws and just be me for 2019.

Leaving A Stressful 2018 Behind

2018 was a rollercoaster year for me, losing my ESA, nearly losing myself in the appeals process and finally losing contact with my brother. I’m determined to have a better year, my head is in a better place and whilst I am immensely gutted about my brother, it’s made me see things differently.

I know now that I am not responsible for my brother and his behaviour and I refuse to let him blame me for his own mistakes any longer. The behaviour my girls have seen from him isn’t anything I’d allow from anyone else and even their attitude and behaviour has improved without contact. They were devastated he didn’t get in touch over Christmas which led to missing certain traditions with him though.

Having gone out of my way to include my brother in everything I can over the years, I have to admit it hit hard that he hasn’t apologised but I’m determined to move forward this year and stop feeling guilty and responsible for everyone else.

There has been some positives from 2018, I’ve got some good friends around like Martyn, Hannah, Checka and a few who don’t blog too. The girls have had amazing school reports and are happy which has made me feel immensely proud! We had a lovely Christmas and for the first time in a long time I feel really calm.

This year will be about me, the Mr and the girls, it will be full of growth and lessons learnt and hopefully, I will achieve my 6 goals for 2019!

Do you have any goals for 2019?

My Monthly Goals – March 2018

Rambles / 6 years ago / RelentlesslyPurple

I’m listing my monthly goals in the hope it encourages me to at least attempted them all! I rarely set goals and I want to see if setting a few this month has a positive impact. So here goes…

Monthly Goals

Monthly Goals

1. Start crocheting a pair of socks.

I am really enjoying crochet, it’s great for my mind and a distraction when my body needs to rest. Completing items leaves me feeling like I have achieved something, the fact they are practical items, blankets the girls can snuggle with etc… really adds to that. I’m determined to try crocheting socks and having warm feet at the end will be awesome!

2. Complete my 30 days of blogging!

I’ve been quietly attempting to blog for an entire month and I am pleased to say I am rather close to the end of it! It’s helped me busy my mind with upcoming assessments, uncertainty over my health, lack of phone/chasing a refund & the typical day-to-day stresses. Watching my stats jump up has been lovely to see too!

3. Complete my Blanket.

Ok this one may not be doable but it’s on my list just in case I do manage it, I’m getting so close to completing it now! I think perhaps a few crochet only days would help me achieve this by the end of the month.

4. Learn the settings on my camera.

I love my new camera, I’ve been mostly using auto for my photo’s but want to learn a bit more. I want to be able to use it in manual a little more if I can!

5. Read 2 books.

I’m half cheating as I am currently halfway through a book right now. I haven’t read properly in a few years so making 2018 a year to read more! So far I have read Elie Wiesel’s night which I stole from Hannah and motivated me to find another book. Having lost a lot of my books from lending them out I only had a few to read but I am currently reading The Lovely Bones and have Trancer waiting in my email too.

6. Survive my assessment.

With just 3 days until my rescheduled assessment he nerves have been kicking in. The fear and what-ifs floating round and round in my head. I hate having to go through it all, I hate proving how messed up my head and body are. It’s degrading and terrifying. Someone who doesn’t know you is about to make a huge decision & let’s face it, not all assessors are fair! Fingers crossed my records help!

7. Continue chasing my refund.

Having upgraded to an LGG5 last month which I bought from Fonegiant only to find it was blocked and on an American network. I wasn’t happy when the seller talked to me like an idiot who didn’t know how to use a dial pad when he sent several unlock codes. Then I returned the phone using their business labels and somehow Royal Mail have now lost the phone the evening it reached the local depot! Now I am hoping Paypal will resolve our dispute and refund me the £180. Over a month with no phone, £180 down, several stressful phone calls, lots of tears, stressful emails and still I am waiting. I am determined to get this issue resolved. Thanks to the fact I have anxiety this has basically left me stuck at home most of the time as I panic if I can’t call the Mr!

8. Do something new.

I tend to stick to the same routines, visit the same shops, eat from the same paces and I want to mix it up a bit! I’m not sure what yet but I’ll update you when I figure it out!

So these are my monthly goals for March, I hope to manage at least half if not all of them. Finger’s crossed having a list to look back on helps me achieve them!

Do you have any monthly goals?

My Year In Reflection 2016

Rambles / 7 years ago / RelentlesslyPurple

I decided to write my year in reflection after a tweet from Martyn on my ’10 Things I’m looking forward to in 2016′ post and decided to do what he suggested and see how 2016 went.

Looking back on 2016..

1. I did have my steroid injection’s back in march and after a week of hell I had 2 good weeks, so it was decided this wasn’t enough. Instead I started on Gabapentin. Whilst I’m still having bad days they do help massively!

2. The Easter holidays went well but unfortunately with my back not improving and my anxiety & depression becoming harder to cope with, I wasn’t able to take the girls out to do much. There were few trips until out until the Summer but we did replant Eva’s mini rainforest from her weekend box!

3. We went out for a lovely meal to celebrate Eva’s birthday this year with friends as we couldn’t quite manage to cover a full day out but she enjoyed herself and had decided where to go etc. I was quite stressed with my ESA assessment being booked for Eva’s birthday so I had a pretty exhausting week.

4.The summer holidays were brilliant and we did manage a few days out to place like Wat Tyler Country Park and Southend On Sea as well as attending some local events like the Big lunch that is held at Grays Town Park once a year.. which I took a ton of pictures of then forgot to blog about it!

