In 2020, I wrote (maybe for the very first time in my life) a list of things I wanted to do/see/eat/learn/etc. for the year. The monthly updates reminded me about what I did and didn’t accomplish, and honestly, I liked writing those updates. Some of you, too, may have been encouraged to write your own list of goals and to track your progress.

Considering all of this, I am going to craft a list of goals for 2021. At the moment, I have 14 goals (some of which, you’ll notice, are carried over from last year) at the moment, and I may add to this list as the year evolves.

1. Eat more vegetables. For various reasons, I am including this at the top of my list this year. Maybe I’ll commit to having at least one salad a day. Thoughts?
2. Travel. When things open, I’m going to get traveling again. There are places I want to go and people I want to see. 2021 just has to be more open to travel than 2020. Right?
3. Save money. I’m carrying on with this from 2020. Since tracking my money, I’m so much more aware of frivolous/unnecessary spending. I am going to try to make improvements in my spending habits, so I can achieve my goals.
4. Pass on magazines/books/clothes/puzzles. I generally already do this, so I’ll continue in 2021. I’m hoping this will encourage me to clean my closets more regularly (and also perhaps make me more mindful of random online clothing orders!).
5. Crochet a blanket. I now have a decent handle on crochet and numerous stitches. Now that I’ve (mostly) mastered pot holders, I feel that I should try something more challenging this year – a blanket. I have an idea of what I want to make, but now I need to buy the yarn and get started.
6. Reduce social media consumption. I spend far too much time on Instagram. I have considered deleting it altogether, but before I do that, maybe I’ll just try to reduce my time on the app. How much time do you think is appropriate? I haven’t yet finalized my limit. I also use Twitter regularly, and I can try to cut back on my time with it, but I’m not going to delete it as I learn quite a bit from it, and I use it for work, too.
7. Renovate my bathroom. I hate my bathroom. 2021 has to be the year that I give it a major makeover. It just has to be!
8. Play games. This can include board games, crosswords, puzzles, and outdoor activities. This will be an especially important goal if lockdown life continues.
9. Edit my magazine subscriptions. This may mean that I unsubscribe and subscribe to magazines. I’m not yet sure.
10. Read more. I read a decent amount, but I also have stacks of books that I haven’t yet read. I’m going to aim to read one (non-work-related) book each month.
11. Blog. My 2020 posts were sparse, I know. But I want to write and share more in 2021 like I used to. Design, art, travel, fashion – I want to write about what I find interesting and inspiring in 2021.
12. Embrace cross country skiing. I bought my skis and joined a nordic ski club last year, and I’ll be embracing this outdoor activity once again this winter. Last winter, I only went out a handful of times, but I’m hoping I’ll get out more regularly this year.
13. Cross stitch. When I gathered my crochet material from my mom a few months ago, I also ended up with all of her cross stitch materials. I have a couple of projects in mind that I’d like to complete this year.
14. Have fun! If I continue to do things that make me happy, I know I’ll have many fun days ahead!

Back in January 2020, I drafted a list of 20 things I wanted to do/see/eat/think about/read in 2020. At the end of each month, I’ve shared an update with you about what I have (or have not) been doing. Here’s the original post, and here are my updates for January, February, March, April, May, June, July. August, September, and November. Here is my final update of the year, if you’d like to know.

***

1.Complete the challenges that my family and friends set for me for my 40th birthday.
While I didn’t tackle anything specific this month, for the year, I did make a good amount of progress

2. Travel.
I took a little trip to the Niagara region this month. I know there are many people who are/were against traveling, but I took the trip. I felt safe, and I didn’t do anything wild or risky. It was a nice little getaway, which I was very fortunate to have, before the province-wide lockdown. While in the region, I ate at Prime, Ravine, and Noble. I had a spa afternoon at Christienne. I watched Niagara with Marilyn Monroe. I also enjoyed walking around the falls (brrr…). I recommend all of the above.

3. Learn more about the Waterloo region.
While I didn’t necessarily learn much about the region this month, I did shop locally at Benjamin Tree Farm, Harmony (jewelry), Hello Again (clothes), Gifted (gifts), Up Market (home decor), and Clay and Glass Gallery (art). I recommend all of the above.

