The last three years have been a total blur, I feel like I blinked and missed most of and suddenly I’m older, the kids are way more grown up and I realise I’ve been on autopilot for a good 18 months, just making it through the days without thinking much further. This year though, I’d really like to be planning ahead a little, sorting out some things in my life and home, so I can end a year looking back and feeling some sense of achievement.
Don’t get me wrong, we had a great year in 22 and made some amazing memories together, but I don’t feel we managed to better ourselves at all and finished each month scrabbling the pennies together waiting for pay day - I hate that feeling. The kids are growing up so fast, so I want to fill the last pre teen years with heaps of adventures before they get older and hang out with their friends instead. Sob.
So with that in mind, here’s some plans for this year…
Work
I spent every night last year working until 2-3 am, I even worked every day through Christmas, my birthday etc etc, which I know doesn’t sound too bad but I so need a break sometimes and I just haven’t been able to get one. I work while the kids are at school and every night when they are in bed; luckily I love what I do, but it’s a lot and it’s really taken it’s toll on my health and my body lock is so far out of whack I don’t know what to do anymore. My first work focus is to organise my time better, work more efficiently and charge for all the time I spend on work for clients, as I’m terrible for undercharging and not valuing my precious time. If I work less but better, I can have more down time and feel more energised for work, or that’s the plan anyway!
Secondly, I’m cutting a lot of print designs out my Etsy shop, as I don’t make a great deal from them and I really didn’t enjoy that aspect of my work last year. The print market is so saturated that sales are few and far between, so it felt like a chore for not much money with each order. Instead I plan to have a smaller stronger selection of best selling prints that are all printed, packed and ready to go, so when and order comes in I can pack it and post it without printing one at a time.
As I’m not currently stocking in a shop, I also plan to phase out my small gift items. Again I may stock a few best sellers, but not hundreds of different things that rarely sell. If I start selling in a store again I’ll bring them back, but for now it’s just taking up space and requires a lot of ‘kit’ that takes up room we really need in our little house.
My main focus now is pattern design and selling digital items, so I mainly work from an iPad, laptop and phone and having most of a room in our house dedicated to workspace is totally pointless, especially when we’re itching for more space, so I’ll be gutting my arts/crafts and product parts to keep only what I will use or the kids will use, as for now having more room in the house to relax in is far more precious than stuff waiting to be used. Also, please ban me from hobby craft!
Life
Gash. Life is a rollercoaster as a wise man once said, and last year really was. Mentally I’ve felt better than ever, but with peaks and troughs throughout. My messed up sleep pattern has had the biggest impact I think as it’s meant my waking hours have mainly been used for work and kids school runs etc, so very little energy and head space is left for other things like keeping the house tidy or self care, so I really need to conker that first. I say that whilst writing this at ten past midnight with no intention of sleeping any time soon.
I have started trying to go up to bed a little earlier and have a pack of Nytol to help me try and kick start a better pattern, as I find if I go to bed earlier, my mind is buzzing and I can easily then lay awake until 5am, which is even less ideal than crashing out in bed at 2am. I’m confident I can crack this though and I think it just stems from when everyone is in bed I can relax more, nobody is out driving or at school, I don’t have to watch my phone for calls or listen out for the door, it’s actually peaceful and although I’m usually working, I actually feel calm. The problem is though I enjoy that part of the day so much it’s just got longer and longer and now it’s a habit, a bad one.
Otherwise generally I need to take care of myself a little better. I’ve started by booking a much needed dentist appointment which means going private as there are no NHS ones here, which I’ve always felt as an indulgence, but actually I just want to keep my teeth in my head for as long as possible. I also really want to get my hair done as I’ve not been to the hairdressers for about 8 years now and I’m debating nails, but maybe that’s a step too far?
I want to plan things and book them in for the year so we have lots to look forward to. I noticed last year so many events pass me by as I didn’t know they were on, especially locally, so this year I’m doing regular checks so we don’t miss out. With things to focus on and look forward to, it makes the trudge of daily life in between a lot more bearable.
Home
Our house currently resembles a three bedroom two storey skip, so I need to dive in and tackle it big time. I’ve not done a big declutter since lock down, and somehow every nook and cranny is once again filled with stuff. We have numerous charity piles, washing mountains to sort and soooooo many DIY jobs to do that it would probably take a year for a team of 100 pros, so for us two it’s going to be a lot of hare work. I really want to put a new bathroom in as it was so outdated when we moved in nearly 13 years ago and although we refreshed it with some tiles and paint, it’s still a massive shit show and is just not fit for purpose. I’d love to do that this year, but if not, at least be in a position to start saving for it and have the rest of the house sorted so that’s all that’s left. Everything else has been done at some point but all needs cleaning up, with fresh licks of paint, new flooring and just a general update throughout. This is a lot, but it’s so many little things that if we break it down and do a few things at a time it won’t take long. As the kids are getting bigger, they’re old enough really to be keeping their spaces tidier and helping us around the house, so I’m going to get them more involved this year so they can be proud of our home too.
Happy 2023 and I hope it’s a great one for you. Do you have any plans yet for this coming year?
