Do y’all write resolutions each year? Though I was very inspired by Garance Dore’s post on 2014 as a year of non-resolutions — and the attendant directive to “underthink” (truly, an often overlooked gem of advice that applies to many of us of the feminine persuasion, who tend to way overthink things) — I admit that I look forward to the practice of detailing some personal goals. I’ll also admit that I tend to recycle the same resolutions, year-on-year.
{image via Garance Dore}
Hey, there’s something to be said of the grit and persistence of trying again and again, right? And I wouldn’t declare last year a failure because I’ve set the same goals. Below, a few of my top-of-minds:
1. Drink more water.
Mr. Magpie left me a “Klean Kanteen” ($20) in my stocking expressly for this purpose. Apparently, the Klean Kanteen is the ultimate water bottle — so says Wirecutter, my husband’s new best friend. I got about two dozen stocking stuffers recommended by Wirecutter, a product review site that only lists one top product for each category so you don’t spend a lot of time reading different reviews. You just take their advice as Gospel. So far, the site hasn’t let us down. One of my other stocking stuffers was a small, portable space heater that has absolutely made my life, especially over the past few days up here in “Chiberia,” as they’re calling the frosty Chicagoland area. On Monday, we hit a record low of -52 degrees with windchill. Negative. Fifty. Two. Let that sink in, ladies. Negative…fifty…two.
2. Get more organized.
This is a little laughable since I am hyper-organized already, but, heading into 2014, I realized I was using twelve different calendars / ways to track my week. There’s something healthy about keeping work and private life separate, but it was becoming too much of a burden and I was occasionally forgetting commitments until the very last minute. I looked at different solutions, but at the end of the day, needed something that would not only serve as a calendar but as a calendar integrated with a to-do list. So, I decided to go analog. I found the BEST planner by Sugar Paper ($17). I use different colored pens to jot down things for Magpie, work, and personal. It’s a life changer. Loves.
Also may need to do a big haul of office goodies from Russel + Hazel – love all that lucite!
3. Call my family and friends more often.
I miss them so.much. But my days often run long and when they’re over, Mr. Magpie has just gotten home from work and I want to pour a glass of wine and make our dinner. I need to make time to call my loved ones, though, especially with my brand new iPhone (another great Christmas gift from Mr. Magpie!):
4. Plan my meals.
I love cooking. But in the couple of weeks leading up to Christmas, what with the job transition and plans for the holidays keeping me going at breakneck speed, I found myself scrambling at the last minute to throw something together or ordering delivery more often than I’d care to admit. I also find that when I haven’t planned my lunch and dinner, I fill up on trash like Pirate’s Booty (addictive.) or have a lunch of saltines and peanut butter or something equally as drab and depressing. This year, I am using my new planner to also plan my meals for the week and then intend to make only 1-2 trips to the grocery (vs. the daily or every-other-day stops I was averaging before!)
{Grocery list from Sugar Paper, $13.}
5. Work out more!
I feel like a ridiculous poser typing this since it’s been in the negative degrees the past three days, which has kept me in my apartment and terrified of leaving, BUT I do plan to kick up my work out regimen as soon as I can escape. And you know what means — new kicks. I’m into these tri-color puppies ($100) right now.
6. Try some new things.
I mayyyy be the type who gets a little stuck in my ways. I may or may not order the same things every time I go to the same restaurants. For that reason, I’m hoping to brush up on my French by taking an Alliance Francaise Chicago class and maybe taking up swimming at my gym, which has a lovely pool that overlooks the Chicago skyline. I’ll need to buy a sporty two-piece…will this Alexander Wang bikini ($390) do the trick?
Maybe I can squeeze my noggin into one of these swimming caps ($7), too…
7. Get a puppy.
This is a new resolution, but Mr. Mags and I have been talking about getting a pup for years now — the timing has just never seemed right. Not this year!
8. Read more!
Self-explanatory.
What were your resolutions?!
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