1. Moving my daughter to Witbank.

Being an active and invested parent is the most fulfilling thing about parenting. Ice cream dates, movie nights AKA watching cartoons all night, taking her to play all day and having her fall asleep on our way back home. All of that was priceless for me . Having to pray for her when she falls asleep and hearing her shout mommy I love you from her room, nothing could ever have my heart pump custard like that. I am grateful I get to do these things with her and for her . We got her first report a month ago and it was the cutest thing . I can't wait to see the grace that 2022 has in store for us . 

2. Helping mom pay off her bond.

I wanted to do a lot for my mother like I had mentioned in my 30 before 30 post. A new house for her would have been the most ideal but finances and resources sometimes do not align and you just have to do what you can . What I could do was help her pay off her home loan . It felt really good to be able to do that for her and I am really glad I got to do it .

3. Buying my dream car.

I had an accident in April 2020 when I was driving back home from Belfast in the thick of lockdown and my first car which was a KIA got written off . After that I bought another used car and used that for over a year. I didn't like my second car but it worked, worked really well and served the purpose it was bought for . I never had any problems with it but I really wanted to buy another car, a sexier car, one that was age appropriate . I looked for a while until my trip to Durban. I decided I wanted to go to the We buy cars branch in Durban and the moment I saw that car I literally cried, real tears. From the moment I saw it I knew I had to have it . I just knew . So I took all my savings, traded in the car I had and after spending the whole day at that branch trying to solve every curveball thrown my way I drove off with my car. I love that car.

4.My relationship with God.

The word I got this year from God was ANCHORED. This was echoed by an online church I virtually attend. I really feel like I got to be anchored and rooted in God this year. Many times I had to run back to Him, to His word and His promises. I got reminded who He really is in my life . Even in the darkest of times I knew I had an anchor holding me down , holding me still so I don't get swept away by the waves of sadness, depression and troubles. The one verse that kept coming up time and time again this year was Proverbs 18vs10 "The Name of the Lord is a strong tower. The righteous run into it and are safe" . I meditated a lot on that verse , it was in another way an anchor for my soul . 

5.Durban girl's trip

My friends and I planned a trip to Durban to unwind and to catch up because everyone is always busy we rarely have time to see each other . Almost all of us are away from home, we have jobs and some of us have kids. This was a great way for us to make new memories. This trip reminded me of the things I really liked . I like travelling , exploring, making memories, laughing with friends , eating out. I like all of it and I got to be reminded that there is so much life to live. There is so much to be done, to be explored and to be enjoyed. I really had an amazing time.

6.Buying Le Creuset pots.

I was never a person who fussed over brands especially when it comes to kitchenware or cookware but sometime in July '21 I just started obsessing over Le Creuset pots. When I say obsessing I mean I was on their site almost every week looking, plotting on which pot I was going to buy first. When the chance came, the black Friday sale, I searched high and low for funds to buy this pot that had been on my mind for the longest time . They are quite pricey but I was determined . I managed to buy another one soon after the first one so I will be taking a break from Le Creuset for a bit just to recover financially from these purchases. 

7.Acknowledging and accepting SELF.

In the month of November I had a lot of epiphanies . I was going through one of the many dips I had this year and one by one I just started realising things about myself . I realised I don't like being a mother but I don't want to suck at it and it's really important to me to get it right. In addition to that I realised that it's okay to be fully myself , I don't have to be like everybody else. I also realised that I need to die empty. I need to fulfil every desire and purpose I have in me . I never ever want to regret not taking a chance on myself which is why I have been consistent with blogging for the past 5 months or so. I am committing myself to one blog post a month and I have been doing that which makes me really happy. There's nothing that hurts more than when you betray yourself which  is also why I am letting go of relationships and people and that make me feel like I am not  honouring myself . 

8.Going for counselling.

Therapy has been something I wanted to do for a long time, since I graduated and started working I have been planning to start but with no success. I finally took the plunge and booked my first appointment with a counsellor in March. I'll tell you one thing though it is expensive and I did stop in June because I felt like it wasn't helping me much. I was talking about my challenges but I didn't feel like it was doing what I wanted it to do. I went back and introspected and realised I didn't even know what I wanted the counselling to do for me . Now I know and I think it will make things a bit easier for me. I am going back to the same lady because I have already built a rapport with her and I really believe she can help me . 

9.Cultivating gratitude.

This is one is very important , I grasped it for a while and fell off but when I fell off I realised how happy and content I was when I was practising gratitude . Yes it's PRACTICE . You need to that grown that muscle and really cultivate the behaviour. The nice thing about when you do something ,especially something that nourishes your soul, once in a while your spirit nudges you to go back to it because it knows what it needs so I also had those moments where I remembered to just be grateful for the little things and the big things. I remembered that I am still alive and everyday I wake up is a battle half won. I remember that sometimes all I have to do is show up and God takes it from there . I mean this in the most literal sense . There were days when I didn't want to show up for work, nor as a mother but every time I decided to get out of bed God would carry me till the day was over . His grace was sufficient

10. Moving to a bigger space.

On the 1st of December I put in a moving out notice from my 2 bedroom flat and on the 23rd I moved all my things to a 3 bedroom townhouse . I needed a bigger space for all the things I intend to do in 2022. The move was difficult , everything about it was challenging. I didn't even get to unpack before I left for  Christmas holidays at home . Thinking about all the mess that awaits me gives me so much anxiety but knowing that I have officially moved and all the possibilities that await my little family makes me so excited. I can't wait to officially move in and get settled . 

I wish you all nothing but joy and bliss for the remainder of the festive season. I hope the new year is everything you hope for and more . The fact that you are here reading this is a huge blessing, celebrate it!