Goals For 2023

I'm a little late to the party as I've been a little under the weather lately, but I'm back with my annual list of goals for the year ahead.

I don't set myself big New Year's resolutions that I'm unlikely to ever achieve- who wants to feel like a failure?- but I do like to challenge myself with lots of smaller goals to aim towards and keep myself on my toes. They're nothing too exciting or interesting, but I thought I'd share my list anyway, in an attempt to motivate myself and make myself accountable.

So, here are my goals for 2023:

Read at least 40 books

I've set myself a new Goodreads reading challenge for 2023, and hope to read at least 40 books this year. I've played it safe with the number to make it achievable, but I'm hoping to read even more, and would at least like to beat last year's tally of 46, if I can. I'm already on my third book of the year, so I'm off to a strong start.

Collect lots of pretty books

Beautiful books are a real weakness of mine, and after recently discovering book subscription companies like Owlcrate, Fairyloot, and Illumicrate, who sell the most stunning books, I'm eager to continue indulging my passion, and collect the prettiest editions for as many new book purchases as possible. I just treated myself to the Illumicrate editions of Ninth House and Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo and I'm so excited.

Do lots more cross stitching

I barely did any cross stitching last year, but I want to find my mojo, and sew a lot more regularly this year. I just need to find some patterns I like. I've been so uninspired lately.

Make an embroidery

I'd also like to finish an embroidery. I bought a kit from Cotton Clara in 2020 that I still haven't made, so I think it's been neglected long enough. Time to get stitching.

Learn to crochet and make the Hello Kitty / Pusheen plushie

I've been saying for years that's I want to learn to crochet, and still haven't, but I'm hoping 2023 will be the year. I bought a cute kit last year- a Hello Kitty doll dressed up like Pusheen- which I'd hoped would encourage me to get started, but as a novice, learning how to start using video tutorials was harder than I expected, and I've realised I need someone to show me the ropes first. I'm hoping I can get my Mum to teach me the basics, and then attempt to crochet the doll as my first crochet project.

Get out of the house more

Aside from a week's holiday to Cornwall in September, I can count on two hands how many times I left the house for any reason last year (including my medical appointments, which have fizzled out since Covid), and let's be honest, that's not much of a life. I've been finding the isolation and lack of excitement in my life hard lately, so I'm eager to try to push myself more, and do my best to leave the house more often this year

Go to at least one concert

I haven't got any concerts booked as yet, but I'm itching for some live music, and hope I get to go to at least one this year. Going a year without a gig is just wrong.

Take a cinema trip

It's been about a decade since I last went to the cinema because it became too painful with my spinal pain, and it's one of those little things I really miss doing in life. I always used to go at least once a month. I'd love to try to go see a new film at least once this year, and see how I cope with it now, even if it leaves me in agony. 

Sight-see around Dorset

When I was looking up tour buses for my last holiday to Cornwall, I discovered there's one in Dorset called the Jurassic Coaster that travels along the south coast from Poole to Weymouth, taking you through places like Durdle Door, Lulworth Cove, and Dorchester in between. I haven't seen a lot of Dorset since I was little, so I'd love to spend a day doing a bit of sight-seeing there in the summer. It's only a two hour drive to Poole from where I live, and the Jurassic Coaster seems like an easy, inexpensive way to explore without  being too physically demanding. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a bit of summer sight-seeing.

Take a holiday

I'm not sure if a holiday is on the cards for me this year or not, but I'd very much like to take one, and get away from it all for a week.

Go to Longleat Safari Park

I'd still love to visit Longleat safari park this spring/ summer, particularly because they have koalas and wombats now, and I've never seen either animal in real life before.

Visit confetti, lavender, and sunflower fields

I was hoping to visit some local flower fields last year, but it never happened due to car issues in the summer, so I'm going to aim to visit some this year, too. I'd love to go visit local sunflower, lavender, and confetti fields, if only to see a sea of colour, and take some pretty photos. The confetti fields are fields of flowers grown for wedding confetti, near Pershore in Worcestershire, and they sound lovely.

Visit the bluebell woods

In the spring, I would also like to go to a local bluebell woods when they flower and carpet the woods in a seemingly endless sea of violet. It always looks so pretty. I did technically go to see them last year, but we arrived too late to see them flowering.

Buy a new camera

I desperately need to save up for a new camera, after breaking my bridge camera in September. (The lens has jammed, and I'm told it's unfixable). I've had to fall back on using an ancient point and shoot camera with a scratched lens or my seriously out-of-date phone for my blog and Instagram photos, and the quality of my photos makes me want to cry. I won't be able to afford anything fancy, but I want to at least find one with similar specs to my old one. Best get saving.

