2023 Review

We are days away from ending 2023 and starting 2024. I cannot believe how fast this year has gone. Like it feels like it has started a few weeks ago. There have been some good things that have happened this year and lots of appointments.

We were able to have a bigger garden with the 12 foot by 4 foot garden beds. I am really grateful to have been able to get them along with the dirt. The goal is to get 2 more for next year have 4 of them. There are some things that I am not going to grow again like the broccoli or the beets. I am going to move things around next year in the garden beds like the zucchini and yellow squash. They got way bigger than I expected. We are going to end the year with better internet. We are going back to the company we were with before we switched. The company we have doesn't have enough power/speed/whatever to support all of the devices because it's copper and not fiber. Videos for YouTube are taking a lot longer to upload. We can't watch a single show on TV when we are home alone without it buffering or losing connection. I can't wait until Saturday when the guy comes to set it up. It'll go back in my room. Mom will cancel the current internet service. It's 2023, almost 2024, these companies should be better and we should have better internet for what we are paying. Everything uses the internet.

There have been a few ER visits and trips to the children's hospital for the kids. Elijah for his migraines and he's on a medication for that. Wyatt needed a tooth pulled and he was constipated. Last year was the gas pocket.

Wyatt was able to go to church camp this year and he had so much fun and wants to keep going back. He wants to do the overnight camp when he's 8.

I am looking forward to faster internet and quicker uploads and being able to watch TV without the interruptions. I started a series on my main channel and I want to continue that series. It is a WIC inspired series. I have like 3 videos with recipes and a couple of years ago I did a day of eating for WIC. The main reason is to help others. There's not a lot of videos with what to make with the food. Some of it is easy like with the eggs, cheese and toast/wraps. Other things, like what to do with the beans, aren't so easy. When I was on WIC I got cans of beans with recipes printed on the back. In the new year I am going to include some more shopping from what Wyatt and I used to get on WIC and meals around them and upload videos based on them.

I am looking forward to a new year starting. The kids have birthdays in January and February.

My word of the year for next year is consistency. I want to be more consistent in my life. I feel like consistency covers a lot of things. This may be my next blog post.

For my planner I have decided to do another bullet journal. I like some of the things from the Blogilates/Popflex Active fitness planner. I have all of the monthly spreads done and January's weekly spreads done. When the kids go back to school I will work on some more weeks. The kids get done school at the end of May and go back at the end of July. I do want to get June and July done before they get done with school and then once they are in school work on the rest of the year.

For Christmas I got 2 gift cards. One for Michaels and one for Walmart. We are getting a Michaels in August some time and I want to be there opening day. My dad has been doing a gift card lottery for a few years now. He sends 3 $25 gift cards and one $100 gift card and we have to pick a card. Mom has won it twice and Wyatt has won it once. The boys have already spent their gift cards. Elijah has a little bit left on his. I am waiting until the kids are back in school to spend mine. Plus I don't know what to get. Part of me wants a 30 pound kettlebell but that is more than what my gift card is for. I can always wait until next year to spend my gift card. There's a Michaels in Augusta but I'm hardly ever there. I'll be there next month for Elijah's appointment for his medication. I could go then if it's close by or go on a day when I can also stop at Costco.

One of the things I am going to try to do is budget. In my bullet journal planner I did include a meal plan space each week. Over the next few weeks I am going to use up what is in the freezers and pantry. I want to get better at doing a budget and sticking with it.

I hope y'all have a great rest of this year and a great New Year.