Monday, January 8, 2018

10 Things I'm Looking Forward to in 2018


Rather than making resolutions, I enjoy putting together this annual list and also looking back to review the previous year. 

But first, OPRAH...





She was impeccable last night in her acceptance speech of the Cecil B. de Mille award. I cried and woke up this morning to watch it again leaving the house for school drop-off feeling so inspired. 


Time's up for a lot of things I believe. A silver lining of sorts following what happened in November 2016. 

Now onto the list:

1) At long last I own www.quiana.com (it redirects to this blog for now), but I'm looking forward to finally making it the portal for everything I do from blogging, Trifecta Media Group, media appearances, public speaking and civic work. 

2) Heading back to Disney World with the kids - we spilled the beans at Christmas that we're going again. We've been sitting on the passes for about a year now since our Disney Cruise and since then they've been regularly asking when we're returning.  

3) Last year was a big travel year, not just for conferences, but also just personal/family travel. From Las Vegas, Florida (4x!), my hometown of Columbus, Ohio, Charleston, South Carolina, Baltimore, Maryland and of course a few trips to our old stomping grounds of NYC and Portsmouth, NH we were gone a lot. This year I'm excited to reign it in especially focusing more on being involved locally here in Boston

4) Speaking of local involvement, I'm excited for several efforts I've teamed up with from Moms Demand Action, staying active in my kids schools via PTO as I've always been, a couple other organizations in my neighborhood - one committed to equity in future development and the other in clean-up/beautification, as well as initiatives at my alma mater Wellesley College.

5) Growing Trifecta Media Group as it enters its third year - this will be the first full year to really focus on it with both kids in school full time

6) Continuing speaking/media opportunities - I'm kicking off the year speaking at ALT Summit in Palm Springs next month and like my recent TV One debut that I shared, am excited about other opportunities like it.

7) Focusing on my health - I'm overdue for an update on life with discoid lupus and hypothyroidism, but this year I'm committed to making strides in being more physically active and improving my eating habits. As I've inched closer to 40 I've come to appreciate the long-awaited curves that motherhood has brought (!), but there are some areas that I'd be happy to do away with...

8) Getting the kids in the same school long-term - this is a major issue looming over my head as Nia transferred to a new school in October and we're in the process of getting Grayson there this fall (the Boston Public School process is daunting!); I'll feel more settled as a mom when I know the kids are settled in their school

9) Revamping my style - my closet needs a complete overhaul and I need to get my act together when it comes to purging and replacing items for more stylish staples; it will be a process for sure. I'm also looking forward to trying some new styles with my hair this year. While I've loved the convenience of my short hair, I'm ready to grow it out again!

10) Besides being asked if we're having more kids (NO, we aren't!), Mr. Lovebird and I often get asked if we're moving again! We give a resounding NO to that as well, but there are a couple home projects that we're excited for this year including finishing our basement. The kids definitely miss having a dedicated play space like we had in New Hampshire and while our family room built-ins are handling toy storage for now, I'm looking forward to getting all those toys downstairs. 

Do you keep resolutions or a "look forward to" list? What are you most excited about in 2018?


 

P.S. Click here for last year's list with the link to the previous year...