Decorate my bedroom

My bedroom hasn't been painted in about a decade and desperately needs a refresh, so here's hoping 2023 is the year. I'm sick to death of looking at blue walls, and fancy going with white or cream to brighten things up a bit and make all my colourful possessions stand out better.

Continue operation clear-out

Having recently tackled my bookshelves and under my bed, I want to continue my long-over-due mission to spring clean everything. Next on my list are my wardrobe and the hallway cupboard, which I've been using as an extra wardrobe, and currently looks like a junk closet from a cartoon. If I can clear out both this year, I'll be happy.

Build my wardrobe back up

I also really want to start building my wardrobe back up this year. A lot of my clothes no longer fit me, as I've gone up a dress size over the last few years from living housebound, and as someone who loves clothes, it's depressing. I feel horrible in everything, so I haven't bothered to shop for new clothes much, but it's about time I did. I'm beginning to look like a street urchin.

And those are some of my little goals for the year ahead.

Have you set yourself any goals or resolutions for 2023?

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Looking Back on 2022

Looking Back on 2022

I can't believe we're already saying 'goodbye' to 2022. I'm sure I say this every year, but it only feels like a minute since we were ringing in the last new year, and I was writing my last annual reminder of all the things I didn't do. Is it just me, or have the last twelve months flown by?

For me, they shouldn't have, as 2022 was one of the most boring and uneventful years of my life. Looking back on the year, I've realised just how little living I did. I spent most of 2022 at home, just riding out my chronic pain, tachycardia, and fatigue a day at a time. If we don't include my holiday in September, I can probably count how many times I left the house all year on two hands- including for medical appointments! I'm pretty disappointed in myself for just how little living I managed, and how little I pushed myself to try.

All I really have to show for 2022 is an overnight trip to Bournemouth to see Ronan Keating, a visit to Whipsnade Zoo, a few trips in to town with my sister, and a week's holiday to Cornwall. Cornwall was definitely a highlight of the year, with time by the sea, lots of good food, day trips to beautiful Padstow and St. Ives, and fun visits to Newquay Zoo and The Screech Owl Sanctuary. It was a blissful week away from it all, and exactly the kind of escapism I needed. 

The rest of 2022 was just spent surviving, and enjoying the little things in life. I read a lot and finished 46 books; played Animal Crossing and FarmVille 3 (for far more hours than I probably should admit); cross stitched and painted; attempted to blog; became addicted to the Shadow and Bone books, The Folk of the Air series, and The Ballad of Never After and made them my whole personality; watched some good movies and TV shows; wasted time online; and spent time with my family and my dog. That's about it.

Wow, my year sounds pathetic.

Catching Covid-19 in June, the first time I went without a mask in a crowd, was also an experience, and one I'm not likely to forget in a hurry. I was sick for a month, and while it wasn't as bad as it could've been, it was horrendous. Though, the guilt I felt for making my whole family sick was worse. (Read about it here).

As for Polka Spots and Freckle Dots... well, the less said about that, the better. I celebrated my blog's 10th birthday in March, but I also blogged less in 2022 than in any year since I began blogging. It wasn't for lack of trying- I attempted to write almost every day, but either the words wouldn't come, or I didn't have the spoons to take the photos I needed to post. I managed to post every month, and caught up a little in December, but my tally of posts for the year is pretty darn sad. Here's hoping I can do better in 2023. It's definitely something I hope to improve on over the next twelve months.

So, basically, embarrassingly, I didn't experience much in 2022. I didn't reach any of life's milestones, I didn't meet anyone new, I didn't see the world, I just didn't live. But- I made it through another difficult year of chronic pain and illness, and that's an achievement of it's own. I can be proud of making it through another 365 days of  constant pain, fatigue, tachycardia, and all my other symptoms, even if I have little else to be proud of.

And that's okay.

It's okay if the only thing you did this year was survive. We don't always have to live our lives to the full, achieve our dreams, or do impressive things. Being alive, and making the best of the lives we've been given is okay, too. We can always try again next year.

And I hope that I will.

What's the best thing that happened to you in 2022?

Merry Christmas

Hey guys!

I just stopping by to wish you all a very Merry Christmas- or a very Merry Sunday, if you don't celebrate it. I hope you have a wonderful day celebrating with your family and friends (or simply enjoying your own company), getting spoiled with presents, eating lots of delicious festive treats, and doing all those things that make Christmas special to you. 

I'll be spending today enjoying the festivities with my family at home in The Cotswolds. I'm looking forward to giving gifts, sitting down to Christmas dinner in the afternoon, falling in to a food coma in front of some festive TV, breaking out a board game or two, indulging in a few treats, and finally making some time to relax after a busy month.

