A Year In Review: Ideas for Looking Back Over Your Year

Blog | December 20th, 2022

Hindsight truly can be 20/20. As we look back over 2022 along with years past, I think most of us can say we’ve learned quite a bit. We learned how to prepare for the unexpected. We learned how to do more in case of unthinkable loss whether it be family, friends, or even those furry creatures that we have fallen so deeply in love with. With each passing year we are more aware of what matters most, so let’s make 2023 a year filled with promises made to ourselves to create, remember and improve all the things that are most important to us…and everyone!

Take Photos

Take lots of photos! Snap those cameras to your heart’s content! You can always sort through and pick out your favorites and delete the rest. Then take those pictures and do something! Don’t let them collect and sit on your phone until you run out of storage. Have canvases made. Start a photo album beginning right now then go back and catch up with the backlog. From experience, a simple photo can turn into a treasure and a moment frozen in time like nothing else can!

Make a Journal

That might sound like a boring school assignment but in reality, it’s simply writing meaningful things down. Cute things that your kids say when they are three that will disappear by kindergarten. Jot down those invaluable times spent together even if it’s a simple movie that has become a tradition. Or a place you visited that was shockingly impressive. Many moments stick for a lifetime but often those just as important fade away to distant sunsets of days and years past. Having the details in writing will jog your memory for years, some bittersweet, yet most filled with the utmost joy!

Listen and Listen Some More!

With lives filled to the brim from busy jobs, families, illnesses, taking care of the home, cars, and other issues, slowing down to truly hear our loved ones often becomes what we think is not such a big deal…until it’s too late. Make your spouse’s favorite meal as often as possible. Hug your kids and tell them repeatedly that you love them even if you think those eye rolls are actually legit. Buy your dog her favorite treats and hand some out for no reason other than love. When you truly listen to what those around you say, you will pick up on things that mean the world to them and one day will mean the same to you. Do the little things often to prevent regret later.

Budget with a Purpose

Yeah, yeah, yeah…budgeting sounds boring. But it doesn’t have to be! When you get a grip on the things you don’t need and apply your hard-earned cash, first and foremost, on the things you do…like security, paying bills or making an emergency fund… it’s there you’ll find true peace! Then stash some cash for the fun stuff…movie nights, vacations, a reward for good grades which boosts the encouragement to continue. The list goes on and only you can create the right spending columns for your family and needs! Get started this upcoming year and as the bank accounts grow, you will soon reap the rewards of what you have sown!

Plan Ahead

How easy it is to spend on a whim. Supermarkets know that because they put those little tempting items right by the cash register in hopes that you’ll grab a few during the chaos of checkout. Life is a lot like that unless you sit down with your spouse or family and talk about what you truly want and need. Do you really want to go to the beach for the tenth time in a row? Or do you want to stay home for one summer, grill out, play in the sprinkler, and save up for a snow tubing, Polar Express kind of Christmas next year? Can your turquoise couch make it another year or two so you can invest in the cozy comfort of leather that snuggles so well by the fire? And as the old saying goes, if you have your health, you have everything! Plan ahead by nourishing your body with the nutrients it needs. Leave off the candy filled with mystery and artificial chocolate that takes you down a path of medical bills and simply not feeling like doing any of the things you’ve hoped and dreamed for!

The bottom line is, as a little boy in a Christmas movie stated, “organization saves time“. It also saves money and creates so much quality over quantity that you will be wondering why you didn’t review your life in every area…a lot sooner! It’s never too late so start now!