Looking Forward, Looking Backward – February 2023

Reviewing my progress on my February intentions, and setting my intentions for March.

I had a substantial mid-month motivation slump, so I didn’t move forward quite the way I would have liked this month, but I managed to pull myself together and get a few things done.

Daily Routines: I’m still doing the Lectio365 app each morning. Daily strength exercises did not happen. I started OK but fell off the wagon during my slump and haven’t picked it up again. I think I’ll shelve this for now. In March, I want to concentrate on getting a good breakfast and lunch with enough protein each weekday.

Three Times a Week is a Habit: My habits are blogging, gardening and photography and these all suffered in the motivation slump. I will get back to these in March.

Read 52 Books: I only finished two books this month but I’m still ahead of schedule.

Travel: I planned out our itinerary and we booked accommodation for our drive up to Noosa in May. We booked our flights and some accommodations for our trip to New York. We will also visit DC and Italy. This month we have a long weekend at Wilson’s Prom.

Home: We got our outdoor furniture this month. I have not moved forward at all with the kitchen drawers and cupboards. I WILL get this done this month. I got the photos printed for our gallery wall. In March, I will make some decisions on the family photos and get everything that needs framing done. I transferred the strawberries to the raised beds. In March I will plant veggie seeds and start winter seedlings. I also need a few more groundcover plants to fill in the back of the garden beds.

Photography: I continued my garden photography project. I finished and ordered the Photobook for our Tasmania trip. It’s on its way! I didn’t finish our Sydney photobook, but I’m not far off, so in March, I plan to finish this. I also need to upload and back up my January and February photos.

Round the Neighbourhood: My goal to run or walk all the streets in our area is progressing. I made the decision last month to focus mainly on Brighton and Elwood (we live in Brighton but close to the border with Elwood). Below are the suburbs I’ve progressed this month with the change on each. We have a number of little dead-end courts in our area, possibly where there’s been infill when parts of large estates were sold off. I walked around the cutest one the other day that was filled with art-deco duplexes.

• Brighton: 105 of 276 streets ⬆️ 100, 38.04% ⬆️ 18.11%
• Elwood: 29 7 of 94 ⬆️ 22, 30.86% ⬆️ 23.41%
• Albert Park: 12 of 89 ⬆️ 3, 13.48% ⬆️ 3.37%
• Brighton East: 8 of 229 ⬆️ 1, 3.49% ⬆️ 0.13%

On one of my walks, I noticed some overgrown fig trees and citrus trees encroaching on the public land next to the footpath adjacent to the highway. I may just wander back that way in a month or so.

I also ran through the St Kilda Botanic Gardens which are very pretty, with a gorgeous rose garden and lake.

Sustainability: We’ve been pretty good with eating up what’s in the fridge, so I’m happy. I’ve also been ordering my Fairfood veggie box more regularly. I’ve been a bit slack with getting to the bulk store lately, so we have had more packaging in the bin. In March, I’ll look at changing that. I also want to compare prices with a delivery service that delivers groceries in returnable containers. They work in partnership with local producers, so that’s a double win.

Run: I ran 191km this month, which is up on last month but not quite where it needs to be (average 209km) to reach 2500km for the year. I should start catching up in March as I have 220km on my program.

Entertain: This month, we had friends over for drinks, Small group is now back on and meeting at our place, and we have had a couple of post-run breakfasts.

Dentist: I did not make an appointment with the new dentist in February, so that is an absolute must-do this month.

Swimming in the Ocean: I had a goal this year to swim 5 times in the ocean, and I did. I think this practice did help me to feel more like I’ve enjoyed the summer weather and our access to the ocean, both at home and my parent’s place this year, so it’s something that I’d commit to again.

In March, I also need to book in to get the shingles vaccine. Get a haircut. Review our wills and POAs.

But before I end, a very cute photo for you all. Our dog Riley (on the right) with the Golden Retriever Hubby found running down some major roads a couple of suburbs over. The council couldn’t pick it up for a couple of hours, and the drop-off also wasn’t open, so he bought him home. A very cute and well-behaved dog. Happily, when the council came, they scanned the dog’s microchip, so it should have been an easy reunion with his family, we hope.