Greetings! It's month end which means it's time for me to review my January. I started out writing a sentence a day for the month. However, since several of my activities were daily events, my sentences seemed repetitive. So I decided to write my highlights in five buckets (Fitness, Entertainment, Arts, Social, and Travel) instead of one sentence a day for thirty one days.
I'm linking up with several fabulous bloggers who are documenting their month. Please be sure to visit their blogs as shown at the bottom of this post for more inspiration.
January in a nutshell:
Fitness
- Jan. 1 to 31: My walks along the waterfront plus an hour of exercises daily have been good for my mind, body, and sleep at night. In January, I did fourteen workout sessions in the gym, eleven yoga sessions, two swimming sessions, and four 5K runs. The lake view is always mesmerizing to me, even in the winter.
Entertainment
- Jan. 4: Despicable Me 3 was entertaining!
- Jan. 10: Jana Luksts' piano recital was contemporary and very good.
- Jan. 11: Dunkirk was so intense, would it win an Oscar?
- Jan. 25: Steve Carrell and Emma Stone acted well in Battle of the Sexes.
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| Jana Luksts |
Arts
- Jan. 10: I like the new purplish pink #TOwaterfront sign made of driftwood by driftwood artists Shore Land Arts. It's over 7-feet high and over 50-feet long.
- Jan. 24: I felt hopeful after viewing the Winner and Honourable Mention photos from the Imagine Toronto in 2050 photo contest on display at City Hall.
- Jan. 28: I enjoyed the work by so many talented artists at the Winter art exhibitions at Harbourfront Centre.
- Jan. 1 to 31: I'm improving my Spanish by taking online lessons fifteen minutes every day.
Social
- Jan. 10: The new and exciting Wellness Wednesday blog link-up started!
- Jan. 13: I was proud of myself for hand writing two letters to my friends abroad.
- Jan. 15, 17, 22: It was fun chatting with my friends over coffee and lunch.
- Jan. 20: I remembered to wish a dear friend a happy birthday.
- Jan. 19 to 21: We had lots of laughs while visiting our friends in Ottawa.
Travel
- Jan. 12: I booked my flights and accommodation for my trip to Chile in March.
- Jan. 19 to 21: Our trip to Ottawa went smoothly, both by train to get there and by plane to return home.
- Jan. 27: We'll be out of town again next weekend!
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| VIA train to Ottawa |
Overall, January was a great month for me. I look forward to enjoying more fun events in February and sharing them here on my blog.
Your turn...How was January for you?
January was a good month for me too. I walked most weekday mornings, did my 3 sessions at lunchtime each week (either gym or lap swimming), worked hard, & played a little as well. Feb is a busy travel month for work so routines will be completely out - esp re healthy eating and daily exercise. For that week in Sydney I'll be back to the leaving on the 6.30am bus thing & getting home after 7pm to get back up at 5.30 and do it all again routine. Yuck. #TeamLovinLife
ReplyDeleteYou accomplished a lot in January, Jo. For February in terms of daily exercise, even if you can squeeze in two short breaks, and walk 10-15 minutes each during the day, it will help.
DeleteMy January was great for fitness. I got into regular pilates and have done some waterfront walking (like you!). However, I really need to improve on the social, arts and entertainment! I'm on to it! #TeamLovinLife
ReplyDeleteThat's fantastic fitness, Min. We have a Wellness link up on Feb 7 and the topic is Favourite cardio exercise and Wellness goals update. Please feel free to join us.
DeleteLove your adventures! You always manage to fit so much in. Amazing.
ReplyDeleteMy January I was on sabbatical from work but working on my business and it was lovely. I learned that sometimes I need the structure of a few hours a week 'day job' to get myself in the groove for work. And that, I'm allowed to make my own rules.
A sabbatical from work is a great option, Melissa. Glad you had a lovely January with the power to be the boss :)
DeleteA great month and looks like you have another terrific holiday planned, Natalie. I would love to visit Chile and that is on our bucket list. Have a great February!
ReplyDeleteWe sure have some travel destinations in common. Thank you, Sue, for stopping by. Have a great February!
