Tag: goals

Posted in Lifestyle

Month 3

Posted on by ktkinnes

Right, this year needs to slow it down just a little please. Like, how are we into March already?

 

I know I kind of bombarded you all with Friday Favourites posts over the last week. Sorry about that! I was just very aware I owed you 4 posts for the past month! February was a busy busy time. Alongside uni work needing done, I actually was out and about quite a bit!

 

The first weekend saw me spend Friday night having casual drinks with friends and just talking – something I’ve greatly missed over the last while. The next day saw the start of the Six Nations Rugby and so we trekked to the pub to watch the opening match over a pint. Sunday was then spent recovering and giving my liver a bit of a rest. After that, I had a quieter week before having a job interview (which I unfortunately didn’t get) and heading to Dundee to spend time with family. Arriving back home, I then had a week of getting more work done – it seemed to be never ending! However, at the end of the week, I got to relax and went to Jordanne’s for the weekend – SO MUCH FUN!!! We did a bit of shopping, watched multiple movies, planned lots of exciting things for Bloggers Tribe, played and played and played with Leon, and just genuinely couldn’t have had a better weekend. I had a couple of quieter days, focusing on my blog and Bloggers Tribe, before flying home for a surprise visit to the parents – any excuse to see the animals to be honest. When I was home, I visited family, went for walks, had a lovely meal out, played with Maisie and Baron, and -best of all- had a bath! You’ve no idea how much I miss baths when I’m in Glasgow. I finally travelled back to Glasgow on Monday, and then yesterday travelled up to Dundee again!

 

Today, Rachel has an interview at Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, so we’re having a family outing for the day. So as you read this, I’m probably actually having breakfast in some little cafe… but yes, on with the post!

 

Now, I only set 4 goals for February. How do you think they went? Place all bets now!

 

  1. Lose 3 pounds in weight.
    Okay so while I lost…………………. , I same to realise during the month that I’m actually (for the first time in a long time) beginning to feel happy in my own body! So yes, while I want to lose some weight for health reasons, I think I’m going to stop looking at numbers and sizes and focus on looking and feeling good. Is that cheating?
  2. Read 2 books.
    Yeah, this was a fail… but I did read one! You can check out my review of it HERE. Still on track for reading 12 books this year!
  3. Keep up with work at uni.
    This was a success! I achieved everything I wanted to and wasn’t short for time on any of my deadlines.
  4. Socialise once a week.
    Well, let’s take a look back shall we? Week 1 saw me go to a friend’s house for drinks, then I went to the pub the next day to watch the rugby, so Week One was a success! Weeks 2? I went up to Dundee for the weekend, but went for dinner with Mary, her sister, and her sister’s friend the night I got back so yup, week 2 was a success! Week 3 saw me spend the entire weekend with Jordanne so I suppose you could say I was socialising? And week 4 I went out to the QMU on the Wednesday to watch a shadow cast performance of The Rocky Horror Picture Show! Wow, I actually managed this one too!

 

So, I suppose you could say I achieved 2 and a half goals this month, so that’s not too bad either!  Now to think of my goals for March…

 

  1. Read one book.
  2. Save some money.
  3. Post at least once a week on here.

 

What are your March goals? Are you ready for the third month of the year?

 

img_2193-5

Advertisements
Posted in 30 Days of Gratitude Challenge, Lifestyle

Day 14 – My Dreams

Posted on by ktkinnes

Why are my dreams important and what are they? Well… For as long as I can remember, I’ve dreamt of being a mum and being a teacher. I’m currently working on getting into teaching – I’m studying physics at university in the hope of doing a PGCE or a PDGE as it’s known here in Scotland. I’m emailing schools, asking to do work shadowing for the month of June after my exams have all ended, as the more experience I have the more likely I am to be accepted for a course.

 

Being a mum may be slightly more difficult/complicated but I’ll figure it out somehow.

 

One of the longest running dreams of mine was finally reached in May this year. For as long as I can remember, I’ve dreamed of going to Disneyland – didn’t matter to me whether it was Paris or in the USA. At the age of 20, I finally got to go and actually I’m so happy I was older when I first went. I had the energy to keep going. I watched the parades and was tall enough that it didn’t matter if the adults with their children blocked my view. I could go on all the rides I wanted to, and could sit and wait for my friends if they were on a ride I didn’t want to go on. No one could tell me not to buy too many soft toys, and when I watched the night time show, I felt the shivers down my spine. It was an incredible experience and one which will be with me for many years to come.

