Monday, January 11, 2016

10 Things I'm Looking Forward to in 2016

Thank you again to my BFF Julie for our family photoshoot.
Now THIS is the most wonderful time of year!

The turn of the calendar from December to January makes me so excited, and I've spent the past couple weeks mulling over what I'm looking forward to this year (including revisiting my previous years' posts), and I think I got them locked down. 

Here we go:

1. Visiting Nigeria (at last!) - We were on hiatus for this trip and this year it's a go; can you believe we've already started Grayson's vaccinations? I can't wait to see if he looks as unbothered as Nia did in her passport pic!

2. Recommitting to Toastmasters FOR REAL - I couldn't get on the ball with it last year, but I'm determined to this year. I was halfway through the Silver level and I know I can do it! 

3. Blogging conferences - While I'm bummed to miss next week's Alt Summit for the 2nd year in a row, I'm thrilled to see two of my favorite bloggers will be there (Luvvie and Krystal) and I can't wait to see where they plan on moving it to going forward

4.  Big things for TMG, the business I run with my sisters; we recently celebrated our 1 year anniversary, and after our fall retreat we have some exciting things on deck

5. Sharing our 35th birthday milestone with my homeyloverfriend! Uka turns 35 in May, and we're thinking that last postponed trip to Last Vegas is in order (now if only Life is Beautiful will announce this year's dates...); it'll also be a good reason to celebrate our 7th wedding anniversary!

6. Winning - This is all-encompassing, but I believe 2016 will be a victorious year, and while yes, I do win a lot of stuff (someday I'll get motivated to re-type my tactics post that I lost a couple years back on my broken tablet), it's not just about material things

7. Having two verbally competent kids -  At first glance I know this seems odd, but there is a certain peace and release that comes from being able to understand your children when they speak, and I'm not quite there with Grayson (so far he sounds like a mix between a Minion and an Ewok!); I know by the end of this year I'll be able to understand him more and this will bring comfort in being able to be away for extended periods of time, especially if Mr. Lovebird and I take a long distance trip

8. Getting down to Tennessee to visit my brother - He's been there 6+ years, and I'm finally going down for a visit this spring

9. Getting Brand Quiana in order - Between my blog and business re-org under one umbrella (I see you Squarespace) as well as other aspects of defining who I am, I'm excited for the continuation of my 35th through 50th years of life as my "go hard" years; I just posted this on Facebook, and while it's quite alarming it reiterated the fact that this life is not a dress rehearsal! 

10. More books - I'm still being challenged by Lisa Bloom's talk at the last S.H.E. Summit I attended based on her book Think; I simply to do not read enough long-form books and while older mothers in my life have told me it's temporary based on my life stage with small children, it irks me. I'm doing what I can to change it including making good use of my tablet, which I've found helps me stay awake to read, vs. traditional books which cause me to fall asleep (am I the only one this happens to?!)

What are you looking forward to this year?