23 Ways I’m Leveling Up In 2023

 

I was listening to a podcast where the host shared her 22 in 2022 list with the listeners. She created 22 big and small things that she wanted to conquer over the year.

Once she shared her list, and talked about what she accomplished and failed to accomplish, I knew I wanted to create a list of my own to tackle.

I am a big fan of lists in general. To-Do List, To-Buy List, Declutter List, you name it, I’m in. I also love a good challenge or goal to work toward.

So I set out to make my list and got carried away, listing almost 26 items. 

I have since reeled in the list, simplifying it to some achievable tasks and some stretch goals.

Check out my list below.

Mother Intentionally

Did you know you have 18 summers, Christmas’, and birthdays with your child before they potentially leave your nest?

When you think about it, it’s not nearly enough time. I got married right after high school and then moved around the United States with my military spouse.

Long story short, I’m making space to be present with my little ones. This will look like monthly dates with each child, bedtime snuggles and reading, and weekly family fun nights.

Read More Books

Each year I always have a more extensive reading goal than the last. For example, in 2021, my goal was to read 40 books; in 2022, it was 52 books. I completed the year reading 50 books.

I am okay with that number. This year my goal is to read 52 books. That’s one book a week.

Learn to Swim

Okay, so I am almost 38 and can’t swim. I have been afraid of deep water for as long as I can remember; however, I will not go through the rest of my days not knowing how to navigate water safely.

So here’s to a new bathing suit and getting comfy with water.

No Buy Year 

This one makes me nervous.

Why do a No Buy Year or Low Buy Year? To reset my spending habits, learn to think beyond buying to solve my problems, and indulge in experiences.

Declutter 2023 Items

I am on a simplicity journey. That means I am constantly simplifying and minimizing every area of my life.

I’ve decluttered over 1500 items this past year, and I have no plans of slowing down. However, I am willing to pair down to the essentials with a possible cross-country move in the works.

Create 52 Blog posts

This was a goal I secretly set for myself last year. There were moments I wasn’t secure in my writing skills and therefore wouldn’t write or post written posts.

I sought perfection.

This year I am just going for it.

Celebrate our 20th Anniversary

This year will be our 20th Anniversary. We rarely celebrate anniversaries because my husband is always deployed. This year I want to take time to plan something special. Being married for 20 years is a big deal.

Reread Five Books On My Bookshelf

There are many books on my shelf that I want to reread. But, unfortunately, I never take time to do it because there is always a new fancy book calling my name.

I want to reread Atomic Habits, Smart Mom Rich Mom, Simple and Free, the five people you meet in Heaven, and many others. I plan to read five, but I would love to exceed this goal.

I Will Not Buy Any New Books

Yall, I love reading books, but I buy books faster than I read them. This is something new for me. I never had a problem buying books until the pandemic made it hard to get them at the Library. 

When my bookshelf got out of control at home, I knew I had to do something drastic. This was it. I am pausing buying books all year long. If I get a book as a gift, it won’t count toward my no buy goal. When my book subscription runs out, I will not renew it.

I am reading only what’s on my shelf and what I can get from the local library.

Track My Habits

I want to track my habits to see what areas I am most inconsistent in and which ones come easily. In monitoring my patterns, I can work on building positive habits and changing habits that no longer serve me.

I’ve found an app that will help me keep track. I just have to keep up with the tracking.

Visit San Francisco

We’ve lived on the West Coast for some time, and one of the many places I’ve wanted to visit is San Fransico.

We may have as little as six months left on this coast (because we could get restationed), but I am making it my mission to see San Fran.

Organize Photos and make a photo book.

This is something I have wanted to do for a while. I recently bought large photo albums for each child. I am preparing to print out as many photos as possible to start creating their life-long photo albums.

Set up Will and Trust

Setting up legal documents is a whole other level of adulting. This task gets looked over by people my age because everyone thinks we have forever. After watching so many young people transition this past year, I want to make sure that if I die it is easy on my family.

I am not being morbid here. I am being real. Facing this topic head-on. Not only financially but also from the standpoint of homegoing services and belongings.

Lose 15 – 20 pounds 

I have never been a person to count pounds. Believe it or not, I was so skinny in my childhood my mom bought me Boost Nutritional Drinks to supplement my food intake.

But through the pandemic and my husband’s recent deployment, I’ve put on 20 plus pounds. I will continue to work on being active and preparing healthier meals throughout the day to aide my goal.

Journal 5 out Seven days 

I started journaling two years ago. It was sporadic and lasted about five months. After taking some time off, I came back to my journal to reread some entries. I learned so much about myself and my needs.

There were some things I struggled to make decisions about. However, I quickly found the answers to many of my problems in my writing. Ever since I have found it essential to commit to the practice. There is so much therapy found in journaling. I am excited to learn more about me.

Complete digital Declutter

My phone and cloud are brimming over with photos and videos. From random photo duplicates to vacation videos, to school pdfs, and few not-so-necessary documents,  my devices need a good clean out.

I will spend time clearing my computers, phones, and children’s digital devices.

Complete a Habit Challenge Each Month of the Year

Each month this year, I am focusing on one habit or task that will really move me forward in my goals.

For example, in January, I am focusing on decluttering. My habit is to remove 10 items each day and add them to the declutter bin. It will be dropped off each week at the thrift store.

Creating space in my home makes it easier for me to focus on and accomplish other tasks. Each month after January, I will work on a new habit.

Complete Two devotionals

At the end of last year, I purchased six devotionals through dailygrace.co. I have found it so hard to get keep up with these. I’m setting my goal of completing 2 in hopes that I will get motivated to complete all six.

Mother/ Daughter trip

My daughter turned 12 last December. Where is the time going? SERIOUSLY! The last time we’ve been on a mother/daughter trip she was four years old.

She hasn’t stopped talking about it since. So I may surprise her and take her with me to San Fran.

Invest and Save 30k

If you have followed me on Instagram long enough, you know I have a money goal. We are still seeking financial freedom as a family, but also want to enjoy the right now.

Therefore, we have eased up on our investing goals to live more in the present.

More Meals at Home

This has always been a struggle for me. I am a girl who does not like being in the kitchen.

I want no part of cooking or baking; however, cooking and meal prepping are a must in this time of inflation.

So I have made it my business to learn a few new meals and casseroles while also planning healthier options to help me lose weight.

This is a hard one for me, but when it comes to saving money, I know how to push through.

Continue my Gratitude Practice      

Gratitude has changed the way I view my life. So I found an app called Journal, which makes it easy to practice gratitude at any time of the day.

A paid feature also allows you to add photos to your gratitude journal. I am not usually a digital journal girl, but in this case, it worked better for me to keep my gratitude journal and regular Journal separate.

 

WHAT ARE YOUR THINGS?

I would encourage you to write down a few things you look forward to taking on in 2023. The best part about these lists is that you don’t have to complete them. I aspire to touch on all of these, but I’m almost sure they all won’t get completed. And that is perfectly fine. What things are you thinking of adding to your list? Comment below.