I divide my year into quintiles. Each quintile carries certain energy and has a specific focus.

• Q1 is January 1 till spring break
• Q2 the end of spring break (say, second week of April) to the end of school (mid June)
• Q3 Summer
• Q4 Start of school till NJ teacher convention in early November
• Q5 NJ teacher convention till December 31- holidays!

A few days back, I reflected on Q1 and brainstormed some goals for Q2.

Carrying over to Q2/work in progress

• Actual connection with other people- could be better
• Parenting – many difficult moments, depending on the day; ups and downs here for sure.
• Exercise+time outside – marginal/non-existant
• Double screening: sometimes
• Overall health- many sicknesses for me and family from January to last week. Physical health influened mental health in terms of feeling cynical and negative.

Gold stars, accolades, and highlights

• Instituted daily habits: continue in Q2
• Reading: books- 8. Fellow blogger moms on Feedly.
• Entertainment: shows: 1899 (in progress), moves: a couple, meaningful.
• Blog- was created (finally!)
• Daily meditation-every morning
• Writing: morning pages brain dump – every day except the week leading up to Denmark trip. Blog posts (7).
• Travel: spring break in Denmark
• Weekly highlights-low lights writing and sharing with friends/fellow moms
• Celebrated: Rainn’s 3 birthday, T’s 42nd and St Patrick’s day
• Finance: paid off Forenza and Spain/Portugal trip. T received much deserved bonus, budget review continue.
• Got Invizalign+mammogram+ob+physical+dentist
• House: finished the fence
• Podcasts: unfollowed some podcasts for reasons of “fluff”. Continuing with favorites: Best Laid Plans, Edit Your Life, Best of Both Worlds, and The Girls Next Door.
• R is fully potty-trained!! At 3 years and 3 months
• Involvement in community: served on local school committee.

Quintile 2! April, May, Mid June

I definitely see a pattern: better weather, a stronger focus on house and garden, spring cleaning, coming out of my shell (people-wise) as well as better focus, mental clarity, and physical health.

• Spring-clean the garage and plant in flower beds+flower boxes. Genral yard clean up for subsequent enjoyment
• All things spring: time outside (yard and parks)
• Daily habits (m wr e o w v c p a): continue
• Monthly dates with T: continue
• Books and podcasts: continue
• Scrolling- reduce time on Pinterest, opt for feedly or kindle instead
• Friendships: regular check-ins (weekly or daily)
• Kids and parenting: relax when it comes to parenting (remember how they parent in Denmark: easy)
• Take a solo weekend trip for my birthday/mothers’ day
• Mental health: writing+books+alone time+nature/outside
• All things nature: Watchung Res, the Great Swamp, our back yard

Be on the lookout for…

Weekend trip ideas, gardening ideas, retreats, solo destinations in tristate area, concerts, plays. Things to do with the kids during their 1 on 1 dates with mom.