January is almost over! So it's time to recap and check in on some of my mini-goals for 2016. How am I doing? Let's see what grades I deserve.
#1. Keep up with the blog regularly: A
Counting today, I have blogged every Wednesday in January. Yay! I recapped my China trip here (a wedding in Shenzhen), here (exploring Shenzhen) and here (Hong Kong). I'm hoping to start blogging more frequently, yet intentionally. So this coming Monday, you can look forward to a subscription service review! I'm pretty excited about this one — it's a great gift idea AND I have a special offer for my lovely readers :) I'm also really not into football, so of course I'll be blogging my "Big Game" predictions from the perspective of someone who is counting the days 'til pitchers and catchers report (21 days.)
#2. Read one book per month: B
I did it! I finished one book before the end of January. It's called "The History of Love" by Nicole Krauss. It was beautiful, moving and made me note more passages in a book than I have since I read "Life of Pi" in high school. Highly recommended.
But I only gave myself a B for this one -- here's why.
You know how in elementary school, progress reports would come out in the middle of a quarter and give you "grades" for your classes? And they would never give you an "A" in P.E. because there was always room for improvement and the teachers didn't want students to slack off? Even though you were one of the tallest students in your sixth grade class and jumped the highest for the vertical jump test?
Me too. That's why.
It's ENTIRELY possible for me to read more than one book a month. I'm actually on track to squeeze in another book before the month is over! C'mon, Emily. Aim high, like you did in sixth grade.
UPDATE: I finished another book right under the wire, Room by Emma Donoghue on Jan. 27 so I could see the movie before it left theaters! That's TWO for this year so far!
#3. Establish a better morning routine: F
FAILURE. Still reaching for my phone in the morning. Is that because my phone is right next to my bed, serving as my alarm clock? PROBABLY.
It might be time to run out and buy a real clock. Maybe a Lumie light!
#4. Use my Calm.com app once per day: D
Wowww. The Calm app has this little calendar that keeps track of when you practice a meditation, for how long, and if you have any streaks going. My longest streak is two days. I currently have three days in January lit up. Definitely need to get better at this!
#5. Keep my Vitamix from getting dusty: F
It might be because we just got 20+ inches of snow, but I just don't feel like making smoothies in the winter. But I can use my Vitamix to make dips and soups and sauces! So I'll try to get better at this throughout February.
There you have it! If I had a mini-goals GPA on a 4.0 scale, I would have a 1.6 average. Yowza! I guess there's always room for improvement :)