Summary Saturday: New Year, Renewed Determination

For me, few things hold more promise than the dawn of a brand new Saturday. The weekend is stretched out before me like a seemingly endless sea, teeming with all of the things I hope to accomplish before Monday and the many (fingers crossed) relaxing activities that have yet to pass.

It’s the perfect time to reflect on my progress toward my new year’s resolutions.

The last time I checked in, we were approaching New Year’s Eve (I started working toward my resolutions mid-December), and I wasn’t quite back to my typical weekly routine. I was beginning to feel a bit discouraged. To be truthful, my motivation continued to dip and crest until the middle of this past week. Since about Tuesday, I’ve been on an upswing, and it’s a bit of chicken/egg scenario. Am I naturally feeling more motivated, leading me to pursue my resolutions more avidly? Or am I pursuing my resolutions more avidly, which is then causing me to feel more motivated? It’s probably some combination of both, and cyclical in nature.

Regardless, I am grateful for this spike in my determination, and I do not plan on squandering it.

Here’s a recap of how I’ve done over the last two weeks:

Prioritize family time. Since returning to work after the holidays, I’ve actually found it easier to prioritize time with my family. Perhaps it’s because I have less time overall to work with, so I’m not deceived by an abundance mentality. Or maybe it’s that my time is more structured in general, which allows me to compartmentalize my life a little more effectively. Whatever the reason, I’ve definitely been more mindful of time spent with these people:

I’ve been putting my phone down a little more, and taking the time to just play and be present with my daughter sans outside distraction. Her favorite activities at the moment include spinning in circles, practicing her “N” for “Nora”, and taking horsey rides on whoever is willing (she’s a very demanding equestrienne). The poor thing had a stomach bug yesterday, an all she wanted were snuggles. I happily accommodated each and every request (snuggling’s my favorite).

Exercise 4 or more times per week for at least 30 minutes. Last week, I barely exercised at all, except for a few neighborhood walks with the fam. This week, I returned to dance after a two week hiatus and made it to the gym three times. So…check!

Stop eating after 8:00 PM. This resolution has become so much easier with the help of the Noom app. I’ve been closing out my calorie count by about 8:15 every night this week. I’m also down a little over 6 pounds since beginning to count calories about three weeks ago. One of the things I like most about this program, which is different from other’s I’ve tried, is that it matches you with a coach who checks in several times per week, as well as with a group of other individuals who are at similar stages in their journeys.

It’s been so helpful having that periodic check-in, both for accountability and for encouragement. This is the part that makes it worth the monthly fee ($45) for me. And while I don’t think I’ll continue to use it long term, it’s been well worth the investment as a jumping off point!

Stick to our budget categories. Doing fine here! If you missed the start of my budgeting mini-series, you can find the intro post here and the first tip here. More to come!

Channel as much money toward our emergency savings account as possible until we hit our target. During the first week of January, I deposited a little over $1,700 to our emergency savings account. This really got us off on the right foot, but we’ll continue saving on other things (like groceries, for example) to reach this goal in the shortest amount of time possible.

Build up our travel fund. There’s been no change here, as we’re focusing first on our emergency fund.

Establish and stick to a consistent schedule for blog posts. Doing well. Today’s post makes 4 total for this week, and last week I posted twice. Getting back into the swing of things after vacation has been a bit of a challenge, but having the opportunity to be creative and share my ideas has been both motivating and cathartic for me.

How are you doing with your resolutions? Any successes or challenges to share? I’d love to hear from you!