5. Izzy had a brilliant birthday at home with a few close friends visiting and we celebrated my brothers 21st too. I eventually managed to escape for a few drinks a few days after my birthday too!


6. I have spent a lot more time with my brother this year. He has gone through some huge changes and I am so damn proud of him! There were times I wondered if we’d reach the point we are at now but he has completely turned his life around. We now see each other 6 times a month minimum having Family Dinner’s with him once a fortnight. We are slowly turning his flat into a home and he is slowly getting into a routine with everything and some days adults better than me!

7. Although I’ve pretty much given up on the knitting I have had a lot of fun learning to crochet this year. Starting with headbands and bags, dolls clothes & now blankets and a new project in the works. I have to say I feel really pleased with myself for this, it’s something I’ve learnt that is calming & gives me a bit of me time. I also feel a sense of achievement each time I finish a project, especially with the girls reactions!

8.  I think it’s safe to say I have slowly grown the blog this year. I’ve moved from .wordpress.com to .com. I’ve also just found out my DA score has gone from 1 to 16, 2 months after moving over. I’m not entirely sure how DA works but I’m told it’s a good first jump so I’m happy!

9. I have definitely managed to work with a lot more brands and had a chance to review some awesome product’s. Also testing out apps like Mobicip to help keep the girls safe on their tablets. The Mr even got an awesome box of beer from Beer52 to review just before Christmas! The girls got some lovely books and the super cute Itty Bitty’s too!

10. Although I have learnt to manage my pain much better than this time last year I do still struggle at times & over do it.. I guess that’s something that won’t change. There’s always something going on and it doesn’t take much these days for me to over do it unfortunately!

Did you get to do any of the things you were looking forward to in 2016?

 

10 Things I’m Looking Forward To In 2016

Rambles / 8 years ago / RelentlesslyPurple
2016

10 Things I'm Looking Forward To In 2016

10 Things I’m Looking Forward To In 2016.. A whole new year to look forward to! I usually don’t have too much to look forward to as we enter each new year however so far 2016 seems to have a few things in store for us which I can not wait for. So here are My 10 things I’m looking forward to this year.

  1. Steroid injections in March – I know it’s strange to look forward to a procedure like this but especially as the pain is creeping back again I’m hopeful they will help ease even a tiny bit of the pain to allow me to continue strengthening my core.
  2. The Easter holidays – Although we don’t particularly celebrate Easter as we aren’t religious in any way we do love to scoff a few choccy eggs! (Don’t we all!?) The holiday itself is a nice break for us and a chance to do things as a family. Things are looking slightly better financially so we are hoping to fit in a trip to London during the Easter hol’s to visit the science museum and anywhere else that takes the girl’s fancy. We haven’t had a chance to get out and do much with the girls & I intend on changing that this year!
  3. Eva’s 6th Birthday (10th May) – The last few years the majority of people have let Eva down on her birthday so last year we decided against a party. This year however I’ve decided we are going to do something different & take her & her friend out for the day to the zoo. If we have our own car by then it will probably be Colchester zoo otherwise we can all take the train & visit London zoo instead! ( 😀 I Love it when I have a back up plan!)
  4. The summer holidays (June-Sept) – Who doesn’t love it when the sun is shine and that alone is a perfect excuse to go out & enjoy it. I hurt so much when it’s cold it makes it hard for me to feel motivated enough to take the girls out much but in the summer I always make up for it.
  5. August – It’s part of the summer holidays but I love it for other reasons too! My brother turns 21 on the 5th, Izzy turns 2 on the 6th, and I turn 20… (6 D: ) on the 14th. It’s a big one for my brother this year and I fully intend on making sure he damn well enjoys it!
  6. Spending more time with my brother – In the last 2 weeks we have seen him 4 times, usually we see him maybe once every 2-3 months as he hides away when he is struggling but he seems to be realising now he can come to us no matter what & we will help in any way we can even if he just needs to be around people and chat nonsense 🙂
  7. Figuring out how to make pretty knitted & crocheted items – I’ve been knitting a few years now but never had the confidence to do anything other than a plain knitted blanket or scarf, this year I want to focus on my knitting a bit more & learn to crochet properly. (If you have any tutorials/patterns etc please Get in touch :D)
  8. Growing the blog – Getting back into blogging again has already helped me loads & it makes me really happy to see my followers growing and people actually reading my rambles. It makes me even happier when people like & comment too. I’m really enjoying blogging again & cant wait to see what progress I can make in 2016 & look forward to connecting with other bloggers too.
  9. Working with brands – I love product reviewing and testing all sorts of stuff from technology to food, toys to appliances, there’s very little I wouldn’t mind reviewing if I’m honest & after testing a Cake for Baker Day’s it’s reminded me just how much I loved doing this on my last blog.
  10. Learning to manage my pain – I am now under a pain management consultant who really seemed to listen on my first visit & has explained so much to me that although I still feel a little lost with it all after  we now have a plan in place to help me manage the pain and build my core strength back up. The plan so far is that I will see  my consultant every 8 weeks or so with steroid injections & physiotherapy alongside it and once I am able to manage the pain better I can work harder on building up my strength, in the meantime though I just need to keep active but not push myself so hard and actually rest when I need to.. easier said than done admittedly with 2 young children but I am at least trying to slow down!

So that’s my list (I love lists!) of 10 things I’m looking forward to this year, what are yours?