This summer, for the first time ever, I will be on my own, living in Minneapolis. Since starting college, the University of Minnesota has become my second home. I am excited to work (yes, I love my jobs at school!) and to experience campus during the summer, but I’m slightly anxious to be away from my family and friends from high school that I’m so used to spending time with in the summer. I know staying at school for these next few months is the best decision for me, but I’m still worried about not knowing what to expect. Will my friends from school still be on campus? What will I do during my free time? Will I be bored all the time? Will I get enough hours at work? I’m looking forward to exploring the Twin Cities, but I guess only time will tell what a summer in Minneapolis will be like!
At the end of summer seventeen I hope to have become a better version of myself. I hope that writing down my goals and putting them on a public platform will keep me accountable and give me the motivation to follow through with them.
1. Eat more mindfully | Towards the end of sophomore year I kind of went off the deep end regarding food. I literally ate everything and anything that I wanted to, when I wanted to. During the last month of school, a typical week consisted of atleast 2 trips to Chipotle, a pint of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream every Tuesday night, and a ton of late night snacking. Not only was this not good for my health, but it also broke my bank a little bit… oops. This summer I hope to revive some healthy eating habits and to also gain some new ones. I hope to learn to listen to my body when it comes to hunger and eating, rather cave into cravings.
2. Read 25 books | So technically summer break started for me on May 7, about 19 days ago and I have already read two books, working on a third… yay! But anyways, since high school, reading has been an amazing outlet for me during times of stress. To me, relaxation during the summer is laying outside on a hot, sunny day with an ice-cold water in one hand and a good book in the other. Last summer I read the entire Harry Potter series in about a month (I know, ridiculous… I couldn’t put them down), but this year I want to challenge myself to not only read more books, but also to read books that have relevant meaning to my life. A few books that I have on my list for this summer are Fitness Junkie, Uninvited, and You Can Heal Your Life. If you know of any good books or have any suggestions please send them my way!
3. Become a Minimalist | This goal is probably too much of a stretch for me, but it’s worth a shot. I don’t think I can become a true minimalist in just one summer, but I can definitely work on being more of one. Just like many other females on this planet, I have so many clothes and just so much stuff. I would consider myself a clean person, but for some reason my bedroom always feels so unbelievably cluttered and I can’t stand it. For one thing, my clothes are literally everywhere. They’re in my closet, in the front hallway closet, in drawers, under my bed… I mean they’re all organized and neatly hanging or folded, just everywhere. I’m 99% sure that I haven’t worn half of the clothes in my closet in the past year, but it is so hard to get rid of things, especially clothes. What if I need it in the future? In the next couple weeks, I’m planning on doing a whole closet clean out and hopefully I’ll finally find the will power to get rid of some beloved clothing items. On the other hand, my desk is full of unnecessary papers and random stuff from this past school year that I don’t need anymore. So instead of just a whole closet clean out, this will probably turn into a whole apartment clean out. This goal also goes hand in hand with the next one… to stop spending and start saving.
4. Save Don’t Spend | I have always been a big spender. I love to shop no matter what for; clothes, food, furniture, makeup, you name it I’ll shop for it. Shopping has always been one of those activities that brings me closer to my family and friends. Not only am I an inherent spender, but I also work retail which doesn’t help. For those of you who have worked retail before, you know all too well the struggle of putting all your hard-earned cash back into the company you work for. I am so guilty of this because I am an employee at my absolute favorite clothing store, Madewell. I spend so much money on things I don’t need. I need to start saving money for long term satisfaction rather than spending it for instant gratification. I know this won’t be easy, but being responsible with money is a must and is a life skill that everyone needs.
5. Complete 30 Days of Yoga | In the health and wellness world, yoga is booming. Yoga is literally EVERYWHERE, but for some reason I just haven’t been able to get into it. I have only tried it a few times, but I know so many people who love it. I want to explore more ways to move my body other than just lifting and cardio and I think yoga is the way to go. 30 Days of Yoga is a 30-day YouTube challenge for beginners that I hope will help me find a consistent yoga practice. Maybe I will love it or maybe I will hate it; who knows? Either way it can only benefit me by stepping out of my comfort zone and trying something new!
6. Start Meditating | The concept of mediation is new and unfamiliar to me. Recently, by getting more involved in the wellness world, I have been exposed to meditation and have heard so many great things about it. I have heard that meditation can increase positive emotion, calm the mind, and even energize the human body. I think meditation could become a great outlet for me in times of pressure and anxiety, so I’m hoping to make it a part of my daily life.
7. Explore My Future | As of right now, I am half way done with the nursing (BSN) program at the University of Minnesota. Unfortunately, I have changed and grown since coming to college and I’m unsure if becoming a nurse is really what I want to do with my life. I have found new passions elsewhere, such as in nutrition and fitness. This summer I need to do a bit of soul searching and figure out in what direction I want to go. I am super interested in becoming a personal trainer, a wellness consultant, and possibly a registered dietician, but I haven’t done much research yet. Clearly, I need to explore my options and I hope by the end of the summer I will have an idea of what I want my future to be.
8. Work on Forgiveness | Just so you know ahead of time, this goal is related to a topic that is super personal to my family and me. I don’t mean to scare you or anything, I just ask that you can respect my feelings regarding my mom. I have always been and will be a forgiving person by nature, but I have been struggling to find the will to forgive my mom for leaving my dad. This is a long and complicated story that I’m sure I will share with all of you eventually, but long story short, my parents got divorced my junior year of high school. Within a year of separating, my mom got remarried and I just haven’t been able to forgive my mom for what she did to our family. I know it’s hard to understand why without me going into much detail, but basically I have this grudge that I can’t shake. By the end of the summer I want to be able to sit down and have a chat with my mom and hopefully forgive her. By finding forgiveness I hope to improve my relationship with my mom and lift this burden that I have been struggling with for so long.
9. Grow My Blog | Obviously, I want to grow my blog! Simply Sydney is so new and I’m so ready to expand and explore the blogging world. This summer I plan on dedicating most my free time to blogging and sharing my life with you all!
xox, Sydney
