I have no idea where April has disappeared to. Somewhere in the midst of Easter eggs and blossom falling like delicate fragrant snowflakes May has appeared. Along with the delight of two bank holidays, May always rejuvenates my love for living in the countryside, opening the front door to fresh air and birdsong.

Last month I set myself five goals. Some I have to admit were more difficult than others, and because of the sheer speed with which the days seeped away I wasn't as dedicated as I had hoped. However, I can happily report that I did indeed make more time for reading, attempting to read in snippets rather than sitting for hours at a time, and I feel so much better for it. Can you miss reading when it's gone? This month seems to indicate there's truth in this musing.

Secondly, I feel quite proud that I managed to blog at least five times a week for the entire month. Admittedly this was made easier by a holiday spanning two weeks in the centre of the month, but I feel I have carved out an effective routine and intend to stick with it as best as I can (life permitting, of course). My organised chaos was temporarily a haven, but it has slipped this week as I returned to the rigmarole of working life. My slouching habits haven't improved much either, though I have made a conscious effort to sit better in the mornings. Finally, my random acts of kindness appeared sporadically throughout the month: I started a monthly donation to Water Aid, sent letters to distant friends and re-connected with family members I don't see very often. A fulfilling, if extremely busy, month.

For May I have set another five goals:

Don't sweat the small stuff. I talked here about how I over-think things all the time, and I fear this will be a hard habit to break completely. However I am more motivated than ever to try and let go of things that ultimately will not matter, than should not be festering in my thoughts for longer than a second. Life is too short, as yesterday highlighted even clearer.
Get to grips with wedding stationery. We're designing our own and so far this hasn't progressed much further than sketches on scraps of paper and ideas floating around in our minds, but I feel like now is the time to start to see progress. We're toying with a leaf motif and I want to have a go at stencilling some designs; I'm quite looking forward to letting my artistic side emerge once again.
Make more time for Mr CC. We often sit in an evening; one on the laptop, the other drawing, writing or watching something on television, and although we chat, we don't actually set aside time just for us. Money, work or general exhaustion usually limits our weekend and evening activities, but sometimes you just need to forge ahead anyway and forget these limitations.
Start stocking up the freezer. By this I don't mean frozen ready meals and chips; oh no. This will require far more time and dedication, but far greater rewards: I want to make a batch of dinners to freeze so that we are able to eat healthier mid-week when we often have no motivation or energy to cook something delicious. I plan to set aside a day at the weekend for this. Full freezer here we come!
Take more photos. I go through phases; at university I was incredibly snap-happy and never stopped, and when I'm off work I'm still the same now, but often I'll forget and regret it deeply. I'd like to get out first thing in a morning and remember to take the camera with me at a weekend. I'd also like to be able to document the progress in our garden more fully.

So there you have it, five more goals. Do you have any thoughts for the month ahead?

CC X

Goals: May