A 2015 New Year Resolution of some sort

I NEVER have the habit of making new year's resolution because I know I will not be able to keep on track and half way through I will probably forget what they are (ya see how ambitions I am, I have MANY resolutions).  However, when Rachel, the Dai Ga Je or Big Sister of SMB initiated a blog train "15 Things I will do differently in 2015" I thought "Why not?" and jumped on it.

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I thought it would be an easy-peasy job, snap of a finger and 15 things would pop up. Boy~ I was so so wrong, I was stuck like forever with 8 things and I must admit that there were a couple of times I wanted to just do 5 things (we have an option to do either 5 or 15 things) but I decided to stick to my guns and so after scratching my head and pulling my hair for the past 2-3 days I present to you. in random order, the 15 things that I will or hope to achieve before the end of 2015.

#1 Blog Lesser

When I got back into blogging in 2012 I worked very hard to bring the stats of my blog from near zero to a level where it's being noticed by the general public and brands.  Then in 2013/2014 a series of things happened in the family and I went into hiatus not once but TWICE!  My stats suffered tremendously and I only managed to slowly bring it back on track recently.

With the boy in Primary 3 this year, I would think that there will be more things for us to tackle so I am bracing myself to handle these new school work with him together.  This probably means lesser opportunity to sit down to blog as and when I feel like, I could burn some mid night oil but this old Mama can't keep her eyes open after 10pm so that is not an option.

Being a responsible blogger, I get very stressed up if I am not able to churn out posts for many days, this decision will mean lesser chance for me to beat myself up for not doing the job well.  So yeah, blog lesser, perhaps 2-3 posts per week on an average would be just nice.  However, that does not mean that I will any-o-how write a post, contrary to that the content will be better, more informative, specific and more apt to the direction of this blog and beneficial to my faithful readers.

#2 Read More

I have neglected my books for a long time (they are screaming "Read Me! Read ME!" whenever I step into the study room), its time I pick them up again, hopefully I will be back doing book reviews and recommend some great books for both parents and children.

#3 Cook/Bake More

I have 72 pins in my Pinterest board "DinoMama's Kitchen" since I started to seriously cook back in August 2012.  I have moved from a not-so-confident home cook Mum who relied on cookbooks and scoured the website for recipes for our weekend meals to some one who can simply whip up a simple dish based on memory (and you people knows I am famous for having Goldfish Memory right?) and boldly cooks based on agar-agar or estimation on the seasoning, I still scour the website for inspirations though because there are simply too many recipes that I want to try my hands on!

We've started our to bring bento to school and work earlier this month, you can see them here, I hope to continue doing it for as long as possible, not only it will save on lunch money, it is also healther too.  Home cooked meals are Zee Best!

I also wanted to try my hands on making those mouth watering kueys and snacks that I've seen others posted on facebook.  Things like chwee kueys, chee cheong fan, kuey lapis, oneh-oneh etc.

#4 Crochet More

Definitely MORE of these!  Currently I am blessed to receive many orders that will take me some time to complete all of them.  However, crochet has been my passion since I was a little girl, there are so many items that I have been wanting to do but did not have the chance then, so I'd like to start striking them off my "Crochet Project List" slowly this year.

#5 Play More

We've been slacking in our board games and outdoor activities since late last year because this Mama has no energy or mood to do that.  DinoBoy has been complaining that we have not been playing badminton for so long!  Time to play harder!  So... Who want go catch some BayMax Frisbee with us on weekends har? Come! PM me NAO~

#6 Visit the Library More

We have occasionally visited the public library after our dinner for the past years, I am thinking more trips to the public library especially when I  have a child who is a book worm with an appetite as humongous as a dinosaurs, the neighbourhood public library is the best place to "feed" him.

Despite the kids running, screaming, laughing, squealing in the children's section, it is actually a great place to wind down after a tiring day at work and in school.  Sounds weird?  Not so, you just have to learn how to block out these noise.  I find it calming to do my crochet at a corner in the library without distractions and I can usually finish quite a fair bit of work as compare to when I do it at home.  DinoBoy love to grab a pile of books and hide in the "hole" (if he is able to get one) and lost himself in which ever adventure he picks up.  We never leave the library empty handed, there are always some books that we wanted to borrow and read them later.

#7 Family Gatherings More

Once a week dinner at my house was a norm where the siblings gather to catch up on things with each other and the cousins play together and made a mess in DinoBoy's room.  After Mum passed away and we got caught on with our busy schedules, we haven't been meeting up often enough.  I'll have to bring this family gatherings routine back before we become stranger to each other!

#8 Friends Over More

We used to open our house and have friend over for weekend gatherings accompanied by some food and wine.  We have stopped doing that a few years back, I miss those days where we just sit around the house, relaxing, chatting, munching on food while the kids play among themselves.  Time to send out some invitations.  Potluck at my place anyone?  I'm thinking Roast Pork Belly, so what say you?  

#9 Travel for Holidays More

We have been making trips back to Penang to visit our relatives for the pass years, I am hoping to travel to other parts of the world.  I want to let DinoBoy have an eye-opening travel experience on the sight, sound and culture of other countries.

#10 Save More

So that I can go for the above right?  I have been putting aside a certain fixed amount for savings and feeding my Moo-Moo Bank with the spare $1 or 50 cents coins but I think there is a better & smarter way to save MORE.  I have not think about it yet, if you have nay idea, please share with me.

#11 Grocery Saving More

This is one of the challenge I am facing currently.  How to save on groceries?  For now, when ever I need to cook I will just pop by the supermarket to grab the necessary ingredients.  I know the supermarkets have some kind of sale on certain days, such as Buy 2 at cheaper price or special price for certain items.  I have to find out when these dates are, do up my meal plans and head off to the supermarkets to do my grocery shopping.  This would probably save some money and waste lesser groceries (I cringe when I thought of the vegetable I bought, forgotten about them while they got lost in it and eventually rot in the fridge.)

#12 Gift More

This has been on my mind for a couple of years.  I have always wanted to give back to the community but never got around to do it.  I don't have much cash nor the luxury of having time on my hand so donating monetary or volunteering is out of the question.  I would however like to gift back in the form of my crochet crafts, perhaps a baby cap for babies, beanie for cancer patients, something along the line.  I'll have to explore on the options later.

#13 Be More Positive

For years, I have been dwelling on the bad stuffs that happened to me, it was manifesting me.  I started to think positive late last year but I think I need to work on that MORE this year.

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#14 Love Myself More

To hell with people who says I'm fierce, snobbish, stick-in-the-mud, Tiger Mum (RAWWRRRR!!!) and all those negative name labeling, because It's not your job to like me...it's MINE! ~Byron Katie

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#15 Stick to my Resolution

Ok, so I cheated on this but this is the first time I am making some kind of resolution and I want to make sure I follow through.  Good enough reason?

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Next on the "15 Things I will Do Differently in 2015" Blog Train is Evelyn.

Evespiration was born out of the little life in Evelyn some 5 years ago. The little one's precarious birth turned out to be one of the greatest miracles in her life. A mother of 2 active boys; Evelyn blogs on her motherhood journey and how her young ones peppered her otherwise-mundane-life with WWF fights, hard-helmet knocks and stubborn tug-of-wars. She juggled all these while trying to maintain sanity and enjoy a good cup of coffee at the same time. Read on as she shares the reality journey in her life.