Highlights of 2019

HAPPY NEW YEAR!! 

I took a little break from blogging to focus on Christmas with my family as well as getting some good old holiday uni work done too😄 But I hope you have all had a lovely time over the festive period and got a chance to relax and recharge ready for the new year. 

This post is coming a little later than I had intended, mostly due to my focus going on uni assignments that are due soon, but also due to the fact that I just honestly wasn't really feeling the new year yet. I'm not the biggest fan of New Years, I think its because Christmas is officially over and it's back to reality again. I did get to spend the first part of New Years Eve with most of my closest friends which was brilliant (I went home for the bells to be with my family😄) and all was great. I don't know, I think it just took a little while to get back into the swing of things.

Anyway, today's blog post is going to be focused on some of the highlights of 2019.

Completed and passed my first proper placement

I've mentioned in previous posts about how I'm currently studying primary education at university and in my second year of uni I had my first proper placement in a primary school. It was challenging at times (tears were shed once in front of the class teacher after a particularly tough lesson😅) but I managed to overcome these challenges - which is something I never really give myself credit for. I worked hard and passed my shared observation first time. It was honestly a great placement and I was in a lovely school with a brilliant teacher who helped and supported me throughout everything, I was very lucky. At the end of 2019 I started third year and also my second placement. So far I'm already finding it a little more difficult - there's more to think about this year and I'm working with an upper school class which has been different because I've only every worked with younger years - however, I'm going to (try) and remain positive and optimistic! I really just want to do the best I can.

Spent a month in France

This was definitely my favourite part of the year. I went to France for a month with my family (which I wrote a few blog posts about) and it was the best month! The weather was amazing, I went to lots of different places and had new experiences. It was amazing. 

Had days out with my brother

This year I became a little more confident in driving - this year I definitely need to drive more out of my driving comfort zones in order to become even more comfortable with driving - that being said, small steps are just as important as big leaps so I'm still proud of where I am able to drive. I went to different places with my brother for breakfast. We now have a tradition where we go out for breakfast after exams are all over and at Christmas time. It's been great just spending some more time with my brother just the two of us. He really is my best friend😄

Started properly working on my health and fitness

One of my goals this year was to actually start to focus more on my health and fitness. At the end of 2018, I was at a point where I just wasn't happy with my body and how I looked and so right from the start of 2019 I started to cut down my  meal portion sizes, eat healthier and exercise. I discovered a love for kettlebelling. I had bought two kettlebells a few years ago but never used them and then at the start of 2019, when I was looking for ways to exercise that wouldn't involve going to the gym, I found kettlebell workout videos on YouTube and it's been so good for my physical fitness! I've managed to lose some fat and gain some muscle. I've tried exercising in the past (admittedly not in any form of schedule nor did I keep up with it) but I've beeb doing kettlebell workouts throughout the full year and I can actually see the physical difference this has had. This is something I want to carry on doing throughout 2020.

Got back into photography

*I say photography, I just enjoy taking pictures, it's a hobby😄I received a new camera for my Birthday from my parent and it was one of the best gifts! I took my camera to France and took so many pictures and lots turned out pretty good. My dad got some professionally printed and they're hanging up around the house which is pretty cool. Sometimes I'll see the pictures and forget that it was me that had taken them. For Christmas, my parents gifted me a photo book full of their favourite pictures that I took which I found so lovely and a really nice way to remember my new favourite holiday.

Had fun days out/nights away with friends

I went on two different overnight's with my friends. The first was when I went to Summer Sessions and we'd already had a great day and we got to have a great night too because we stayed in Glasgow for the night which was great fun. Another day/night away was to Edinburgh where my closest friends and I went to the Christmas markets and then stayed in Edinburgh to make for a fun Christmas overnight. I'll post a full blog post on it soon. I really hope I'll have more nights away with my friends this year.

What are some of your 2019 highlights?

Bye for now, xo