DeleteI love the balance you manage to attain Natalie - in terms of exercise and social and other commitments.
ReplyDeleteI chuckled at the handwriting letters comment because my mother and I talked recently about how much our handwriting has deteriorated as we 'write' so little now.
#teamlovinlife
January felt balanced and varied just right for me, Deborah. Friendly handwritten letters have become a treat these days. Thank you for stopping by. Have a great weekend!
DeleteThis was a great way to do a taking stock post Natalie - takes out the repetition and hits on all the highlights. Sue and I are starting a link at the end of our taking stock posts starting next month - I hope you'll join us with your Feb update x
ReplyDeleteLeanne: You and Sue are so organized. I look forward to joining your new link. Thank you for stopping by. Enjoy your weekend!
DeleteYou've had an eventful month. Chile will be fab. #TeamLovinLife
ReplyDeleteJanuary was just right for me. I look forward to exploring Chile. Thanks, Kathy, for stopping by. Have a great weekend!
DeleteWhat a great way to categorize the month Natalie!!
ReplyDeleteThat's so impressive that you are learning Spanish that way. We tried doing that but weren't successful!!
XOXO
Jodie
www.jtouchofstyle.com
Thanks, Jodie, for your comment. My online Spanish lessons work for my purposes. If I want to be 100% fluent, I'll need more intensive training.
DeleteCongratulations on a very successful January, Natalie. You are a 'fitness inspiration' for me!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Donna, for your kind words. Your Camino walk is an inspiration for me.
DeleteWhat a great month! I love how you organized it, sometimes days do feel like they all run into each other. What a fun trip you have planned, can't wait to read all about that!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sarah, for your comment. I wanted to group my January activities so at a glance I can see whether the month was balanced or not. I'm looking forward to visiting Chile. Can't wait to have the experience and write about it here.
DeleteInteresting to format to the SaD posts!! You are so disciplined and consistent about exercise and all of the brainwork type activities (like practicing Spanish) that your days do tend to be alike...most admirable! Your setting changes so often, though, with all of the trips and adventures you enjoy.
ReplyDeleteI like a variety of activities at moderate pace, Leslie. I make small changes here and there, such as the new format for my January SaD. Thank you for organizing this link up.
DeleteWell done on all accounts, Natalie! Good for you for walking in the cold like that. Mark and I are big wimps. I went outside for a walk once in the three weeks we were in icy Massachusetts in January. He remained inside. :-)
ReplyDeleteI liked the movie Dunkirk as well. And, that train to Ottawa looks very modern and comfortable. It seems that you have a nice balance in regards to social and art events as well.
I agree with you, a good January! For me, that month could have been better, but, now that we are back at our house sit in San Diego, February will only be better. :-)
Thank you, Liesbet, for your comment. With icy conditions, you need to be careful where you walk. Fortunately, the side walks where I live are cleared frequently and we didn't have any snow for more than half of January. I thought I'd include a photo of our nice VIA train interior. We were in economy class which was quite comfortable, with free WiFi, too. Hope you'll have a great February.
DeleteFunny - I thought you were skipping days, until I read through the comments above! :-)
ReplyDeleteLooks like a lovely mix of activities in January, Natalie, good for you! And I'm sure you are looking forward to your upcoming and warm Chile getaway!
Hi Tamara, I thought I'd write my January slightly differently this time, just the highlights to save everyone from reading my recurring activities :) I look forward to exploring Chile. Hopefully the temps there will be less hot by March.
DeleteI wish my January had been a bit better for fitness. Love the idea of learning a language in short bursts every day as I am rubbish at languages.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on completing your work contracts in January! Thanks, Emma, for stopping by.
DeleteThere's a Wellness Wednesday blog linky? Well that's perfect for me given I've been writing Wellness Wednesday posts for the last 12 months or more. Tell me more! #teamlovinlife
ReplyDeletePerfect, Leanne! Please join us starting tomorrow. Schedule and topics are at https://natalietheexplorer.blogspot.ca/2018/01/wellness-wednesday-jan-10.html
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