February is the second month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the shortest month of the year as it is the only month to have a length of less than 30 days.

And here we are, the first day of February is upon us. 

January was an interesting month. It feels like it went by like *snaps fingers* that. Speaking of January… Let’s review the goals I set in this post.

My Goals for January 2017

1. Find a routine. A schedule. A purpose. Normalize my sleep.
2. Eat healthier.
3. Walk/bike more. I won’t put running, because I know myself too well for that and I likely won’t run in January. But- if I get in the habit of going for a walk, who knows what February will hold!
4. Clean up my room and hang up my framed belongings.
5. Find a job.
6. Keep my email organized.
7. Learn to drive in the Netherlands.
8. Become comfortable interacting with other people in Dutch.
9. Wear clothes because I like them, not because I want to fit in. (Honestly, I think I can add a scarf to ANYTHING and I’ll fit in…)
10. Overcome my hatred for odd numbered lists. (Okay, this one won’t really happen. But, it’s a pleasant thought)

So… How did I do? Well…

1.  I had a routine for about a week. I slept normally for about 4 days of the entire month. I guess it could’ve been worse, but I didn’t exactly meet the goal. 
2. I think I could say I achieved this goal. I started eating breakfast on those days I had a routine. I ate bananas and mandarin oranges as a snack. I made my own trail mix.
   Yeah, some days I slacked off- but I can confirm I ate healthier overall.
3. One word: ICE. Riding your bike over ice is… hell. So no, I didn’t ride my bike. I did walk a bit more though. It’s not necessarily a habit, but walking isn’t so bad.
4. Clean my room? Check. Hang up stuff? SOMEONE BUY ME A DRILL.
5. Eh. Sorta. I’m getting paid for things. Like playing solos at a nursing home and restoring computers. So.
6. Check!
7. Sort of. I wouldn’t mind it if I had a car that wasn’t a nightmare to shift into first gear.
8. I wouldn’t say I’m as comfortable as in English, but it’s getting better!
9. This one’s going alright. I still feel awkward wearing sweatpants because I feel like nobody in this country ever wears sweatpants.
10. Ha, that’s a joke.

To summarize: January was a “sort of” kind of month. I did watch a LOT of NCIS. Like, dang. It should be a crime how many episodes of NCIS I’ve watched. I’ve also spent WAY too much time with a chicken on a raft.

My 2017 goals are going well, though! I’m decently happy, I did my SDA for my next promotion in CAP (okay I haven’t taken the tests yet but…), I’m usually pretty calm (except for when my patience is tested; oops), I’m hydrated as heck… 11 months to keep that up, I’ve almost finished 1st to Die, and I’ve blogged a decent amount. Holy run-on sentence *breathes*.

So, now it’s time to think of some goals for February.

My Goals for February 2017

1. Make a physical schedule. Use paper, a whiteboard, anything. Write down when what trash needs taken out. Write down important times, such as when my brother needs picked up from school. Write down my plan for a daily schedule; wake up at a set time, shower, participate in life, do the dishes nightly, etc.
2. Go for bike rides.
3. Talk more Dutch. Become comfortable. Perfect Dutch grammar.
4. Work out most-daily. Do at least 40 sit-ups at some point in the day.
5. Practice cornet at least three times a week.
6. Become more organized. Find sticky notes and routinely check my to do list. This one sort of ties into Goal 1.
7. Do my hair and nails more often.
8. Clean my worn earrings more often.
9. Continue eating healthy.
10. Keep my room clean.

Hopefully February goes well. It started decently… I slept all day. *nervous chuckle* so much for January Goal 1. I am actually going to try to sleep, though. As soon as NCIS is over, that is. :p I’m on the episode “Homefront”. I miss Ziva… and I’m not quite used to Bishop yet. NCIS LA has also really grown on me.

Anyway… enjoy a picture of my beautiful view. As usual, thanks for reading. Onto a fantastic February! If this month goes as fast as January did… wow. It’ll be 2018 in no time.

Be somebody nobody thought you could be.

~E.