A 2017 RETROSPECTIVE

In January 2017 I posted this wish for the year ahead - here's how it panned out.

THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR

At the beginning of January I posted this wish for the year ahead. I thought it was a really positive way to approach the year with little snippets of do-able actions. To finish off the year I thought I'd have a look at whether I'd achieved what I aspired to for myself for 2017.


LOVE WHAT YOU SEE IN THE MIRROR

I'm still working on this one - I don't think I'll ever be as confident as I'd like, but each little step in accepting myself is a bonus. This year I even went as far as taking a selfie and guest posting it on Jo from Lifestyle Fifty's blog - a big step out of my comfort zone!


MAKE TIME FOR CREATIVITY

I didn't do anything as interesting as my stained glass stairway, but I think I can call my blog my bit of creativity - and I still love my adult colouring in (including my colour-it-yourself jigsaw that took me most of the year to finish!)    

my colour-it yourself jigsaw in progress and the finished product

NEVER SAY NO TO ADVENTURE + TRAVEL

This has been fairly low key too - I'm a reluctant adventurer, but these last couple of months have included going for some nature walks/hikes with my husband and also our trip "overseas" to Rottnest. At least I got out of the house and a did a little bit of adventuring.


EAT MORE GREEN FOOD

This is always the aim for us and we're pretty good at sticking with fresh fruit and vegetables and preparing 90% of our meals (with an occasional takeaway to give me a chippie fix!) Having my husband take over more than half the cooking has made this even easier to maintain.


SEND SNAIL MAIL AND HANDWRITTEN THANK YOU NOTES

I haven't done this anywhere near enough, but I have managed to write family birthday cards still and not resorted completely to Facebook for birthday wishes. Christmas cards seem to be becoming a dying art as well - although I do try to send several each year to give it a personal touch. This year I've piked out and sent a Facebook Christmas wish instead - a sign of the times I guess.


BUY LESS, CHOOSE WELL + EMBRACE SIMPLICITY

I think these two go together well and are all a part of the minimalism trend that suits us perfectly. We take a lot of pleasure in knowing that we don't waste money on too many "fripperies" and we keep our lives fairly simple and uncluttered. It certainly takes the pressure off if you're not trying to keep up with the Joneses.


BE KIND TO STRANGERS

This is my mantra each morning for work. I've tried to remember to be kind and show grace towards the patients who come in every day. A smile and a kind word makes a world of difference when you're dealing with people at the coalface and it is always good to remember that it's not me they're annoyed with (most of the time), it's usually their circumstances and it's nice to try to ease the way a little bit for them.


VOLUNTEER YOUR TIME AND SKILLS

I've been doing my little bit of volunteer mentoring at my local Primary School again this year - I've had two students, starting with a little 5 year old boy who was always soooo excited to see me, and when he left the school I've been given an older girl for the remainder of the year and she's been a challenge but it's been nice to be a positive part of her world each week.


TAKE A COOKING CLASS

Didn't happen and never will - I'll just have to leave this one as a "maybe one day" I'm afraid.


GIVE THE PRESENT OF PRESENCE

We've been working on this one with our little granddaughter. It's so important to find time to visit with her as she grows so she remembers us and we can be a part of her life. Every hour with her is a blessing and we never take it for granted. We're soooo looking forward to her coming down for a few days at Christmas with her parents.

our delightful granddaughter

LEARN FROM OTHERS

One of the lovely parts of blogging is reading all the other blog posts out there every week. I often learn things from technical tips, to grandparenting, to sharing my journey and finding commonality with others. This year has been another year where I've shared my story and had advice and discovered new ways of doing things and of seeing the world. I have blogging friends who encourage me and spur me onwards - and I've been so fortunate to find this outlet and resource.


WHAT ABOUT YOU?

How did your 2017 go? Did you have some resolutions that you've accomplished? Do you have big plans for 2018? Are you as amazed as I am that a whole year has flown by?

In January I posted this wish for the year ahead - here's how it panned out.




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26 comments

  1. These were great intentions - and you did pretty well against them. I love that coloured in jigsaw more than I can say! It's been a pleasure connecting with you this year.

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    1. Thanks for your encouraging words Jo - that's what I love about blogging - the connection and the positivity. I hope you have a great Christmas and a great 2018!

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  2. Loved your list - so many wonderful positive actions. And you made progress. All the best for 2018.

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    1. It was a great way to look back Bev - I didn't do anything spectacular this year but it's nice to see I still kept moving forward.

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  3. Looks like you can tick most of your list off Leanne which is a great achievement. I loved your stained glass project and thought of you whenever I went into Churches in Spain, especially La Sagrada Familgia with all that stained glass! Another of friendship through blogging and now we look forward to our collaboration on the link party. Have a fabulous Christmas especially with Sophia. Ethan told me this morning 'It's only 4 sleeps until Santa comes, Nan!' so adorable!

