Themes are My New Resolutions

Happy New Year!!

This year I'm doing away with resolutions (who really keeps those past January anyway?!) and opting for themes instead. Yes, themes like movies and books have. Life imitating art. But not in a pretentious way. It's a less committed approach than resolutions but achieves a similar thing i.e. focusing your efforts on what is important to you at the moment.

My themes for 2011 are:

+Fun
+Fitness & health
+Yoga
+Drumming

These are my main dishes in the scrumptious feast that I hope this year will be.

I've recently discovered that the main thing is to focus on the main thing. It's the only way to get anything done. I've used that approach to do yoga EVERY DAY in December. Good huh? Especially for a laidback busy mother of two.

As a creature of impulse afflicted with a horribly low boredom threshold, I find my life is often so jam-packed full of dreams, schemes, projects and amusements that I don't achieve the goals I want to. I try a little of everything which is lots of fun but I end each year in much the same place - both physically and metaphorically speaking.

So, this year I will narrow my focuses (foci??) and aim to progress in my two main hobbies: yoga and djembe drumming. I will also make my choices this year based on enjoyment and stop doing things because I feel I 'ought' to. That's the 'Fun' theme.

I don't really need a reminder to make this year fun, but I often get myself in a tizz trying to do the right thing by everyone else and forget to prioritise things that make me smile, things that are fun for me (and we all know that a happy mummy makes a happy family!).

Don't worry, I won't use this as an excuse to slip into my old hedonistic, excessive ways. I won't shirk my true responsibilities. But I will be saying 'no' a lot more than usual...and 'yes' to things I might have been to afraid say yes to last year. Confused? All will be revealed in the fullness of time..

And so to the fitness and health theme. Hmm. Me and the rest of the world right? Lose weight, drop a dress size, run a marathon, get leaner, faster, eat less sugar, more veg. B-O-R-I-N-G.

I'm going to use my previous theme (fun) together with this theme and do positive, easy things I enjoy that also help me take baby steps towards being a fitter, stronger, more supple, healthier, happier mama.

My first mission is to improve my body image - without necessarily improving my body. I believe we can all feel better about ourselves right now - not put off self acceptance to that magical time when we are lighter and/or smaller.

To this end, I'll be trying out different (enjoyable) techniques to help me love myself more just the way I am. Squidgy mummy tummy and all. If you want to follow my adventures in self love (god that sounds sooo dodgy!) then you need to read my secret(ish) new blog. Email me at annacolette(at)gmail(dot)com with 'Body Image' in the subject line and I'll send you the URL.

My second mission is to add some green smoothies into my life. I'm aiming to have one a week in February and will gradually crank that up. The Green Smoothie is an easy and - hopefully - delicious way to get more fruit and veg, curb your sugar cravings and lose weight. Sound good? Here are some green smoothie recipes to get you started.

What do you want your themes to be for 2011?

I'm back

Photo Credit: bringing sexy back

I well and truly logged off over the Christmas period. I rarely even checked my emails. I had lots of downtime and it was lovely, if a little fraught at times (well, Christmas always is, isn't it?).

Els had a lovely time with her dad and his girlfriend. We spoke on Christmas day, and were reunited three days later.

Having been with Daddy for five days, it took her a while to settle back in with me. Her plaintive lament, "I really miss Daddy and Karen. I want to be with Daddy and Karen!" was on a loop for a good few days. A little hard for me, but deep down I knew she would start to enjoy being with me and J soon. 

I've now got her for a whole week which is fantastic. Her dad & Karen are in the Lake District on holiday (brrr! It's cold enough here!). It's a good feeling when El and I have unbroken time together. Nice and relaxed. Her dad and I usually have Ella for two days each, taking it in turns in the week and then doing alternate weekends. 

It's good to have a full-time mum experience again.  I become more in tune with her and stop trying so hard to please her. We get in the groove together - flow into a steady rhythm that is natural and comforting. My life feels more solid than usual.  

New Year's Eve was fun. We visited my sister in the New Forest and took the kids to a house party. It was quite a laidback affair as most people there had brought their kids/babies/bumps. 

It was the first time I have seen in the New Year with Els, and it was really exciting doing the countdown together, letting off party poppers and then watching fireworks in the garden.

Ella and Sulis (my niece) were surprisingly good-natured the next day, despite such a late night. I managed to buy a little hangover nursing time for the grownups by putting Wall-E on after the kids' breakfast.

When do children start waking late in the morning after a late night? Obviously by the time they're teens, but I wonder if I will get to enjoy the odd 'party night' with Ella followed by a mutual lie-in before then. Let me know what you think...