 

 

Ktkinnes xx

Posted in Book reviews, Lifestyle

22 Books to Read Before I’m 22

Posted on by ktkinnes

Hello again! I’m trying to get back to blogging and, to do so, I wanted to post something I would enjoy writing. I will try to get back to the blogging challenge, I promise I will try. But for now, here are the 22 books I hope to read before my 22nd birthday – only 354 days to go!

 

  1. Les Miserables by
  2. The Thirty-Nine Steps by Richard Hannay
  3. The Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini
  4. According to Yes – Dawn French
  5. The Colour Purple
  6. The Great Gatsby
  7. Life After Life – Kate Atkinson
  8. The Danish Girl
  9. The Casual Vacancy
  10. Before I Go To Sleep
  11. The Perks of Being a Wallflower
  12. A Brief History of Time
  13. Jane Eyre
  14. The Book Thief
  15. Animal Farm
  16. Peter Pan
  17. The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
  18. Bridge to Teribithia
  19. Angela’s Ashes
  20. Poirot’s Last Case
  21. Me Before You
  22. The Well of Loneliness

 

What would you out on your list?

 

Ktkinnes xx

Posted in Lifestyle

September Starts!

Posted on by ktkinnes

Yes!  The best month of the year! Everyone goes back to school/university, the air begins to turn crisp, my birthday, and everything else that happens in this glorious month!
August semi flew by! And did you notice how well I kept to my schedule?? Quite proud of me! How about the goals?

Well I finished Harry Potter and the Cursed Child! Just need to write a review on it… I’m getting bad at writing reviews…

Am I happier in myself? I’m certainly happier and that’s a start! 

Healthier lifestyle? Well it’s healthier… Again I can’t quite say I fully achieved this one… But it’s a start!
With this month comes a bit of a change. I didn’t get the grades to get back into uni but I’m now in the job hunt position. I’ve a teacher training course I can start and all I need is a job. So that brings me to this month’s goals!

  • Find a job in Glasgow. This is essential.
  • Continue with my 30 Days of Gratitude Challenge – check out my first post here!
  • Read one book.

What are your aims for September? Any plans for the month?
Ktkinnes xx

Posted in Lifestyle

My pre-21 bucket list

Posted on by ktkinnes

Okay so I’m slightly panicked now as 2 weeks today is my 21st birthday and I just don’t feel old enough to be 21. Don’t get me wrong, 21 isn’t old. But it feels it to me. It’s the oldest I’ve ever been! Obviously, Katie, it’s a celebration of surviving your 21st year on this planet…

With only 2 weeks to go, I thought I’d have a sit down and decide what things I want to have achieved by my 21st birthday. Now, remembering I only have 2 weeks to do this, I set to work on creating this list:

  • Read a classic. Any classic whatsoever. 
  • Get rid of all unnecessary/unwanted clothes.
  • Finish Rachel’s birthday present.
  • Light the candles in my bedroom at least once.
  • Apply for at least 20 jobs in Glasgow.
  • Catch up with Pretty Little Liars.
  • Sort my makeup etc and have a clear out.

What do you think, can I achieve all this? 
Ktkinnes xx

Posted in Lifestyle, TV, Wishful Wednesday

Wishful Wednesday and other such news.

Posted on by ktkinnes

Okay before I begin tonight, I just want to apologise for my complete lack of posting over the past 2 weeks. Again, there’s been no real reason for it except I’m revising for resits and too lazy to write the posts earlier. Although I suppose when I first started out blogging I never intended to blog every day unless there was something worth saying.


So once again, sorry! Especially if you’ve been looking for me recently. I’ve recently started watching Scandal, especially when revising. Mary kept telling me to watch it, especially since I love Greys Anatomy and How To Get Away With Murder. How right she was! Kerry Washington stars as Olivia Pope, a so-called lawyer who acts as a “fixer” for the rich and famous (sometimes infamous) of Washington D.C. It’s a great show and I can’t honestly think of a show I’d rather be watching. 

