23 for 2023

YorksLass

@tinkerbelluk - Thanks for the heads up on Steve Cavanagh, I'll keep a look out.  I'm always up for a John Grisham read and - strangely enough - Jeffrey Archer novels!

YorksLass

May update:

1.  Donate 23 items to CS - 3

2.  Enter 23 competitions - 0 (obviously not my thing!)

3.  Choose 23 CDs from our collection and listen to them - 0 

4.  Read 23 books - 3

5.  Make the 23rd of each month a "Me" day - Done

6.  Shave 23p a day off the already reduced grocery budget ( = £83.95 at the end of the year) - Done, total to date £41.63

7.  Watch 23 films that I haven't seen before - 9 (must be all the Bank Holidays)

8.  Make 23 items from my crafting stash (knit, sew, cross stitch etc) - two WIPs

9.  Donate 23 items to a Food Bank - 0 (the budget hasn't allowed this month)

10. Spend 23 minutes a day clearing a shelf, drawer etc to help with decluttering - Ongoing

11. Walk 23 ups and 23 downs of the stairs a total of 23 times a week - Done

12. Have 23 no spend days every month (not including DDs for bills etc) - 24/31 this month

13. Walk for 23 mins twice a week - Done

14. Socialise 23 times (visit, phone, email) - 1

15. Complete 23 things on my To Do List - Ongoing

16. Have 23 portions of F&V every week - Done

17. Have 23 days away from the laptop - 0

18. Decorate the kitchen for £23 or less - Prep starts in June

slm6002

Well a little late in reporting back but May now done

1. Loose 23lb in weight - Finally started 4/23 - slow going but moving in the right direction
2. Donate at least 23 items to the food bank - 15 /23
3. Enter 23 competitions a month - 5/12 months completed with at least 23 each month
4. Spend 23 min on 'me' each week - Still doing well on this one and have completed this each week
5. Listen to 23 books - only the 1
6. Watch 23 new films - 11/23 - I need to start jotting these down as I don't remember what they were.  I have also watch several new series that I thought were films to start with
7. 23 sessions of crafty making things for fun - 8/23 - Cross stitch and fusing glass this month
8. Save £23 each month - 5/12
9. Get rid of 23 bags of stuff that we no longer need in the house - 7/23 -  I think this will be completed in the summer holidays as the garage has been a dumping ground so things are out of the house.  Our summer task is to clear it all
10. Swim 23 miles - yet to start this one - might need to think of a better task
11. Try 23 new or forgotten hobbies - only the 5/23 so far - this month I went on a fusing glass course
12. Help friends / family 23 times - 20/23
13. 23 fun family days - 5/23 - Had a few fun free days out with the children over half term
14. 23 hours of sorting paperwork - 9/23
15. 23 surveys a month - 5/12 months with at least 23 surveys.  Nice little stash of vouchers building from them 
16. Buy second hand 23 times rather than brand new - not really bought anything this year as yet
17. Drink 23 glasses of plain water a week rather than the fizzy I normally drink - always improving but not 23 glasses a week
18. Walk rather drive 23 times - 11/23 
19. 23 random acts of kindness - 6/23 
20. 23 fruit and veg a week - not every week so far but getting close - Still the same for this one
21. Enjoy 23 fun and free activities - 5/23 
22. Send 23 letters to Postpals children - 10/23
23. 23 early nights to get a proper nights sleep - 23/23 - COMPLETED

It has been a busy month and seemed very long with lots of bank holidays.

tinkerbelluk

Everyone's doing so well and I can't believe we're 5 full months in!  As for me, better late than never!

1. Answer 223 journal prompts of self-discovery and awareness - 0/223 I'm realising this is my toughest one, it was the same last year, I know I need to rip off the plaster and start doing this.
2. Build 23 Lego sets - 3/23 - None this month though as through my "learn something new" I'm currently obsessed with finishing a cross stitch project!
3. Complete things of master to do list - 0/23
4. Do 23 things with family and friends - completed 5 of these this month which was lovely. I think the weather is certainly helping bring the total to 8/23
5. Donations to charity - 6 this month, we had a massive clear out of our playroom so loads of full black bags to charity bringing the total to 14/23
6. Enter 23 competitions per month - Going well with this another new thing I don't mind. Also managed to win sushi supplies last month which was nice - 5/12
7. Go for 23 walks or bike rides over 30 mins - Ummmmm..... even though the weathers been lovely I've been so busy in the house this hasn't happened! still stuck at 1/23
8. Have 23 date nights – In or out! - This one was always a long shot as we're happy doing things with the children, but I think we need to make more of an effort this month - 1/23
9. Have 23 fun family adventures - The children have been super busy and I've started a new job as well so nothing major this month to up the total - 3/23
10. Have 23 no tech evenings - Did well with this one this month bringing the total to 14/23
11. Learn 23 new things - Nothing this month, I think the issue is I'm looking for big things which is crazy, so I'm going to set about adding something smaller this month - 2/23
12. Listen to 23 new albums - another 2 this month - 9/23
13. Listen to 23 podcasts - I finally made a start with this one! - 1/23
14. Lose 23% of my body weight - Fell off the rails on this one so stuck at 16.5% of getting to the goal!
15. Make 23 new meals - Added another this month - 4/23
16. Play 23 board games - Finally managed to make a start on this - 4/23
17. Practice 23 mins of mindfulness each week - Fully on track with this
18. Read 23 Books - Another 3 last month bring the total to 19/23
19. Save £2023 over the year - Added £161.46 mostly from swagbucks and FB sales - £634.14/£2023
20. Sell 23 things on ebay / booty sites - Another one made a start on - 3/23
21. Spend 23 mins each week organising photos - Yeah!!! Not even started this yet - 0/52
22. Treat / do something for myself 23 times - Some cross stitch frames and a small Lego set last month brought this up to 7/23
23. Watch 23 new to me films / documentaries / TV shows - 2 last month including 11 minutes, which was a really tough watch brings this to 12/23

