So when Rachel of Catch Fortywinks initated this blog train, I was excited to attempt my first blog train and attempt to write outside of my comfort zone. However I was also alittle concerned if I could find 15 things to do differently in 2015. Not because I’m perfect but because this was a way to document some of my New Year resolutions and to be honest, I’m not very good at keeping to my resolutions. It becomes a whole lot scarier when it is no longer just promises you make in your head but instead written on paper or in this case, on my blog for everyone to see.

But I figured since there were so many of us doing this (34 of us mummy bloggers to be exact), I might as well attempt it and try to have some fun while I’m at it. You can read the other 33 posts at this link 🙂

So here goes nothing, continuing from where Mamabliss left off on the blog train yesterday…15 things I will do differently in 2015 (in no particular order).

• Enjoy our family holidays and go with the flow– ok this is not to say that I will stop planning our family holiday itineraries. There is no way that the kids or Joel and I would survive an unplanned holiday. We need structure! However after all the planning has been done for my sanity, I will enjoy our time together and if it means we deviate from the plan slightly during the holidays, I will go with the flow. I will no longer chase the next time slot on our itinerary, I will live in the moment with my family. 🙂

• No more standard praises– No more ‘good jobs!, no more ‘wow that’s awesome!’ I am going to start qualifying what was so good or awesome about what Jah or Bella had just done. There is going to be more “I’m so proud of you because…” and “we feel very happy that you…”

• No more patronizing ‘Yes’, ‘That’s nice’ and ‘Ok’ – I have been very guilty of just responding to Jah without processing what he is actually telling me sometimes. This happens a lot in the car when my mind is on something else and he just wants to have a conversation with me. I only catch myself when he does a follow up question or statement that I can’t respond to or realize that I have given him permission to something that isn’t allowed.

• Stop rushing the kids – I suppose with the exception of rushing for school or work in the morning (within reason). I will stop rushing my kids on weekends. “Hurry we are going to be late for waterplay, finish your bread and lets go!” Nopes, no more of those.

• No more handphones during playtime –This is going to be tough but I know that Jah is getting increasingly annoyed when he sees Joel or I holding our handphones during playtime. I am going to eliminate the use of handphone while playing with JahBella. No more scrolling facebook or checking my Whatsapp messages.

• Bag Checking – I used to be involved when it came to what goes in and out of Jah’s school bag each day. Then Bella came along and I outsourced the packing of both their school bags to my helper and yes sometimes we drop the ball. This year, I will personally check their bags to make sure that nothing is missed from their communication books and the right items are in their school bags, this is going to be my new night routine.

• Be present but unavailable –I don’t know about other mums but I find myself ever present and ever available with my kids even if I shouldn’t be. For example, how many of you find yourselves in the shower but have your ears peeled in case one of your kids start shouting for you or starts a tantrum or a fight with his/her sibling. I find myself always in ‘fight mode’, on my toes and ever ready to run out even if there was another adult in the same room with them. So in 2015, I will be present (aware of the troubles outside in case I need to intervene at some point) but I will try to be unavailable (let someone else attend to the issue first). :p

• More family bikes rides– Allowing for more activity time as a family of 4. Equipping 2 adults to handle 2 kids and creating more opportunities for Jah and Bella to co-exist and interact.

• More couple bikes rides/ skate scoot nights– Creating more opportunities and space for us to communicate and ‘operate’ as a couple rather than as parents.

• Read more –I used to read and then the kids came along. I now buy magazines that I would like to read but never find the time to flip through them. So in 2015, I am going to make full use of my Kindle Fire and start reading again. Perhaps some book reviews too?

• Getting our hands dirty – I will attempt more activities in the outdoors (sandplay, waterplay, nature stuff, gardening) as well as indoors (arts and craft, painting, playdoh) with the kids and worry or fuss less about how we are going to clean up.

• Savour the bedtime conversations – I am often in a rush to put Jah to bed. I typically sit in his room (in the dark) for 30mins to an hour until he falls asleep (in my lap). This is normally my down time where I get to catch up on my tv dramas on my tablet while he slowly drifts off to sleep. So I often find myself hushing him or cutting our conversations short so that he would drift off to sleep faster. I need to start enjoying the bedtime conversations with my boy before he stops wanting me in his room even if it means delaying my down time.

• Spending more time with Bella– Having kids who are close in age has its pros and cons. Jah and Bella are only 18 months apart and this meant I had to focus a lot of energy and attention on Jah even after Bella was born. It has become  routine in our household for me to attend to Jah’s needs while Bella’s needs are met by Joel or mostly our helper. With Bella slowly developing her own personality, I need to start ‘knowing’ and understanding her as well as I know her brother. I need to start spending more focused time and conversational moments with her, to know what makes her tick.

• Targeted Online Shopping– No more impulse online buys full-stop.

• Blog more about our experiences and write more outside my comfort zone– 2014 was an overwhelming year. I only started blogging in July and had the whole of early 2014 to document and catch up on. The moment I started blogging, I also became more aware of how we were spending our time as a family and with it came more opportunities to do things differently with our kids and more things to blog about. I’m not complaining though. I love that we are now so much more conscious of how we spend our family time and weekends and I get to blog about these experiences. In 2015, I will be seek to blog more! – catch up on overdue posts, discover new experiences with my kids and lastly, come out of my writing comfort zone which means more active participation in blog trains and the likes.

Heres to doing things differently in 2015! 🙂

Next Up on the Blog Train is Summer from A Happy Mum

Summer is a media executive turned SAHM from Singapore who stepped into the gratifying journey of motherhood during her 4-year stay in Sweden. Life has never gotten more fulfilling since then and she is now the mother of two lovely girls. She believes that contentment is bliss and that happiness is about making the best of what you have. A Happy Mum is a place where she blogs about motherhood, babies, kids, love, DIY crafts, travelling and all things happy. Check out what are the 15 things that this happy mum will be doing differently in 2015 tomorrow!