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    1. I LOVED La Sagrada Familgia Sue! It was amazing wasn't it? And after finding out how much effort it is to do a small stained glass project, I have even more admiration for those huge projects. Happy Christmas to you my friend and I'm looking forward to our linky next year too xx

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  4. Hi, Leanne - I echo your readers above. I loved reading your list. Congratulations on your progress and achievements. I look forward to following in 2018.

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    1. Hi Donna - well I didn't do the Camino Trail, but it's nice to see that I could tick a few achievements :) Thanks so much for your support throughout the year and I look forward to sharing our blogging journey in 2018 :)

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  5. Firstly, your little granddaughter is gorgeous! Such a little cutie! I think you've done well with your list Leanne. I still struggle to love myself as I am. It's a hard one. I never feel good enough in many respects but I'll keep chipping away on that one. I've really enjoyed getting to know you this year and look forward to connecting through our blogs again during 2018. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas and enjoy that darling granddaughter's visit (and her parents haha)! xo #TeamLovinLife

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    1. Hi Min - thanks for your lovely comment and I wish you a merry Christmas too - although I know it will be touched with sadness from missing your Dad. I hope some of the Christmas joy still finds its way into your family gatherings and I look forward to seeing what you have for 2018.

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  6. I think your 2017 resolutions were extremely ambitious and you have done very well to achieve them all (except the cooking class). I never had any resolutions for 2017 as they're generally the same every year - lose weight, get fitter, take a short course and volunteer. I'm not sure of what I want to achieve for 2018 either. As usual I will just wing it! Merry Christmas #TeamLovinLife

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    1. I liked that the list was about "being" rather than "doing" for a lot of it Kathy - so I didn't have to be sad that I didn't lose weight or go on a magnificent trip anywhere - I could just enjoy developing more as a person and hopefully that will continue next year. Have a great Christmas! xx

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  7. Leanne, that's a very full list of achievements for 2017. I would suggest that anything that was not given a tick, wasn't that important to you, so not worth worrying about.
    Merry Christmas & all the best for 2018.

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    1. I thought that with the cooking class Jenni - I really didn't feel drawn to that at all so it was nice to cross it out and say Nah! Happy Christmas to you too :)

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  8. Wow you really set some high bars for yourself and made great strides. Thanks for sharing so honestly and happiest of Christmases

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    1. I don't think I consciously decided to follow them but it made a good baseline to look back over the year from and see if I'd actually changed or grown at all :) Happy Christas to you both xx

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  9. What a wonderful list and way to break out the year with a wishlist!!!
    Even the things that didn't get done, I always think it's great to write things down like this!!!
    And I love that you said loving what you see in the mirror. This does get hard, but I think it's so important!!
    XOXO
    Jodie
    www.jtouchofstyle.com

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    1. I look at you and your two Mums Jodie and I am amazed at your self-confidence and your ability to do all that you do in front of the camera. I need to find what that is and take it onboard for 2018!

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  10. Yes....wonderful retrospective that....loved reading all the things you had to say.....:)....and here's how my 2017 went .... https://mydailyjournalonline.com/looking-back-year-going-thoughts/

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    1. Hi Anindya - thanks so much for stopping by and I enjoyed your post on what Winter in Calcutta is like - so different to the weather here atm :)

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  11. My favourite is the present of presence. I tend to always be thinking of the past or planning ahead and don't often take the time to really live and appreciate the present.

    I can relate to a lot of the others and understand what you mean about some being on the list cos you'd like to get to them 'someday'. I think you've done really well and completely agree that some on there take a bit of a work to get there, or perhaps we never get to where we'd like to be with some of them (in terms of our health, or how we feel about ourselves and our confidence) but I guess if we feel we make progress that's all we can ask.

    It's been lovely connecting this year and I hope you have a wonderful Christmas. xx

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  12. This is a fantastic list of achievements Leanne! Congratulations on all you have accomplished, and may 2018 be even better for you.

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  13. Hi, Leanne - I just reviewed your list again (via Blogging Grandmother's Link Up). If you are ever interested in taking a cooking class, you could consider taking one on line. There are some good ones out there, some of which are free! https://theculinarycook.com/learning-to-cook-online/.

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  14. Wow, Leanne! You did a great job getting your list checked off. And you are very brave to bring it back for review at the end of the year. You might even inspire me to do something similar for 2018. Happy New Year! Are you setting goals for 2018?

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  15. This was a very good list. I've been working on some very similar things. I too am amazed at how the year FLEW by! Happy New Year to you.

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  16. What a great summary of your year Leanne. You’re honest in your reflections and I think you’ve done yourself proud. A great year coming up I’m sure 😊

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Thanks so much for your comment - it's where the connection begins.