Things I’ve Learned in 2016

Okay, so I know we are on the second day of 2017, but something had occurred to me while I was taking the day off yesterday (by taking the day off I mean cleaning, doing laundry, and putting away Christmas stuff).  I realized that I have learned a lot this past year.  I mean, I think it’s safe to say that at the end of every year I’ve realized I’ve learned a lot, but this last year I did a lot of growing.

I’ve never truly identified myself as an adult because I feel like by doing that I’m accepting the fact that I’m old, which is something I don’t ever truly want to do.  But, I did a lot of thinking and bettering myself even though it may not be what I really wanted to do and I’ve got to say, I’m pretty proud of myself.

Here are just some of the things that I’ve learned this last year.

1. You really do have to separate your laundry.

For the longest time I was one of those people that didn’t separate my clothes when I washed them and dried them.  It went just fine, but non-nonchalantly throwing those delicates in your mom’s laundry pile in hopes that she’ll do it doesn’t exactly cut it when you’re turning 27.  This last year I’ve slowly been learning how to properly do laundry and hang dry the clothing that needs to be hang dried.  Also, checking the pockets of pants.  That is also something I’ve been learning to remember.

2. Being an old married couple is actually pretty awesome.

Especially when you have children, going out and partying on holidays seems to be a thing of the past.  In fact, just being social period is hard when you both work jobs and have children.  But, I’ve learned this year that it’s totally awesome to just lounge at home and stay in.  I feel like I don’t get enough time with family and spending my free time with them seems to be the best option!  There’s nothing like a night in with some take out for a date night.

 

3. Letting go of that negativity is so freeing.

I’ve always been the type of person to surround myself with anyone from any walk of life.  Because of this, I’ve let in a lot of negative people in my life.  But, recently I’ve been learning how to let go of those people because you all deserve to surround yourself with positivity.  I’ve learned it’s so hard to be positive yourself when you surround yourself with negativity.  Let go of those negative people, even though it may be hard.  You’ll thank yourself later when all the stress and anxiety of trying to please the people that can’t be pleased is gone.

4. Paying bills early is the best feeling ever.

I feel like this may not be a big deal to everyone but, in discovering the ways that being an adult is awesome I’ve found out that paying bills on time, or better yet, early is amazing.  Having enough money in your bank account to pay the bills is awesome too.  That goes hand-in-hand with budgeting which, if you can budget properly  you are the equivalent to a superhero.  Now I always try to pay my bills early, which doesn’t always work but at least I can pay them on time.

5. Going to bed early doesn’t make you a loser.

I’ve always been the early to bed type of person but it’s been even more so since Husband wakes up before the sun does.  My sister is the type of person who can stay up until 4am and be functional the next day!  I’ve always been jealous of that, but I’ve recently come to terms with the fact that going to bed between 8:30 and 9:00pm is great!  Especially when your natural clock wakes you up early, the more sleep the better.

6. Using that boxed mix isn’t going to be the end of the world.

This was huge for me!  I am a baker and so anything that must be made has to be made from scratch.  If you follow my Instagram (@eslrblog), you’ll see that I finally caved for the Christmas season and got boxed mix.  You know what?  The boxed mix was still really good, less expensive, and less time than if I had made them from scratch.  And here’s the huge secret – nobody cares if they are made from scratch or not.  All they care about is when and how they decorate the cookies.  

7. The not-so-expensive gifts are just as good as those fancy expensive gifts.

I stress so much about how much I’m going to spend on Miss K during the Christmas season.  Because of family emergencies prior to Christmas, my Christmas budget went from a budget of $200 for family to a budget of, well, nothing.  I stressed for a little while about what the heck I was going to get everyone but, I decided to bake everyone gifts.  Do you know how much it cost me?  Around $70 for 10 bags of baked goods (if you got one of these bags please ignore this.)  As for Miss K?  She got something she needed, something she wanted, and something that would benefit her.  She enjoys those gifts just as much as the big gifts and, you know what?  It doesn’t cost me an arm and a leg – bonus!

8. Medicine is actually worth it.

I have been anti-medicine for a while (at least when it comes to me.)  That means no flu shot, no cough medicine, no ibuprofen, and no antihistamines.  Ya, I know.  I’m basically an idiot, but I felt that my body would get over it in its own time (with the exception of when I’m really in dire need of medicine).  I’ve recently got super sick with a fever of 103-104 degrees F and I could not move from my bed.  Husband basically force fed me ibuprofen to keep the fever down and, you know what?  When the ibuprofen was in my system I felt so much better.  Then, the after sickness came with that horrible cough.  It made my back pull out so I was living off of medicine and it actually worked.  I’ve been converted to a medicine user!  Why let yourself suffer when you can use medicine and be almost back to new in no time!?

9. Bath bombs are the best.

The idea of bath bombs sounded amazing.  I would go to Lush all the time with my sister, smell all the smelly smells, and watch those bath bomb videos on YouTube (if you haven’t seen any, search 100 bath bombs on YouTube and watch the crazy magic.)  Recently for Christmas, I got a couple bath bombs from my nephew and a bath bomb (with a ring in it) from my sister.  I really wanted that ring and I knew the only way was to use the bath bomb.  So, I finally made time to just relax in a bath tub.  I put the bath bomb in and it fizzed everywhere and it was super fun to watch!  The bathroom filled with the scent of roses (my favorite smell) and I relaxed.  The ring was super pretty but the bath bomb was the best.  I’ll definitely be using and buying them more.  I especially like the part where I can lock the bathroom door and no one will disturb my rose scented hideout.

I’ve already learned a few things this year too.  That is for a different post though.  Even though I still stand by 2016 was less than optimal, I am grateful for the lessons it taught me.  This year, 2017, will be even better because I have the knowledge from last year to not repeat the same mistakes this year.  I can’t wait to see what new things I will learn and what new experiences I will face.  What are some of the lessons you learned in 2016?  Share them below!