Looking Back on 2017 and Ahead to 2018

Last year, inspired by Non Sequitur Chica, I decided to write down a list of goals for the year. As one of them involved a swimming event, I started this info with one of my swim teammates, who commented "Oh yeah, I used to do that too, but I just ended up cutting and pasting from one year to the next." Well, I wrote over my prior document and saved it with a new title. It was interesting to look back and now what I did accomplish this year, and what is left to be achieved next year.

Personal
1. Continue Whole 30 lifestyle.
I did a round in January and March, while I'm not strict all the time, I do hold to a lot of the principles, especially with regard to meal prep and planning. There were a few weeks where I developed "mean planning fatigue" and we ended up eating some prepared or processed food. We've also had a few nights where I've forgotten to defrost meat or missed a key ingredient and ended up ordering a week night pizza, but we're so much better than we've previously been. I rely on my Crock-Pot and use it at least 1-2 times per week. Myrtle gave me an InstaPot for Christmas, so I'm excited to try some new recepies. I would come across something that looked really good, only to be disappointed that it is designed for a pressure cooker. Sometimes someone would ask the author if it could be modified to use in a Crock-Pot, and the answer was usually, "well you could; but it wouldn't be as good..."

2. Improve my score on the Body Fat Test.
I was disappointed with my score in June, so I started working with a Nutrition Coach who put me on a plan of counting macronutrients. I did another Body Fat Test at the end of July and after only 5 weeks on his plan, I had lost 1.5 lbs of fat! I achieved a personal best with lowest body fat score by one tenth of a point. (Unfortunately, I had just come back from vacation and did a bit work related stress eating just before testing in October and regained a half pound of fat, ugh) So I know I'm re-starting from a higher point in my quest for a new PR in 2018. I did drop below my pre-pregnancy weight and I've stayed under 150 pounds for the second half of the year, something I didn't imagine was possible. As I realised that I was still wearing my work-out clothes from my pregnancy, I treated myself to a whole new wardrobe of active wear. Perhaps my greatest accomplishment of the year, was that I started receiving some complements from other women at the gym.

3. Maintaining friendships. My challenge for this year is that at least once a month I have to reach out to someone and plan an activity.
So when I wrote this goal, my intention was to connect with older friends. I successed with my aim to have a least one social get-together once a month, but most of them were play dates with other moms. I feel that I'm officially going through that transition of non-kid friends to friends with kids.

4. Be more politically active. Contact representatives, do some work with local activist groups. Attend the next protest rally. Do more than just posting links on Face.book as most of your friends already share your opinions.
Total disappointment with this one. I was inspired by one woman who challenged herself to take some sort of concrete action for every political themed Facebook post (sort of like a political action swear jar) I just stopped posted politically related stuff.

5. Read at least one book a month, which must be purchased at a local book store.
Fail on this one, although I did purchase all the books I didn't get around to reading from my local book store. In fairness, the last book I was reading was Al Franken's Giant of the Senate. I think it's pretty understandable why I won't ever finish it.

6. Keep up with blogging. I started this blog over Thanksgiving weekend in 2012 and submitted 34 posts. I wrote 160 in 2013, 91 in 2014, 48 in 2015 and 21 in 2016. This blog means so much to me and I want to continue with it.
Including this post I published 26! Aim for >35 next year.

7. Spend more 'Face Time' with Husband and make sure we spend less time on devices while we are together.
Still need to work on this one, but we've been really vigalant about not using any devices in front of Kate.

Professional
1. Hit my metrics for responding to messages, reporting results and closing charts
2. Submit a proposal for a lecture and next year's conference
3. Write an article for a peer reviewed journal

I may not always hit my metrics, but I didn't accrue any penalties for failing to close charts. I was asked to apply to be Site Lead for our department, and as I was the only one who applied, I was awarded the position, so one of my goals for 2018 will be transitioning into my new role. I also volunteered to mentor a student, and I found it to be much more enjoyable than I thought it was going to be. I really enjoy teaching and I'd like to find more opportunities to do so. Unfortunately, I did not submit a lecture proposal, but I am working an piece for a training manual.

Cross-Fit
1. Be able to do 5 strict pulls up and 10 kipping pull ups -Achieved !
2. Work up to doing a WOD at the Rx weight. Increase 1 kilogram at a time -Not quite there, but I'm within 5 kg of Rx weight on most WODs and I can Rx many non-weight WODs

I entered my first Cross Fit (scaled) Competetion in November and I was named 'Cross-Fiter on Fire' for the month of December. Yes, it is as dorky as it sounds, but it was nice to have the coaches recognize my efforts, which on many weekends, included brining Kate with me and sometimes doing squats and push-ups with her on my back.

Goals for 2018
1. Enter the 2018 Open
2. Strict Chest-to Bar (very close, can do kipping)
3. Bar Muscle Up
4. Improve consecutive double unders
5. Rx weights for most WODs
6. Murph under 60 minutes
7. Row 75,000 meters in one month

Swimming
1. Set a PB in any Free or Fly distance (note, picking a new distance to enter for the first time doesn't count)
2. Swim the 100 Fly in Long Course Metres
3. Attend a clinic to work on starts and turns

I had a great meet at Short Course Yards (SCY) in April and achieved 4 new PBs! (50 Free, 500 Free, 50 Fly and 100 Fly) I dropped 4 seconds off my 50 Fly and 7 seconds on my 100 Fly, which made me a bit too overzealous when I signed up for the 100 Fly in Long Course Meters. I completed the event; but I tried to muscle my way through it and completely fell apart at the end. The next day, my coach told me she needed me to swim that stroke again for the 400 meter medley relay. I was close to hiding in the locker room and crying, but instead I talked to my teammates who swim fly and watched the 200 meter Fly. Focused more on race strategy and technique, I recovered from the disaster on the previous day, and achieved a new (unofficial) PB. Other swimming highlights included joining the Brute Squad (completing a 200 Fly, 400 IM and 1650 Free) and dropping 7 seconds for a new PB on my 400 Kick for Time.