So lovely to hear of people still managing to keep up with this.

IrishRose12

Haven't been on here for a while but I'm still carrying along with this challenge.

1.   Read 23 books - 10/23 read - on summer holidays now so hoping to up this.

2.   Sell 23 things - 45/23 

3.   Watch 23 films - 10/23 - again its summer so hoping to complete this also.

4.   Walk for 23 minutes 5 times a week. - still going!

5.  Save 23 of each coin and note - Have had to stop this one as my hours have been cut and I'm now on 7 weeks unpaid leave due to summer holidays starting 

6.   Declutter 23 items a week from the house - One ull bag completed today alone lol. 

7.   Save an extra £23 a month - suceeded so far

8.   23 minutes of mindfulness a week. - still going!

9.   Loose 23lb in weight - 10lb lost now!  

10.  Donate at least 23 items to the food bank - have had to stop this as can't afford it anymore  

11.  Get rid of 23 bags of stuff that we no longer need in the house - so far 25 bags have gone since the start of the year!

12.  Listen to 23 Audiobooks - 4/23 listened to - I'm still not a fan of audio books lol.  

13.  Listen to 23 different music albums -10/23

14.  Have 23 no tech evenings - determoned to complete this this summer.

15.  Save £2023 over the year - Unfortunatley this won't be happening this year.

16.  Treat / do something for myself 23 times - Have treated myself to a few trips to the cinema along with treating myself to some starbucks drinks.  

17.  Save £23 every fortnight towards Christmas 2023 -  Direct Debit set up for this. On target still.

18.  23 gardening jobs - 20/23 - tomato seeds finally growing!

19.  Make the 23rd of each month a "Me" day. -  I'll be honest, I keep forgetting about this one.

20.  Spend 23 minutes a day decluttering - doing this daily now. 

21.  Make or bake 23 things instead of spending money on takeaways/bakery etc - 18/23 - made apple crumble at the weekend.

22.  Have 23 no spend days every month. - I'm actually doing really well at this now! 

23.  Make 23 extra payments to my debts - unfortunatley no more made due to wage cuts.

tinkerbelluk

You're doing so well @IrishRose12 If you have any album recommendations please pass them my way :-)

tinkerbelluk

OK - 6 months down and the scores on the doors:

1. Answer 223 journal prompts of self-discovery and awareness - 9/223 - I've got to stop making excuses with this one!
2. Build 23 Lego sets - 3/23 - No time this month as was rushing to finish 2 cross stitch projects which is a new thing I've learnt this year, so all good
3. Complete 23 things of master to-do list - 2/23 - Again, need to buckle down and get some of these crossed off
4. Do 23 things with family and friends - 20/23 Managed to do quite a few of these this month and even managed a cheeky weekend away!
5. Donations to charity - 17/23 - Had a massive clearout last month so this included 2 big boxes of books to charity.  I was going to try and sell them but thought better of it when looking at the pennies you get for books!
6. Enter 23 competitions per month - Still managing to keep this way about 23 a month
7. Go for 23 walks or bike rides over 30 mins - 4/23 - I keep making excuses with this one, I know it's because I hate the way I look but that won't change unless I get out there and do something about it and this would be a good start!
8. Have 23 date nights – In or out! - 1/23 - Need to crack on with these or I'll be out every night come December!
9. Have 23 fun family adventures - 4/23 - Again, same with this one, I think I'm just struggling with ideas
10. Have 23 no tech evenings - 20/23 - Doing really well with this one and it's something I definitely want to continue with when I hit the 23 
11. Learn 23 new things - 2/23 - Again, need to be a bit kinder with myself and accept that these don't have to be massive things.
12. Listen to 23 new albums - 12/23 - Coming to the realisation that I much prefer playlists!
13. Listen to 23 podcasts 1/23 - Trying to do a few of these this month but am coming to accept this won't be a favourite of mine!
14. Lose 23% of my body weight - 3.49% gone so far, really focusing on this, this month  
15. Make 23 new meals - 4/23 - This ones on hold as I'm doing a meal replacement diet so no meals to make 
16. Play 23 board games - 13/23 - Managed to cross off a load of these last month as we went to a board games day
17. Practice 23 mins of mindfulness each week - 26/52 - On track with this one
18. Read 23 Books - 22/23 - Nailing this one.
19. Save £2023 over the year - £1014.56/£2023 - Doing better than expected on this, thanks to making an effort selling things in June 
20. Sell 23 things on ebay / booty sites - 9/23 - Kicking into gear with this one, need to make sure I make the same amount of effort now in July!
21. Spend 23 mins each week organising photos - 0/52 - Ummmmm.........
22. Treat / do something for myself 23 times - 10/23 - I still really struggle with this but I'm treating myself to little things like embroidery threads or a craft bag, so it becomes more normal to think about myself as much as I do my family
23. Watch 23 new to me films / documentaries / TV shows - 14/23 - Watched Shiny Happy People last month and that was so shocking