It's going to be great. I can't wait!

I'll be back to tell you all about it in a few days, but for now, I'm going to log off, and soak up as much festive cheer as I can before it's all over for another year. In the meantime, you can probably find me sharing snippets of my day on Instagram.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, everyone. I hope it's the best one yet.

Currently at Christmas

Can you believe it's only a few more days 'til Christmas?

I'm not sure where the month has gone, but it doesn't feel like we're nearing the big day. Maybe it's just that I still don't feel festive. I'm beginning to wonder if I'm going to feel Christmassy at all this year.

Anyway, in an effort to get in to the holiday spirit, I'm here for a catch up, and since it's December, this post is going to be giving off a lot of festive vibes. You have been warned. 

(As always, please excuse the quality of my photos. I'm still stuck using an ancient point-and-shoot with a scratched lens, and the quality is awful).

This is what I've been up to:

Reading

I intended to spend all month reading Christmas-themed stories, but I failed at that from day one. I began reading The Cruel Prince at the end of November, and became so hooked on it, I just couldn't wait a month to read The Wicked King, and of course, when I finished that, I had to dive right in to The Queen of Nothing. I. Am. Obsessed. The Folk of the Air series is amazing, and it's without a doubt one of the best book series' I've ever read. I think I might even love these books more than the Shadow and Bone books- and you all know how much I adore those. The Folk of the Air is a dark YA fantasy series, set in a magical Faerie land, with a morally-grey mortal heroine, a cruel but loveable faerie prince / king, battles, curses, murder, the best group of spies, and a little bit of romance and seduction. The magical world of Faerie is enchanting, and I love Jude becoming bad-ass with power and shamelessly murdering anyone who gets in her way; and poor, damaged Cardan who starts off cruel and detestable, but who's really a funny, mischievous sweetheart who just wants to be loved. His backstory is one of the saddest things I've ever heard, and the way his family neglected and abused him broke my heart. I hated Lady Asha, Dain, and Balekin so much... but maybe not as much as I hated Locke and Taryn. Even if she redeemed herself a little in the last book. I'm sad the main series is over for me now as all three books were so good, but I'm looking forward to reading the companion book of short stories, How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories, and the new book, The Stolen Heir, which comes out next month. Just read them all, promise?

Aside from getting lost in Faerie, I have read some Christmas stories this December. I've been slowly making my way through A German Christmas: Festive Tales from Berlin to Bavaria, a short story or two at a time. It's a book of classic festive short stories written by German, Austrian, and Swiss writers, and they're charming. I've also just started Midnight in Everwood by M.A. Kuzniar, which is supposedly a modernisation of The Nutcracker.

Watching

I've watched some Christmas movies so far this month, but not as many as I would normally have by this stage of the festive season. I just can't seem to get in to the mood for Christmas this year, and that's really unusual for me. I'm not sure why I'm not feeling it this year. Maybe it's just because I've barely done any of the big festive activities at all yet? Who knows. Anyway, this month, I've been watching Home Alone, Home Alone 2, The Holiday, Santa Claus the Movie, The Muppets Christmas Carol, While You Were Sleeping, The Santa Clause, and Meet Me in St. Louis. And I've also been enjoying Kirstie's Handmade Christmas, and a couple of Christmas specials.

Listening

The Christmas tunes have been broken out. I've been playing all the usual festive classics, listening to some Christmas songs on Magic radio most weekday mornings, and have had Ronan's Winter Songs album on repeat. Old habits never die.

Playing

When I've had a little spare time in the evenings, I've been winding down with Animal Crossing New Horizons to enjoy the festivities in game. I haven't built anything exciting since I'm recollecting the recipes and haven't got all my festive furniture yet, but I'm having fun collecting them all, making snowmen, and enjoying the pretty fairy lights in the trees. Here's a very pink Christmas home I built in ACNH Happy Home Paradise a few months ago.

Stitching

I haven't found much time to sew lately. I'm still working on the Satsuma Street retro bauble designs I showed you in my last 'currently' post, and haven't done loads since then. I'm hoping to work on them a bit more this week, but I'm unlikely to get them finished in time for Christmas.

Wrapping

I've thankfully got all of my presents wrapped already, apart from the few that haven't been delivered yet. I actually started wrapping in October to take some of the pressure off, and have just wrapped everything else as I've bought them, and it's been a huge help. It's really made a difference to my pain levels this December, so I'm glad I did this. This year, I bought the loveliest snail mail wrapping paper from Gabi & Gaby, and wrapped them with pastel pink and blue satin ribbons from Hobbycraft.

