Today is a truly special day. Not only am I uploading this blog post on time for once, but it also happens to be a noteworthy date: 123123. The next time you will see a date with a repeating pattern like this will be 78 years from now. It’s amazing that my husband was able to do that math calculation in his head in less than a minute. He’s incredibly smart and knowledgeable about various facts.
I suppose I should write a blog post about setting New Year’s Resolutions. Last year, I wrote a blog post last year sharing my thoughts on this topic, which I will include here. Reflecting on it, my overall perspective remains unchanged. However, I plan to step up my game even further for 2024 by focusing on actionable, daily tasks.
♡ Related Blog Post: What Do You Hope to Accomplish in 2023?
Lost and Found
I didn’t end up writing a blog post about this, but it was a significantly stressful thing that happened this month. I lost my Apple Watch as soon as the Christmas holidays started. I searched everywhere and tore apart the house, but couldn’t find my watch anywhere. I ended up buying a new watch, only to discover that they had introduced a new, beautiful Starlight colored aluminum that didn’t match the wristbands very well. As a result, I ended up purchasing both the Starlight and Silver SE to replace my lost Silver Apple Watch SE. The coolest wristband I was able to find is the one below ↓ as Apple has discontinued my old wristband.
Let me tell you, the “Find My” app is useless when your Apple Watch is dead. That’s why I couldn’t use the tracker. I suppose the app wasn’t lying when it suggested that it last synced somewhere in my house.
It was truly a Christmas miracle when my family found my lost Apple Watch on Christmas Day. To my surprise, it was buried in a drawer, even though I swear it wasn’t in there when I searched through it. I returned both of the watches I purchased and will be using my old Apple Watch instead. As an individual with undiagnosed ADD, I often struggle with misplacing items. However, I am working on creating systems to stay more organized and improve my ability to remember where I have placed things. Here’s a recap of how the rest of the month unfolded:
DECEMBER RECAP 2023
Career Goals:
- Plot availability for January 2024 I plotted my availability super late, so I don’t have any shifts yet for the month of January.
- Catch up on work emails I am mostly caught up. I have yet to read the remaining emails.
- Complete BLS renewal I emailed a copy last night (again, super late getting around to things).
- Complete 100 total designs for #Redbubble I currently have 91 designs in my shop which is better than I thought I would do. You can check out my #Redbubble designs here.
👉 Follow me on Redbubble: @sereneluna
Personal Goals:
- Publish 1-2 blog posts + monthly recap I did the minimum this month but didn’t write additional content.
- Frame seminar completion certificates (bonus) Since my husband doesn’t want to frame them, I will be adding them to a binder instead. However, I need more paper protector sheets.
- Complete Application B Questions Again, it didn’t happen. We now have everything we need to complete Part B, except for answering the questions that we have been neglecting.
- Get an eye exam I just did that yesterday!
- Get a massage Nope, it didn’t happen this month.
- Daily Duolingo practice 🇩🇪 I have managed to maintain my streak, but that’s pretty much the only thing I’m doing with it right now. I have dropped down in the ranks and stopped caring. However, I hope to get back into learning German in 2024.
Health Goals:
- YMCA 2x per week minimum For the most part, I have been going to the YMCA twice a week on weekdays. However, it has become harder now that the children are not in school or daycare. I might get my 7-year old daughter a YMCA membership too.
- Buy a new bathing suit for the pool My bathing suit is falling apart and I need a new one badly. I haven’t been to the store yet.
- Clear out the cupboards → Finish 3+ food items I forgot that this goal was on my list this month. I think I finished some food items but we also bought a lot of new ones.
- Make honey lemon lozenges I made them once while I had COVID and my family was sick, but I didn’t make them again after we recovered. Instead, I bought bags of Halls Vitamin C lozenges which don’t taste terrible because there’s no eucalyptus in the Vitamin C lozenges.
(っ◔◡◔)っ ♥ FINAL THOUGHTS ♥
December isn’t complete without holiday celebrations. In my family, we celebrate Christmas, and my husband is Catholic. This year, we attended a daytime mass on Christmas Day and had a small, quaint celebration at our house. I always strive to make Christmas magical for my daughter and baby boy. I had hoped to see the Christmas lights this year, but unfortunately, we didn’t get the chance. Additionally, I had wished that we could have done studio photos, but we decided to opt for cell phone pics instead.
