2020 Goal Update

I’ve moved blog spaces, but I wanted to give an update on the goals I had set for myself for the year. You can read the whole post here, but these are the goals:

• Lose 30 pounds and go to the gym more
• Read 36 books
• Write more
• Play unplayed board games
• Take Lizzy to the library and read to her all of those books
• Visit more Ohio breweries

So now the update!

Obviously Covid has put kind of a strain on… most of these, actually really all of them. It’s taken me far too long to come to the conclusion that things just aren’t going to be back to normal any time soon. As soon as I think it’s going to start getting better the numbers get worse, but this is what I’ve been able to accomplish so far:

Lose 30 Pounds

This one… most likely won’t be happening by the end of the year, and THAT’S FINE! I have started taking steps toward this goal, but a lot had to change first.

I had to adjust to working from home full time. I was already working from home one day a week, but that is MUCH different than full time. Adjusting to this with the 4 year old at home while daycare was closed was… difficult, but I think I’m finally there. I’m able to be productive both for work items and home items.

In the last few weeks I’ve gotten back to intermittent fasting and calorie counting. I’ve also started to walk more. I didn’t think this would be difficult, but it shockingly was. However, I’m now taking AT LEAST one 1.5 mile walk a day, and most days it’s two. It’s not much, but it’s a start.

Read 36 Books

I didn’t anticipate this one being slowed by Covid, but it was. Partly because a good chunk of my book “reading” is in audio format. This was happening on my commute to and from work which was a solid hour of book consumption a day. With this and long walks not happening I wasn’t consuming as many spoken words.

I have, however, managed to read 23 books so far this year. I started the Lumberjanes graphic novel series as well as the Amulet graphic novel series. Sure these are more for older kids, but I really have been enjoying them. The graphic novels helped me put a boost in my readings numbers while I wasn’t able to listen to audio books. I also finished a few other novels. You can check what I’ve read so far this year here. Feel free to add me on Goodreads if you use that service.

Write More

This one too took a hit… For several months I couldn’t even convince myself to use my bullet journal to keep me on track with tasks and to-dos. It wasn’t until this month that I really got back to using it and writing daily. I’ve been getting more posts up here too since then.

I think by the end of the year I’ll be able to say I wrote more than the previous year if I can keep up my current trends.

Play Unplayed Board Games

Kinda hard to complete this one when you’re not going to events or having people over for regular game nights. I have managed to teach myself Santorini which has been on my unplayed shelf since winter. I also recently got my copy of Calico, and I’m looking forward to learning the solo variant of that one.

Overall, this has had mostly no movement, and I’m actually okay with it. I honestly haven’t even felt like I’ve MISSED my regular board game nights. That is the strangest bit of all of this.

Visit the Library and Read to Lizzy

This one… Has really been the most devastating. Before Covid we were going to the Library at a minimum every other weekend to bring home a stack of books that she had picked out herself. She was always so excited to read them each night before bed.

For a while the libraries were just closed, and there was nothing we could do about that. Eventually they opened up to carry out books which prompted me to actually start using our library system’s online portal. The process now is Lizzy and I look through some lists of good books for pre school/kindergarten aged kids. She selects a few, and I select a few. We wait for the emails to say they’re available for pick up, and then I go get them on my lunch break or on the weekend. Our local library also will pick out additional books for you too.

We usually leave with anywhere form 10-20 books without going into the library, but I’ve lost the joy of watching her pick out her own books.

Visit More Ohio Breweries

We had originally planned to take some long weekends in Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dayton, and Akron to hit up some big chunks of breweries. While we’ve been comfortable visiting places we’re already familiar with WHEN WE CAN SIT OUTDOORS, we haven’t wanted to risk unknown parts of the state or unknown locations.

A new brewery opened near my mom that we checked out, and another opened near us that has great outdoor seating. So we have been able to visit the smallest view, but not nearly as many as we were anticipating.

I’m really hoping most of them survive this so we can check them out once it’s safe again… If it’s ever safe again.

Welp! That’s the update. Some things are mostly on track, other things are mostly completely derailed, and THAT’S FINE. It’s fine. We’re just doing what we can one day at a time, and I really think that’s the only thing any of us can do right now.

I hope you’re all hanging in there and doing the best you can. Even if that best is just getting out of bed in the morning. YOU DID IT! You got out of bed. Yay you!

Hang in there. 🙂