January Look Back | 2020

Now I know it isn’t just me who feels like January went on forever. It’s always the way. Most of us get paid earlier in December, and then have to make it last that little bit longer until January pay day finally arrives. As a consequence, everyone is mindful of money, partaking in dry January, or just generally going into hermit mode. Although I have to admit, I actually quite like living in my dressing gown and going into hermit mode every now and then, so I’m not complaining at all.

If I’m honest, January has been a pretty disjointed month for me. I feel like I’ve been mega organised at work, but that I’ve slipped a little in my personal life. For example, I normally write up my look backs as I’m going through the month, adding as and when I do things while they are fresh in my mind. This month however, I’m typing this up late, and I can’t really remember what I did!

Don’t worry, this post isn’t going to be random confused ramblings with no real direction or substance. Not all of it anyway. I do have a couple of bits to talk about. You may have noticed that the blog is getting a slightly new look. I’m playing around with various ideas, and should be done in the next few weeks or so. At the moment it’s just small changes, for example the sign off at the bottom of my posts, the slight change in text, or my logo. 

I plan to revamp my Disclaimer and About me sections, and maybe even have a play around with the blog layout… although I haven’t decided on that last part yet. Despite my lack of organisation I feel that my blog is progressing well, with more views and comments this month than any month previously, which I’m really pleased with. I’ve been making a real effort to make sure I share my new posts on social media, so it’s nice to see that it’s paying off. 

Around the middle of the month I started to undertake a slightly more ruthless clear out of the beauty room (aka our tiny spare room). I’ve been wanting to revamp that room since we moved here, done a lot of talking about it but just never go to it. At the moment its plain, cluttered and overcrowded. I’ve taken measurements to wallpaper one wall, cleared a load of rubbish I don’t need and measured up for new furniture. I’m taking it slow, but I’m slowly transforming the space into what I want it to be. I’m documenting it as I go, so when I’m finally done I’ll be able to do a little before and after. I’ll be sharing my progress in a little series, so keep an eye out for future posts. 

So far I’ve found pulling everything out of a cupboard or draw, sorting through it and putting what I want to keep back in a tidy manor to be quite therapeutic. A great way to clear and declutter your mind can sometimes be to do exactly that with the environment around you, especially your home.

It wasn’t just tidying and decluttering that I did this month, I’ve also tried my hand at some Vegan cooking, as my friend had a spinal operation at the end of the month and will be immobile for a little while. Her op went well and she was allowed home the next day, so I’ve got a couple of days off to keep her company and cook some of the new meals I’ve learned! I have to say, I found a life saver of an app, which I talked about in a post about making Vegan cooking easier.

Toward the end of the month Mike and I got another thing ticked off our wedding to do list and choose our wedding rings! Naturally thanks to me and my tiny fingers they’ve had to be specially ordered, so we haven’t got them yet. I’m hoping they fit, because there wasn’t a single size J in the store for me to try on for size, although we have been assured they’ll just swap them if mine doesn’t fit.

We got a couple of other bits done, which are better serves talking about in my February goals, so keep an eye out for that!

What did you get up to in January?