Writing

I surprised myself by getting all my cards written and sent / given out at the start of the month, instead of at the last minute. Miracles do happen. This year's cards were from Whistlefish.

Buying

Most of my money has been spent on presents, but a few Christmas Erstwilder brooches and earrings may have been bought last month, and several books may have also jumped in to my basket lately. Including a few gorgeous editions from Owlcrate in the Black Friday sale. I'll be sure to review those ones once they arrive.

Enjoying

Accessorising all my outfits with Christmas brooches and earrings, and counting down the days to Christmas with my Essie nail polish Advent calendar. It's the little things...

Loving

Seeing all the pretty Christmas lights everywhere, brightening up the dark winter evenings. Christmas lights make everything better. Fact.

Liking

Filling my days with Christmas-themed activities. They're much more fun than regular-themed activities.

Needing

Some sleep and a good rest. Preparing for Christmas is tiring work. Roll on Boxing Day, when I can finally relax again.

Wanting

A lovely Christmas with my family, and to find lots of pretty books under the tree this year.

Wishing

I could've got out and about to do all the fun festive things, and had someone to enjoy them all with. I've missed out on all the fun holiday activities like Christmas light switch ons, Christmas markets, browsing decorations in the garden centre, Christmas parties... basically all of it, and it sucks. Okay, maybe I don't care so much about missing Christmas parties, but I wanted to do all the rest. Sometimes I resent my health just a little bit. (Do you hear those tiny violins)??

Decorating

I finally decorated my bedroom for Christmas at the end of last week. I got a potted tree from Tesco's the week before, but I hadn't been feeling great pain-wise, and couldn't find where my Mum had hidden a box of my decorations, so I started really late this year. I've got a tree up with all my presents wrapped underneath, retro deer ornaments dotted around, hoop art on the wall, Christmas tea lights by my TV, and I've even hung some decorations from my white-twig Easter tree. My bedroom basically looks like Christmas threw up on it, and I'm so proud. We still haven't put up the tree in the living room, though. 

Eating

A Christmas Doughnut Time doughnut or two might have come home with me last time I was in town. They have a brand new shop in the Westgate in Oxford, so it would've been rude not to visit it when I was out Christmas shopping. That same day, I also got to experience Popeye's for the first time, who have also just opened a restaurant in Oxford. I didn't know what to expect, but it was surprisingly tasty.

And... that's basically December so far in a (very long) nut shell.

What fun Christmas activities have you been up to lately? Are you all ready for Christmas yet?

My Erstwilder Christmas Brooch Collection

My resin brooch collection has grown steadily over the last five years, but it wasn't until last week, when I was putting away my new Christmas brooches, that I realised just how many Christmas Erstwilder brooches I have.

Seventeen. I have seventeen Christmas Erstwilder brooches!

And that's not counting the wintry ones from other collections that also look a bit festive when worn with the right outfit.

I only started collecting in 2017.

I might be a little obsessed.

Am I worried? No; I love my little collection, and look forward to accessorising my outfits with different Christmas brooches and earrings each December. It adds some fun and joy to the Christmas count down, and a little personality to what I'm wearing. Plus, I get too hot to wear Christmas jumpers, so this is my way of getting in to the festive spirit with my outfits.

Anyway, now that I've found my missing Red Robbin brooch- it turns out he's been rockin' under my bedside cabinet for the last two years- and have my whole collection together again, I thought it would be fun to give you a peek at my Christmas Erstwilder brooch collection in all it's festive glory.

And here we are.

I have seventeen beautiful holiday brooches, with at least one brooch purchased from every Erstwilder Christmas range dating back to 2017. There are some in classic Christmas colours like red and green, some in pretty pastels, and some in bold, glittery shades of magenta and royal blue. And they're all so different. I have snowmen and Santas, Christmas trees and presents, and even more unusual designs, like partridges in pears and a kookaburra in a snow globe.

I love my entire collection of brooches, but I'd say my favourites would have to be the two snow globes and the robin. The snow globe brooches are just amazing designs, and I love how sparkly the robin is; it's like a pair of ruby red slippers. I also really love the cuckoo clock, and I'm loving my new True Love's Gift partridge in a pear brooch a lot right now, too.

I've worn quite a few of these brooches already this month- often just pinned to my PJs, as I've barely gotten dressed all month- and I'm trying to work my way through wearing all of them before Christmas is over.

Today, I'm wearing the pastel pink cuckoo clock, but tomorrow? Who knows?

Perhaps I'll remember to share it on Instagram, so you might find out.

Do you have a Christmas jewellery collection to rival mine? Which of these brooches is your favourite?

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