If I’m being honest, my love for all things presidential at the minute definitely adds to the reasons I’m enjoying Scandal. However, I love seeing actors and actresses from other shows that I’ve watched appearing in different roles. An example of this would be Jeff Perry. He’s a fantastic actor. I enjoyed watching him act Thatcher Grey in Grey’s Anatomy, but now I adore him as Cyrus Bean in Scandal. I don’t want to give anything away really but Cyrus and his husband are so cute together and Jeff’s acting moved me to tears today at a certain point in season 3 – no spoilers from anyone who’s seen it!
Now that I’ve covered my TV addict’s part of the post, I thought I’d move onto Wishful Wednesday. Unless you’d rather I stopped that? Again, I’m not really sure if you’re enjoying it so please please please send me some feedback! 
It’s been a long week. I’ve started revising morning, afternoon and night, with very little time for sleep or anything else for that matter. So for today’s Wishful Wednesday, I choose to pass these exams and graduate next summer. For obvious reasons (I hope) I want to pass these exams. After the exams, I will progress onto 3rd year. My desire to be a teacher is still going strong. Will I have to change the theme of my blog if/when that happens? Who knows. We’ll cross that bridge when it comes to it.
The past 10 days or so, as I’ve said, have mainly been spent revising. After a few days at the library, I switched to revising at home. Rachel finished her exams and to celebrate we had an Indian takeaway and watched The Lady In The Van. Now my rating of this isn’t very high, it was good but I’m not quite sure if it was good enough to deserve all the awards and praise it received. Definitely would rather have been watching Scandal. Rachel then went camping with Cameron for a few days in the rain, while the rest of us here in Lisburn went out for dinner which resulted in a rather interesting Sunday morning. Have I told you my uncle is living with us at the minute? I can’t really go into why or how at the minute so if I remember I’ll come back to it another time. 


Finally, it’s 17 days, 17 hours and 50 odd minutes until we set off for Ibiza! I’ve never been so excited to go on holiday. Brief throwback to this day last year when I wrote Packing. Can you believe my blog is 2 years old? However, please ignore the adds at the top of the picture. It would be a miracle if I was pregnant! 

I can’t believe it isn’t even 10 o’clock yet, I’m exhausted! Except before I go to sleep I still have some more revision to do. Blogging is a nice change. If I’m lucky, I’ll be going to sleep around 12:30am and get up again at 7ish to start over again. Why do I do this to myself? I swear to whatever anyone believes in, I will work even harder next year. I need to. 
So goodnight! Wish me luck with Nuclear and Particle Physics… Maybe it’ll send me to sleep 😂
Happy Hump Day!
Ktkinnes xx

Posted in Book reviews, Lifestyle

Room

Posted on by ktkinnes

Hello again! Sorry for not being active the last few days, I’ve been working slowly but surely through maths and physics, trying to consolidate them in my head. How are you? Feels like a lot longer than just 3 days of not blogging!

The reason for no Sunday Review this week is that I really don’t feel I did anything worth noting for you all… Is that wrong of me? Let me know if you missed it! Then, last night, instead of Monday Musings (especially with missing the Twitter chats again), I read Room! I actually finished a book in advance of the end of the month! Have you read it yet?


Written by Emma Donoghue, Room is 5 year old Jack’s perspective of life with his Ma. The story opens on his 5th birthday and follows the events of the next few weeks of his life. Wikipedia describes room as

Jack lives with his Ma in Room, a secured single-room outbuilding containing a small kitchen, a bathtub, a wardrobe, a bed, and a TV set. Because it is all he has ever known, Jack believes that only Room and the things it contains (including himself and Ma) are “real.” Ma, unwilling to disappoint Jack with a life she cannot give him, allows Jack to believe that the rest of the world exists only on television. Ma tries her best to keep Jack healthy and happy via both physical and mental exercises, keeping a healthy diet, limiting TV-watching time, and strict body and oral hygiene. The only other person Jack has ever seen is Old Nick, who visits Room at night while Jack sleeps hidden in a wardrobe. Old Nick brings them food and necessities. 

I don’t want to ruin the story for those of you who haven’t read it yet but it’s another must read in my opinion! How many is that now? I haven’t watched the film yet but I might get round to that tonight.

It took me a while to settle into Room, I found the style of writing difficult to follow for the first few pages. All the things in the room are personified as they are all Jack knows. As you might expect, as a 5 year old, Jack’s grammar isn’t perfect either which kind of threw me a little. However it was a fantastic read once I got used to it. In fact, I read the majority of it yesterday in one sitting! 

