2019 Goal Setting and Get Motivated to Achieve your Goals

Hi, my dear friend!

If you are reading this message that means you are very blessed and we will be seeing the arrival of the New 2019 together.
I hope you are in a good health and are on your way to new achievements and life lessons which will shape you to be an even better human than you already are.
It is not always the most pleasant experience, but it will definitely be worth it.
If you want to see how to plan for a better and smoother ride in 2019, prepare your nicest notepad and a cup of your favourite drink and get reading...

1. Make a list of people you need to think and care about in 2019 and keep it:
You need it to help you keep focused on the people which you truly care about. It is the same as writing goals - something new comes up in your life, you whip out your list with goals, check - whether this "new thing" going to help you achieve one of your goals or not. If it doesn't - you can safely skip it. Unless, of course, it's helping someone in need.

Same with people - your colleague is inviting you for a drink, and you know you have promised your grandma to take her out shopping - whip out your list of "Important people in your life" and check it - it will quickly help you to make the right decision.
As you can see - I have started my list with "Myself" as point number 1.
I strongly suggest you do the same. And keep your list at a place where it is easily accessible throughout the year.
It doesn't come naturally to me at all - to put myself first. But I am learning and I can see that in 95% of cases where people have asked me for help and I dropped everything of my own to help them - it was not urgent, they could either easily done it themselves or waited until I complete my own things first and then help them.

2. Start writing all your achievements down right from the 1st of January 2019:
(Remember, I asked you to prepare your best notebook. Thats why).
Why is it important to do straight away and not wait until the end of the year?
Because as the year goes on, you will have a lot of ups and achievements, but equally - a lot of downs. And in the moments when you are low, you won't remember everything good you have done and got accomplished so far.

With the notepad and everything nicely documented - you can just sit down, read it, get inspired, understand  "this too shall pass", wipe your tears away and go! You will get your confidence back up in no time.

3. Every day, no matter where you are and what you do - always ask yourself two questions:
a/ What am I feeling right now?
b/ What do I want right now?

And act accordingly. I dare you!

We go through our lives and see what our friends are doing, what we need to be doing for work, what are we expected to do for our families. But do we really want to do it?
Is it something we really need to be doing? Maybe ourselves and others around us would benefit a lot more if we were to do what we truly want and feel like doing.
This is the secret to your non-existent motivation! And to all the lazy people out there - you are simply NOT doing what you truly want.
There is only one person who can make any, ANY difference in your life - it is YOU!
Your seat is waiting - sit down and take charge of where you are going in 2019.

You have 8760 hours in the year of 2019. Out of which you will be asleep for about 2920 hours and maybe even more.
In total you are left with 5840 hours to do something. It is so little, especially if you start watching where do you spend each hour of your day. So the 2019 will go by and you will just about manage to blink few times.
If you don't want to be that sad person with "no achievements" at the end of 2019, act now. Go and start with following the only 3 points of advise I left for you above. That is all you need, I promise.

As for me - the main lesson I learned in 2018 - is how to be more present in the moment - notice all the little things and stop and take time to inhale the smells around you, hear the noises around you, see the smiles of people...
And I will continue improving on this skill in the upcoming year. Hopefully by the end of the 2019 I will be a guru in this :)

This gorgeous flower bouquet is from Prestige Flowers. And I am in love with how well it fitted into my interior and has also replaced the aromatic Christmas tree as well, which I didn't have.  It came with all three of the lilies closed, but they opened exactly on Christmas day. This was a wonderful surprise to all of us.

Cinnamon sticks in the bouquet kept adding to the gorgeous aroma of the clementines - the king fruit of this season.

To remind you, my friend, that the days of our life are running fast and we don't have as many as we think we do!
So make the right priorities, as you don't have time for everything.

With all my love and best wishes for each one of you for the Happy New 2019 xx

Write below what are your goals for the 2019?

Wave Summer Goodbye With a Style

For as long as I remember myself, every year the autumn would come I had this idea - to organize a picnic with my friends or family, or just Mr. M.

There was only one requirement - the picnic should be picture perfect. With everything organized: pretty basket, yummy snacks and ..bicycles.
You know, like in the movies.
I did say being a perfectionist comes with a price to pay.

My biggest struggle was always the packing bit. You know when you are planning the picnic, you have decided on your theme, your location, looked up on the map how far you have to drive or cycle in my case.
But the most important and not to lie, the most exciting bit of every picnic is what?
Take a wild guess.
Of course, it is food!

You must remember the times when you were young, went for picnics with your family and as soon as the blanket is set up and everyone is comfortably sat down, having seemingly casual conversations - you were waiting what is going to come out of that hamper basket your mum has prepared.

I love picnics, I love food and wicker hamper baskets filled with little packets of joy. But I do not like packing the food. It has never worked for me. Reasons being the tediousness of it and having to make sure that I do cater for a different taste amongst friends attending the event.

If I remember to pack bread and cucumbers, I will forget eggs and tomatoes.

If I take chocolates and cheese, I will definitely forget cutlery or the bottle of lovely red wine for those friends of mine who do drink it.

This year, a few weeks ago, when the opportunity for the picnic has presented itself, I made sure I grabbed it by the ears. And finally organized this picnic I have always wanted.

We set off very early in the morning, to get the best out of the day ahead. He chose the location and I grabbed the hamper basket full of food. Which I ordered just the day before and it came with the next day delivery.

I also made sure to take the pumpkin out for a stroll and as a decoration to set the mood.

After a few circles around the Frimley Lodge Park on our bicycles we have chosen the perfect spot, away from too many eyes and cars, and yet not in a complete solitude.

I sat down and unloaded the basket. Mine had all different sorts of food and all, however, I have seen on their website they have a special dietary requirement hampers as well.

"Come here and put some music on, let the feast begin!"

 I started with my ever favorite - garlic stuffed huge olives and then proceeded with that strawberry-champagne preserve.

 Andrew got ahold of the sun-dried tomato and balsamic chutney jar with the Perthshire oatcakes with pepper. Stuffing the gruyere cheese biscuits on top of that.

 A pack of crisp, salty popcorn and few conversations later we got to the tea and the dessert - biscuits, chocolates with the Turkish delight center and my favorite, Monty Bojangles truffles.

As we enjoyed our time, we would have an occasional burst of light wind and the birch leaves would fall off the tree on our heads like a snow. It was a magical touch one can never plan for but enjoys when he suddenly gets it.

When we had enough, and Andrew went to explore the nearby tennis court, I took my book and proceeded reading, polishing off the meal with the piece of chocolate.

The day started to decline and before we knew it, it was almost time to head home.

"Would you like any more tea before we start packing up, Andrew?"

As the sun started to turn way over the midday curve, closer towards the evening, we packed everything up and cycled on to make one more stop before we head home...

...I went and exchanged some of the books I had with me against the new ones in the local outdoor library booth. To make sure I always have a good reading material.

Christmas and giving season is approaching and very fast. The Thanksgiving, the Harvest festival and my friends with birthdays coming up to Christmas. I am always for giving practical gifts, especially when people have a lot of opportunities to buy what they want during the year. So hamper baskets are always first on my list.

I got my hamper basket for the picnic here:
https://www.prestigehampers.co.uk/christmas-hampers
If you want, go and get yours too.

Do I have to mention that now I have amazing family photos to put up in the frames in our living room. To remember this summer and autumn for a long time to come and know that I have finally got that perfect picnic together and the wicker hamper basket too. And I am bracing the need of searching for printing services now... :)

Thank you for stopping by!