Have something to share with me? Don’t hesitate to leave a comment down below ↓ At this time, I am not replying to emails because I don’t have time. I would also like to take this opportunity to wish all of my readers a blessed holiday season and a Happy New Year! May it be filled with joy, love, and success. ✨🫶
(っ◔◡◔)っ FYI: If you’re not already following me on Twitter (@serene_hilz), you can get real-time updates about my day-to-day life there. I recently made the decision to join X/Twitter and I’m excited to see what it has in store for me.
Thanks for stopping by! ♥
Happy New Year, Hilary! Best wishes for next year. I’m glad you found your watch! I’ve never tried an Apple watch.
Happy New Year, John! Today I plan on figuring out January’s goals. Taking a monthly approach seems to be more effective than making New Year’s Resolutions for the year. I plan on continuing with the monthly goals and recaps.
I used to have a basic Fitbit before switching to an Apple Watch. If you use an iPhone it makes sense to get the watch. If you use Android, I don’t think the watch is comparable with Android. I use the Apple Watch SE to track steps, send text messages, and answer phone calls when I’m not near my phone.
Thank you, Hilary! I’ve no use for an Apple watch but love the new iPhone 15, it has the best camera yet. New Year’s resolutions never work for me so I don’t even try these days! I hope you attain each goal you set for yourself, be well! 😊🍻
I know what you mean about the new iPhone 15. I want the iPhone 15 so badly. It’s a gorgeous phone and I agree – it has an awesome camera! I have an old iPhone SE and it doesn’t have a good camera. I’m waiting until I need to replace my phone but for now it still works and the battery is fine.
In 2024 I’m not only doing monthly goals but also daily actionable tasks. I’ve been sharing these lists on Twitter/X. It’s a simple concept yet very difficult to execute everyday.
I hope you can pick up the 15 soon, Hilary! ❤️😊
Maybe one day! It looks like I will be stuck with my iPhone SE for a while longer.
Happy new year all the best with your goals
Thank you so much! Happy New Year to you as well!! 🥂
Happy New Year to you and your family! Good luck on your goals next year too – they all sound worthwhile. 🙂
Thank you so much. 🤗 I have some big scary goals that I want to accomplish next year that will help us move forward and ultimately change my family’s future. Big and scary yet life-changing. I feel like I haven’t made the big leaps like I was hoping to in 2023. Things felt slow and snail-progress-y. I’m hoping for a more prosperous and positive 2024! 🙏🏻
I want to start using duolingo again i kinda miss it lol
Tbh I’ve gotten lazy with Duolingo. Every day I will repeat Unit 1 Lesson 1 to keep the streak going because it would take too long to learn a new unit or lesson.
I think it’s a good idea to pick it up again! Just don’t be like me lol
i used it for like a week lol i will use it again now that im older i just feel like i can do the things i saw i wanted to do, like learning languages and when ppl share their progress on there it makes me want to. let’s hope i learn a new language this year lol
It’s a good app for learning new languages. I was hoping to finish the German lessons and got to Section 3 before I got complacent. I would like to pick it up again and maybe finish the app, like I promised myself I would. What language do you want to learn?
my priorities are japanese n korean since i know a tiny bit from all the dramas i watch so i feel itll be easier for me lol then possibly others but im not sure yet! Something i can use in daily life maybe mandarin or arabic since i live by communities that speak the language! Its exciting just talking abt it now i gotta do it!!
I’m happy you were able to find your Apple Watch! ❤️ I know how frustrating it is losing technology. And aww, those photos are so sweet! I hope you’ve been having a nice holiday season. 🎄 Happy New Year!!! I hope 2024 will be filled with lots of amazing memories and accomplishments for you and your loved ones 🥳
Losing stuff esp. tech is the worst. I once lost my Fitbit which I never did get back, but I didn’t miss it so much once it was replaced. The Apple Watch however, was bothering me more than the Fitbit, mostly because I used my Apple Watch all the time and it just wasn’t the same without it. I ordered some wristband replacements and they arrived today. It feels like a brand new Apple Watch! 😊✨
Wow, that is some fast math on your husbands part. I wouldn’t even know what calculations to do to figure that out. I have to get an eye exam as well. Urghh losing things is so annoying and I swear it just magically reappears in places you already checked. Anyway, have a very happy and prosperous 2024 🥳
My eyes have gotten much worse and that’s what I dreaded the most. My new prescription is so strong and I have to get new glasses. *Sigh*
I hope you have a happy and prosperous 2024 as well! 🎉
Oh no, sorry to hear that.
Thanks!