Now the real question is, what do I read next??
Ktkinnes xx

Posted in Lifestyle

Here comes the summer

Posted on by ktkinnes

Hello! Welcome back to my delightful monthly round up and goal setting for the month ahead! Did you miss me yesterday? I know I certainly missed you guys! 

I wish I had a good excuse for the lack of blogging yesterday but really I just spent the day in the sun and clean forgot about blogging until I was going to bed well after 11 and by that stage I was shattered so apologies for that!

May was a mixed month, very quiet at the start and busy towards the end. But then, what can you expect during exam season? At the start, May was filled with me binge watching The West Wing while trying to revise for my exams which didn’t go the best to be honest but we’ll brush over that. In the middle of it, Kelsey arrived over and so we had a hectic week of doing things and very little revision. Check out what we got up to here! After she left, I spent a week lounging around the flat, cooking, cleaning and watching lots of tv. However, in the middle of all this, I tried my first ever collab with Rach over at The Life of a Onesie Wearer in which we gave advice and tips to first time uni goers and those of us mid degree! Have a look through our blogs for University Challenge. Of course, after all this came the best experience EVER – Disneyland Paris! Check out my posts on our four day adventures in the land of cheese, bread and wine for a full summary of Disney. After we returned to Glasgow, it was a quick turn around to come back home to lisburn. 

As for my goals, I read another book! My review for Carol can be found along the side in my top posts. My revision went okay I think, only time will tell… And I certainly made the most of my remaining time in Glasgow!

This month, with being at home, my aims are going to be slightly different. So here goes:

  • Read another book! I’m thinking of reading Room, what do you think?
  • Cut out bread in the mornings. I can actually lose a lot of weight by simply stopping eating bread!
  • Try and catch up on sleep. I’m so excited for early nights and long lie ins.

But for now I’d better run, I’ve a Tesco shop to do for mum and then an eye appointment at lunchtime. Have a great day!
Ktkinnes xx

Posted in Films, Lifestyle

Mockingjay Part 2

Posted on by ktkinnes

Hello lovely friends! Firstly I must apologise, it seems my Paris post only actually was posted tonight and not last week when I wrote it. Technology doesn’t like me.
It’s almost the end of the month already!! There’s so much stuff to do and I am beginning to panic a little. Retail therapy might be needed to resolve the stress…

My presentation went well I think, I didn’t hang around for long after it as I rushed out to complete my physics test. Got a third of my marks in it which isn’t bad considering the lack of revision put in there. I’m now working on a physics report about the Spitzer Space Telescope (any clues on it would be appreciated!) and have started revision. It’s not exactly easy to do when you’re exhausted a lot of the time.

Last night, technically this morning, Jason, Mary and I went to the midnight showing of the final part of the hunger games films. Considering I didn’t really enjoy the books I was curious about the film and having seen the other 3 parts I decided I should complete them. And this time it was brilliant. I absolutely adore Jennifer Lawrence and her performance was super. As for the rest of the cast, they did a fantastic job. Go and see it as soon as you can if you haven’t already! Let me know your opinions 🙂
Irish Dancing didn’t kill me as much this week but I’m kind of disappointed that it didn’t, feels like I haven’t had a work out. However my healthy living plan went completely out the window and I don’t want to even think about how much debt I’m currently in due to overspending… But after Christmas I will work on my money situation. I NEED A JOB! This is no longer working and the sooner I can get a job the better. Maybe with a job I’ll also get more work done…
I’m about to go to sleep considering it’s been a few late nights in a row and I am actually looking forward to my 9am class tomorrow. Goals for the weekend are to have completed my revision timetabled items, finished buying decorations, wash and iron the throws in the living room, and finally Hoover my bedroom! Doesn’t sound too bad does it? I didn’t think so either.

Night guys!

Ktkinnes xxx

Posted in Lifestyle

A bit of a ramble

Posted on by ktkinnes

Good evening and welcome to anyone new joining us tonight!

The first day of August is over, it’s scary how time flies. Who knows what this month will bring? In the last month I read at least 6 books and so this month I hope to be even half as successful. With the new month comes new goals and as I lie in bed tonight I’m thinking back over the last month.

Continue reading “A bit of a ramble” →