Christmas and the husband’s birthday celebrations have well and truly broken me this year. I feel like I need a brand new body and to snooze through the whole of January. Evidently that’s a no-go with three pickles to entertain. Over the past week I’ve eaten double dose calories to the point where I nearly weeped with delight today when being reacquainted with salad. I’ve also partied as though I was 18, when really I’m weeks away from 40…naturally I’m still in recovery mode three days later.

As we prepare to welcome the dawn of a new year I’ve been reflecting on the hairpin bends of 2017 and have made a pact to straighten up my efforts. Like most I’ve dabbled with resolutions, but the trend is I tend to fail by day five. Clean eating usually morphs into a carb frenzy, likewise Dry January sees me bending the rules for just one mouthful of wine that turns into half a bottle. But this year I’ve decided to ban the word resolution and call them my personal pledges. A promise to have more or do more of something. Not removing but adding. Swapping the negative for the positive, in a bid to make change achievable.

So as I heat up our NYE ready meal extravaganza, opting for quieter celebrations after all the festive whirlwind, here is a list of five things I want to have more of in 2018:-

#1 Patience – before I had kids I was a fairly patient and calm person. Then I had three boys. And scuppered that. The boys take me to extremes. An extreme feeling of love, and at the other end pure banging my forehead on the steering wheel frustration. But calmness breeds calmness, and witnessing me losing my cool is clearly no exemplary life lesson. So this year more patience is topping the list. The husband will be encouraged by this news too.

#2 Focus – finishing something is better than perfection. I’m holding onto this mantra in 2018. For the past few months I’ve been blogging, writing, studying, job hunting…panicking – all with no clear direction or end goal. This year I need to be more focused and selective. Aiming to finish one thing rather than have a million-and-one things on the go simultaneously and ending up in an overwhelmed muddle.

#3 Acceptance – a good friend and former boss always teases me about never being satisfied with my lot. Forever dreaming. It’s good to have dreams of course but this year I’m all for accepting. Being grateful for my boys, for our cosy patch in Surrey, for a simpler routine. Looking inwards at my own little family, not outwards. Not constantly comparing but accepting all the good things I have right in front of me now.

#4 Kindness – in order to give out kindness you have to start closer to home, to be kind to oneself. I’m hoping for a healthier year, kicking off with half marathon escapades that I’ve done zero training for, nothing like a bracing challenge to kick me into action. Little acts of kindness to others go along way too. A card sometimes rather than a WhatsApp. A call to check in. More kindness all round is definitely needed right now.

#5 Happiness – there was a whole lot of wallowing in 2017. A friend told me I’d lost a bit of my spark. I appreciated her honesty. Sometimes you need a touch of the truth to jolt you out of a rut. Joy after loss can feel indulgent, but in the year of my 40th I’m determined to bring that spark back in abundance. Dancing on a beach in chilly Northumberland was a promising precursor!

So here’s to a year of more.

Happy 2018!

My other mores…more smiles, more sleep, more espresso martinis, more chats, more playing, more Pilates (if I get to look like Holly Willoughby), more hugs, more seeing family, more running, more reading, more time with my trio, more simple pleasures, more hot baths, more cheese and lots more fun.