4. Experience more art.
See above! I enjoyed a visit to the Clay and Glass Gallery shop while I was shopping for Christmas presents, and I watched a Laurier student string quartet performance online.

5. Play more board games.
I dusted off my old Boggle game earlier this month, and I’ve been doing crosswords in the Globe and Mail. I’ve also recently started a new puzzle (almost done it, too!)

6. Master my mom’s signature cake.

I made my mom’s cake several times this year, and I’m happy to report that mine are nearly as good as hers!

7. Wear more dresses.
Yes! I have been wearing dresses…even during my work-from-home life.

8. Consider adding more colour to my wardrobe.
Besides my red slippers, and my colourful glasses, I haven’t added too much colour to my wardrobe this month (or this year). I think I’m okay with this. Why force it?

9. Save money.
I have tracked my earning and spending for several months now, and I’m continuing to do so in the new year. I have things that I’d like to save up for, so I really need to continue to make a concious effort to track my money. December, I can tell you, was a heavy spending month! (And I didn’t follow any kind of budget.) Yikes!

10. Plan a major bathroom reno.
It’s on hold, but I think I may able to tackle this in 2021.

11. Eat more vegetables.
Yes, I have eaten more vegetables…mostly in the form of salads, fajitas, and soups. I made decent progress throughout the year, but there’s room for improvement.

12. Buy more fun socks.
I didn’t treat myself to any new fun socks this month. I bought some Christmas novelty socks for others though.

13. Connect people.
I connected two people earlier this month, so that was good. Another connection may happen soon, too. I’m still at it!

14. Clean closets regularly.
No progress this month, but my closets are FULL.

15. Trust my gut.
Yes. It’s still happening.

16. Get a facial.
No progress.

17. Embrace soup.
Now that I’ve got a handle on potato leek soup (yum), I embraced a new-to-me soup this month – potato broccoli cheddar. It’s quite good, and I’ll make it again.

18. Clean up my shoes.
I didn’t have any progress to make this month. Throughout the year, I do think I made progress on this task, but more can be done. And I really need to stop buying shoes because I do think I have enough to get me through until this pandemic is over!

19. Pass on my magazines.
Yes. I have done this regularly throughout the year. Yay! (My current favourite magazine subscription is Veranda, if you wanted to know!)

20. Have fun.
Yes! Even though we’re in a pandemic, I have been having quite a bit of fun (via work, Zoom and phone calls with family and friends, walks, Netflix, cooking, baking, crochet, and puzzles). I am very grateful.

***

And there you have it – my year of 2020 goals has come to an end. I think I’ll create a list for 2021, too. Stay tuned!

Back in January, I drafted a list of 20 things I wanted to do/see/eat/think about/read in 2020. At the end of each month, I’ve shared an update with you about what I have (or have not) been doing. Here’s the original post, and here are my updates for January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August and September. I completely forgot about October, but here is my November update (I’ve selected the items where I’ve actually made some progress).

***

4. Experience more art.
I took a little tour of the Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery this month. It was such a pleasant visit. I really should go more often.

5. Play more board games.
I played Catan a few times this month. And Nintendo. That was a great purchase I made at the beginning of the pandemic, I have to say!

9. Save money.
I’ve been tracking my spending for four months now, and I still think it’s a helpful exercise. I’m mostly keeping to my budget, too, which makes me proud.

11. Eat more vegetables.
I ate a salad nearly every day for lunch this month, and it feels like a healthy thing to continue to do.

14. Clean closets regularly.
I didn’t clean any closets, but I did clean my pantry.

17. Embrace soup.
My mom gave me some of her homemade potato leek soup, and it was so good! Today I was motivated to make a batch for myself (using this recipe), and it turned out well.

18. Clean up my shoes.
Ha! Instead of cleaning them up, I’ve opted to add a new pair of gold sneakers (can you ever have too many pairs of gold sneaks?). You know – for the one day a week I go grocery shopping…sigh.

19. Pass on my magazines.
Yes. I’m happy to continue doing this. I have to take stock of my subscriptions one of these days and decide what I’ll keep and what I’ll end.

20. Have fun.
Yes! Despite the pandemic, the new lockdown in Toronto, and the new red zone designation in the Waterloo region, I’m still managing to have fun!

***

And there you have it – my November update. I’ll have a full update next month, and then maybe even a new list for the new year. What do you think?