Goals for 2018
1. Sub 33 50 Free (SCY)
2. Sub 40 50 Fly
3. Sub 1:40 100 Fly
4. Compete 7 Individual events at SCY and SCM Championships
5. Improve time on the Brute swim
6. Train for a 200 Fly (notice I did not say enter...)

Running
1. Try running 5Ks with Kate
We did a run in March that went pretty well. Kate only became fussy at the very end of the race and she really enjoyed the post race snacks. We were signed up in April, but that was the week that the puke monster hit, and I thought it was best to give it a miss. I didn't enter another race until Thanksgiving weekend, where I also convinced Husband to run with us (which actually became leaving us in his dust...) On Thanksgiving Day, she squirmed her way out of the stroller at the first Aid Station as she wanted to run, which lasted all of 500 yards or so. The rest of the race was me refusing to pick her up, insisted she had to ride in the stroller or walk. During the last half mile, I got fed up with her very distracted walking and carried her on my back, while I pushed the stroller. It was one of the worst races of my life. I considered bailing on the race on Saturday, but I decided to give it a go, and Kate did much better (she only wanted out at the last quarter mile...) We're doing another 5 K on New Year's Eve, which may determine if I include any races with Kate in my 2018 Goals.

2. Do some practice runs in my neighbourhood -Did not happen
3. Run a half maration -I had a dream about running a half, does that give me some credit?

Parenting
1. Accomplish potty training by the end of the year
Well she's using the big potty on her won, but is still having the occasional accident. I keep reminding myself that it is a skill and it take lots and lots of practice. Steph Curry is perhaps one of the most skilled shooters in basketball and even he still misses some shots. My aim is to be completely diaper free at this time next year, including naps and night time.

2. Work on language aquisiton with her, continuing signing and introducing Spanish
As I've written previously, I was very worried about language development and my cousin's oldest son exhibited major language delays (which were later diagnosed as part of other intellectual deficits) and her younger son who was due to start Kindergarden this fall, had to postpone due to serious speech issues. Kate started speaking in complete sentences around August and she seems to have good command of pronouns, tenses and proper conjugation of most verbs. Maybe it would have happened on its own, but I give a lot of credit to doing baby sign, as it has finally lived up to the promise of kids having more advances verbal skills than their non-signing peers. We need to work more on Spanish. And by 'we' I really mean 'I' and I'm bored of one word per page books, but I need to practice more.

3. Send my in-laws photos and updates on a regular basis. I was sending her monthly photos to them, but as I'm not doing monthly photos any more, their updates have dropped off.
Totally sucked on this one. I sent them photos from Kate's party and none since (I did mail them a bunch of her artwork...) I have to hold myself to doing this by taking something away. Photos must be sent by the 1st of each month and if I fail to do so, I can't go to the gym

4. Host a successful birthday party for Kate
Her party rocked! Everyone seemed to have a good time and no one was sick the next week! It was a lot of work to set up, so we'll look to simplify next year and I know Husband wants to spend half as much next year. Hopefully if our back garden is done, we can host at our house.

Goals for 2018
5. New furniture for  Kate's bedroom
She needs a proper Big Girl twin bed and a storage unit for books and some toys. I've been struggling to find anything that I like after checking out IKEA, a local children's shop and Wayfair.com, although I just learned that some Costcos in our area sell kids furniture. I do acknowledge that I have an emotional attachement to her room as they way it is. It's just the way we set it up when we were still anticipating her arrival, and knowing that we won't have another baby, I know every time we modify her room, it's brining us closer to when she moves out and her room can go back to being an office again. Sigh. I decided I'm keeping the rocker in her room a little longer. Even if it doesn't serve the original purpose, Tyler likes to sleep on it.

6. Get Kate to go bed on her own.
I'm really sick of having to stay in her room until she falls asleep. Mommy has a lot of stuff she needs to do.

7. Continue to limit TV and other media
We made it through 'No TV before 2' and decided to let Kate continue to think that the big rectangular box only played sports and news. Until the we set the clocks back and she woke up at the old 6 AM but new 5 AM and I was solo parenting that day. I let her watch Pep.pa Pig just so we could stay in bed until 7. Since then, we've been letting her watch "One Peppa" on Saturday mornings and I've been trying to justify that A) Saturday morning cartoons is part of childhood B) It keeps her connected to her English roots C) We're watching it with her and talk to her about what we watch to make it interactive D) I now know to do a French accent for Madame Gazelle when I read the books, although I feel I should have figured that out on my own.

8. Discipline
I need to be be firmer and more consistent with Kate while she's melting down into tantrums. Sometimes I fear I do too much of picking my battles and dismissing toddler unreasonableness as typical two year old behavior when it is something that needs to be corrected.

7. Swimming.
After much of my debating over continuing the lame classes just because Kate's classmates attend; they discontinued the Saturday classes so now we have to find a new option for swimming lessons.