A few years ago I switched out my ‘resolutions’ for ‘goals’. I found the word resolution added too much pressure to everything.
Like it would be a huge failure if I broke anything on my list even once. But the word goals made it seem more like something I would try to achieve and be chuffed if I did. And if I didn’t, it was only an aim. Not a self-promise.
2024 was a big year for me too. My life changed massively, after welcoming our baby boy to our family. So a lot of my goals for last year went out the window straight away, and my main focus became our family’s happiness and health for a long time. Now we’re 4 months into our new lifestyle, and starting to feel more settled, I feel ready to set myself some goals again.
What are your goals for this year?
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0.1 Stop biting my nails
This one appears on the list every year. I’ve tried everything. The bad-tasting nail polish – which I just chewed through and gave myself a stomach ache. Wearing fake nails. Having a stress ball to play with whenever I got the biting urge. Nothing works for me. What does seem to work is stopping gradually, nail by nail.
I just need to find a way to make it stick now.
0.2 Read at least ten books
Another yearly goal. Last year I managed six books, which I’m not overly disappointed with. Having a baby reduced my reading time quite a bit in the middle. But at the end of 2024 I managed to get into a reading routine, saving myself a little reading slot right after Joaquin’s bedtime and just before mine – especially helped by the reading light I got for Christmas.
0.3 Embrace the allotment
my mum and I have an allotment, new for the end of last year, and it’s very exciting, if you’re into that sort of thing. When I enquired they said it could be up to a two-year wait, which sounded perfect. Three months later they had a clear out and we were given a plot. So a lot quicker than expected.
I’m thinking of keeping an allotment diary, just to keep our progress. The plot we took over was overrun with raspberry plants, so it’s been a challenge so far getting those gone. But the fun part at the moment has been planning out my share of the plot, and writing down my jobs for the next few months. I’ve got an abundance of seeds, a bag of seeding compost on the way, and a walk in plastic greenhouse at home to get started.
0.4 Be a good mum to Joaquin
This one probably goes without saying. Motherhood has been an amazing experience so far, and Joaquin is a dream.
0.5 Squeeze in a little more me time occasionally
Becoming a mum in 2024 has taken over my life, as it probably should. But I fell into the trap of becoming a little bit obsessed with motherhood at the start, then almost felt a bit of a burnout towards the end of the year. Me time in 2025 is going to look like a relaxing bath once a week, getting back into running, and more reading.
