Happy New Year everyone! I've just dusted off my computer, dug up a shiny new notebook and made myself a cup of lemon/ginger/kurkuma/honey tea. 2018 is going to be a great year, and of course I'm kicking it of with big plans! Here's a list of my personal goals for this year:

1. Be more organised.

Last year I started the year with creating a bullet journal. Sadly I only managed to keep up with it for about 4 months, after which I fell back to my usual routine of keeping a gazillion messy To Do lists which I consequently kept losing. Thus feeling that I was always running after the facts, instead of feeling like I was on top of things! Keeping a bullet journal is such a great way to organise and prioritise so I'm starting another one today and hope to keep up with it. I definitely want to be more organised and dedicate more time to Other Important Things this year (see point 2).Also -- the past year I have started to use an online management tool (Trello). It's been a little challenging to get the hang of it, but now I'm a total convert and even use it for some of my personal organisation. For example, I keep gift ideas per family member in there (with photos and links), To Do lists for the house, the address and phone lists of the children's classmates, etc. Because I can access everything from my phone I can always easily reach this information. I can also share my lists with Tamar (and assign tasks to him!), which comes in super handy. I plan to use Trello more this year and understand more of its functionalities.

2. Dedicate more time to Other Important Things.

This is a yearly returning personal goal for me. I want and need to spend more time sewing, knitting, cooking, crafting, drawing, painting, designing, writing... Creative things! Both on my own and also with friends, and of course with the children. Making and creating is just something I enjoy so much and which gives me so much energy, and I haven't spent enough time doing it the past years.I also want and need to spend more time on personal care and relaxation, like spending 20 minutes a day on yoga, taking time to take a bath, read a book, have a manicure, pedicure, wax, a facial or a massage even?!!? The kind of things which I never allow myself to spend time or money on, but which will make me feel better about myself and thus will make me a better and more enjoyable wife, mother and friend.Regularly enjoy culture and travel. In short -- getting out of the house more for something else other than work, errands or children. I want to visit the theaters more, enjoy concerts, see shows and expositions, museums, plan weekends and vacations away ahead of time. I love being at home and being cosy, but I get so much positive and creative energy from seeing what's out there too! Again, this is about prioritising my/our time, and of course, dedicating money towards it as well.

3. Be better about budgeting.

OK, this is definitely my weakest point, because I just don't like thinking about money much, but I do feel it would be good to create an overview of household expenses and see where we can save and economise. I feel that money is just flying out of our hands, and I want to have more of an understanding of our spendings and savings (as far as we even do save!), and be more sensible about it all. I'm going to make an effort to get on top of this and learn more about budgeting.

4. Learn something new regularly.

Apparently, research suggests that learning something new regularly may be an excellent way to overcome feelings of stress. There's a lot of talk about the need to rest and meditate to reduce stress, but if the situation itself doesn't change, one can feel frustrated and, again, stressful immediately after the time of rest. Learning something new apparently gives positive energy and can help dealing with stressful situations and environments. I'm going to remind myself that it's important to keep learning and developing myself!What do you think of my list? They're pretty big ideas! But I'm going to make an effort to implement these aims and goals and we'll see how I get along. BTW, I would love to hear if you have any ideas or links to great articles, good books, useful short online workshops, great places to visit, fun projects to undertake, etc etc. I'm interested in all sorts of different fields so I would love to hear about everything you feel is remotely interesting and inspiring. Also, I would love to hear about your personal goals and resolutions. Do you have any?Cheers to 2018 and to making it magic!xxx EstherPS I only have 8 weeks to go before our baby is due to arrive, so I'd better get my act together soon :)!