The past week has been a bit of a whirlwind. A happy whirlwind but a whirlwind all the same. I’ve had a lot of excited conversations with loved ones about getting engaged, booked a rather last-minute trip half way round the world, been engagement ring shopping and seemed to have finally succumbed to G’s horrible cold.
So, yeah, sitting down to think about ideas, goals and plans for the year ahead is only just happening.
But here’s a few things I’ve got lined up for 2018…
Travel
The big one for 2018. Travel travel travel. 2019 will now involve getting married and buying a house (because I AM A GROWN UP) and before those hefty, EXPENSIVE, life milestones take place, there’s places I want to go; the wanderlust is real you guys.
I tried to give G as much warning as possible that 2018 would be THE YEAR OF THE TRAVEL and I don’t think I’ve freaked him out too much.
Booked
Singapore – I know! I’d sort of decided Singapore was not a place to visit in the near future. I’d thrown it in with visiting Australia/New Zealand and knew I couldn’t squeeze that in just yet. But then, well, I chatted to people and read some blogs and began to think well, why the heck not? So, last week, my friend and I bit the bullet and booked flights… for February. Just a casual five weeks away. No biggie. We’ll be there for just over a week, the jet lag will probably be heinous and I am slightly alarmed at the thought of spending 12 hours on a plane but MUCH EXCITE.
North Coast 500 – Scotland’s answer to Route 66. Very excited to finally be putting our Scottish road trip into action! We’ll be driving the North Coast 500 for 9 days in total, in July. We booked our flights to Inverness and car hire right after Christmas, whilst things were still cheap, but we still need to plan our route and accommodation!
Croatia – We’ve booked flights to Split for September and a lovely little flat via air bnb. I can’t wait to explore national parks, see those waterfalls and dip my toes in the sea!
That is more than enough to get on with but whilst we’re here…
Dreaming of…
Ireland – Whilst it’s on the bucket list, I had no plans to do Ireland this year but then a friend popped a lil’ save the date for her wedding in my calendar yesterday and guess where it is…
Copenhagen – When exactly I plan on fitting in a weekend here, I have no idea. But I may be getting a pay rise later on in the year so you never know…
Write a novel
I already suspect that this is far too ambitious but why not set myself a big goal and see how I get on eh? I have plotlines, characters and random bits written here and there but I’m setting myself the challenge of having the first draft of my novel by the end of the year. Yeah... wish me luck…
Make the most of St Albans
Because, if all goes to plan, next year is the year we’re moving and I want to make the absolute most of this lovely city before we leave.
Eat well, live well
I hope to get back into running again, do more yoga and get out of a weekday-meal-rut by trying at least one new recipe a week; hopefully more plant-based ones.
Plan a wedding
Although I’ve spent most of the last week doing just this, I’m still bemused that this seems to be actually happening. G and I already have a pretty solid idea of what we want so we’re gunning ahead with getting the date finalised and venues booked. I’d quite like to get the key stuff done so I can relax a bit; I don’t want my life for the next 18 months to be about one day cos, as you can see, I’ve got a few other things planned this year. I’m also hoping to avoid most of the crap the wedding industry throws at you and actually enjoy the experience of planning but we’ll see how that goes…
Do good for others
It’s important to remember your luck in life and that there are always people less fortune than yourself. I want to get my arse into gear in 2018 and start donating blood, giving to the homeless, donating to important causes and reducing my impact on the planet where possible (thanks to Blue Planet II, I’m now as fond of plastic as I am Lord Voldemort).
Here's to being healthy and happy, and absolutely nailing 2018.
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