Hope everyone's managing to keep up with their own, no matter how well (or badly in more than a few cases) I feel I'm doing, the way I'm looking at it as that at least by doing any of the above it's progress, so overall I'm happy this is keeping me on track.

YorksLass

Update for the halfway point of the year:

1.  Donate 23 items to CS - 11/23 to date, more ready to go but I'm not counting them until they've actually left the house

2.  Enter 23 competitions - 1/23, obviously not my thing!

3.  Choose 23 CDs from our collection and listen to them - 2/23.  The idea was to listen, then decide whether to keep or donate.  I might just donate the lot!

4.  Read 23 books - 11/23, on target

5.  Make the 23rd of each month a "Me" day - Done.  This month it coincided with DH's birthday and we treated ourselves to a meal out.

6.  Shave 23p a day off the already reduced grocery budget ( = £83.95 at the end of the year) - £41.63 to date

7.  Watch 23 films that I haven't seen before - 14/23, another on target

8.  Make 23 items from my crafting stash (knit, sew, cross stitch etc) 2/23, need to make more time for this

9.  Donate 23 items to a Food Bank - 2/23, a much reduced grocery budget is making this harder

10. Spend 23 minutes a day clearing a shelf, drawer etc to help with decluttering - Done

11. Walk 23 ups and 23 downs of the stairs a total of 23 times a week - Done, I may not have lost any weight but I feel fitter

12. Have 23 no spend days every month (not including DDs for bills etc) - 24/30 (June), February was the only month I didn't manage this but it was still 20 days

13. Walk for 23 mins twice a week - Done

14. Socialise 23 times (visit, phone, email) - 4/23

15. Complete 23 things on my To Do List - only 1/23 achieved but these are more project type things so I think I'm probably being over ambitious!

16. Have 23 portions of F&V every week - Done

17. Have 23 days away from the laptop - 1/23, oh dear another "fail"

18. Decorate the kitchen for £23 or less - Have started the prepping

I'm with tinkerbelluk - any progress is better than nothing!  

tinkerbelluk

You're doing great @YorksLass and happy birthday to your DH for last month.  This is my 3rd year of doing it and I've never managed to complete everything yet, but as I said the way I'm looking at it is that at least I'm doing something rather than just vegging out or sticking to the same routine. My big issue is perfectionism and I can get so caught up trying to make something perfect, that nothing gets done. So this is falling squarely in my progress over-perfection mindset 

There's no way I'm going to complete everything again this year, but I'm ok with that especially when looking at the progress so far. So for me, the highlight so far is taking up cross stitch as part of my learning something new, didn't think it would be my thing at all, but I love it and I've managed to make a gift for someone and seeing now touched she was, was simply amazing. Same for the savings one, this has all come from surveys, swagbucks, TCB & market place sales and of course a £200 comp win, something I never would have done without this challenge.

IrishRose12

tinkerbelluk said:

You're doing so well @IrishRose12 If you have any album recommendations please pass them my way :-)

I'l be honest I've nipped back into some old Westlife and Boyzone albums that I had forgotten I had and have been loving them.
I was in the charity shop last month and bought a few CDS also. B*Witched, Take That and Robbie Williams.  I wasn't fans of them way back then, but have to admit I've been enjoying listening to them.
I also found some of my dad's old LP records of Elvis that we have enjoyed listening to after all these years!
I may or may not have purchased a few more records since then lol. 

After reading the posts on here after mine I have to say a huge thank you to you guys.  I was putting myself under a bit of pressure to meet my targets, and was getting annoyed with myself that I hadn't been "trying harder"  but after reading your posts I feel so much better and have a different way of looking at these tasks now.  If I don't get them done, that's OK, this is supposed to be a bit of fun, and I lost sight of that aspect of the challenge.

So thank you all for bringing this back to focus for me!