2023 Resolutions

Some people don’t like to set New Year’s resolutions, but I am not one of those people; I love a fresh start in January and getting all my ducks in a row. However, in the past, I definitely overcommitted and overwhelmed myself with too big of goals and tried to make huge lifestyle changes that just weren’t sustainable. This year I’m trying to be more realistic and pace myself because change comes slowly. I’m also this year trying to be more specific with my goals and have ways to get to where I want to be. My goals for 2023 are:

• Become more confident
  • Eat healthier
    • Track my calories
      • This is just what works for me, it’s not always what works for everyone else
      • I use MyFitnessPal
    • Plan dinners
      • Cook at least one new recipe each week
      • I’ve been using the Super Simple cookbook from Half-Baked Harvest
  • Drink more water
    • Minimum 60 ounces per day
      • About two of my water bottles
      • I’m a water bottle aficionado so here is my favorite one in case you needed a recommendation. And here’s a TOPS cup if you want to rep
  • Spend less money
    • Only order from Amazon and go to Target (for fun) once a month
      • I do have an addiction
    • Make an extra payment on my credit card
    • Buy fewer books
      • There’s no way I can stop buying books but I’m limiting myself to 2 new ones a month
  • Start journaling
    • Track my goals in a bullet journal
    • I got the Five-Minute Journal and a writing prompts notebook for Christmas so I want to start using those
• Read 50 books
  • Track them in a book journal
• Travel to 5 states
  • I have a trip booked to Waco, TX at the end of this month!
• Fix my sleep schedule
  • I go to bed around 1 or 2 am no matter what time I have to wake up, so I am pretty much always tired
  • Don’t drink any caffeine after 2 pm
• Take better care of my hair and skin

So far in January, my goals are going pretty well. I’ve been tracking my calories every day, I’ve cooked a new recipe each week from a cookbook I got for Christmas (they’ve all been pretty good, which I’m proud of since I’m not the greatest cook) and I’ve met my water goal almost every day. I haven’t placed any orders on Amazon or taken a trip to Target yet, I made my extra credit card payment, bought my two-book limit, finished those two books (48 to go), I’ve been good about not having caffeine past 3 pm (baby steps) and have been sticking to my haircare/skincare routine pretty well. The only thing I haven’t done is start journaling because I keep putting off setting my journals up, but it’s at the top of my at-home to-do list. 

I also have a few goals that will change from month to month. One of those goals is to exercise more, which will look different throughout the year based on the weather, a gym membership, etc. I’ve been trying to settle into my new routine with this job, my commute, my boyfriend being done with college and on the job search, searching for an apartment closer to work and all sorts of stuff, so exercise hasn’t been on the forefront of my mind. Once I get more settled, I’ll have a better, more consistent routine, but this month I’ve hopped on the treadmill to walk while I watched TV a few times and want to do that at least twice more. Another January goal that I made is to buy a new car. My commute to my grandparents, where I stay when I have to go into the office because they live closer, is about two hours, and I’ve just been doing a lot of driving recently that my 2002 Chevy Prizm just isn’t equipped to handle. I love Pat (my car’s name) but it’s time for a new one and I’m really excited to buy my first car (I got Pat from a family member and he was $2,000, so it’s a little different). 

I really want 2023 to be my year and I’m trying to make that happen by setting my realistic goals, revisiting them each month and adding new ones each month, if need be. I’ve also learned from TOPS that accountability is key, so my boyfriend and I have been doing our best to keep each other on track. So far, so good!

Let me know what your resolutions are if you made some, and if you have any tips for me, I’d love to hear them!

That’s all folks,

Lexi

P.S. I wrote this back in January so pretend 2023 just started, I’ll update on my progress this year soon!