Moments...

Here we are a few days into the new year and every time I see a post related to "new year, new me", I literally want to vomit.  Don't get me wrong, I've been guilty of this saying myself.  I've made resolutions each year for as long as I can remember because it's just "what we do" for the new year.  Why are we making resolutions when we should be making goals instead?  Let's compare 'resolution' and 'goal' for a minute.

• resolution n. 1. a firm decision to do or not do something
• goal n. 2. the object of a person's ambition or effort; an aim or desired result

I want to point out that resolutions involve "firm" decisions, but let's face it, life happens on a daily basis.  Are you really going to let these firm decisions get in the way of actually living and being present?  Goals on the other hand allow you to be ambitious and aim towards a result. You may fall down, but goals allow you to get back up.

Why are we making resolutions that we will break in about a month when the Girl Scout cookies come out?  I mean many people make resolutions to lose weight or start a new diet year after year.  Why do you think we see more diet and exercise commercials immediately following Christmas?

Why do we do this to ourselves?  Why do we set ourselves up for eventually failing to stick to such a "firm decision", rather than aiming to achieve results?

A couple of years ago, my husband and I decided to stop making resolutions and to make goals instead.  We create goals to have a clear vision of where we want to be.  We decided that we would strive to become better versions of ourselves on a daily basis.  Why do we continue to say "new year, new me" and set resolutions year after year?  Honestly, I don't want to be someone new.  I just want to be a better version of myself than I was today and yesterday.  I make mistakes. I'm hard on myself. I fail, but I always do my best to try again.



Don't get me wrong, some of our goals are extremely small.  One year we made a goal that we would make the bed every day.  Do you really think that we make the bed every day? No way, but our goal allowed us to aim high and now that goal has become a habit.  Our mantra is "the last one out of the bed has to make it".

This year, we set a couple of goals as well.  Please don't laugh when you read these.  I am being completely serious.

1.  Wash, dry, fold, AND put away the laundry.

I recently came across this meme and texted it directly to my husband.



Wow, was that a slap in the face, but really funny.  I honestly thought we were the only people who struggled to put our clean laundry away in a timely manner.  I guess I was wrong.  That's the thing about social media, you never see the pile of laundry not put away, the dirty dishes in the sink, the pile of shoes at the back door, the pile of random receipts/keys/wallet etc. on the corner of the counter that your husband continuously adds to, the unmade bed, that pile of papers under the edge of the bed that your husband said he sorted, etc.  Okay, so maybe these are just the things that my husband tries to not so secretly do that drive me crazy.  Sorry, Dustyn, you know how I feel about clutter.

What we really see are these perfect lives rather than authenticity.  I'm so guilty of it myself, which leads me to my next goal.

2. Be real.

I can't do it all.  I can't be perfect and that's okay.  I need to be real and stop hiding things that aren't "picture perfect" and acknowledge my shortcomings.  I want to focus on being as real and authentic as possible.

3. Prep more meals and cook at home.

We are so guilty of just grabbing things on the go with our busy schedules.  I want to be more intentional about meal prepping and cooking at home so we can make healthier choices.

4. 20 unread emails in 2020

If there's one thing I STRUGGLE with at work; it's keeping up with my emails.  My goal is to have 20 or less unread emails in my inbox during 2020.

5. Focus on self-love

I recently read a tweet on Twitter from one of my teachers about how it doesn't make sense to say things to or about yourself that you couldn't imagine saying to or about someone you love.  This stopped me in my tracks and it is so true.  The things I say to/about myself are things I would never say to or about the people I love.  I have to focus on loving myself for who I am and focus on positive affirmations.

Over time, this list will continue to grow.  Our goals will evolve and change as we do, but we have to start somewhere.  I don't want to be a "new me".  I just want to be a better version of myself.  What goals are you making for yourself in 2020?  If we all make goals to improve ourselves, imagine what a difference we can make in this world.  Remember, you won't meet all of your goals in 2020 and that's okay.  A new year isn't an expiration date.  It's a time to refocus.  I wish you nothing but the best as you work to set and meet your goals!  Happy 2020!

Forever Yung,
Kyra

Have you ever made a decision that you later regret?  I think we have all been there.  At the end of the school year, I made the decision that I'm now wishing I could take back.  In all reality, I could take the decision back, but I'm also the type of person that keeps my word.  Maybe I shouldn't have vocalized my thoughts.  Honestly, it's not really that big of a deal, it's just time consuming.  Every year that I have taught, I have always had bright colors as my classroom theme.  At the end of the school year, I decided that I have had enough of that theme and I am ready for something new.  I'm currently in the process of changing everything into all things farmhouse, shiplap, succulents, cacti, chalkboard, galvanized metal, etc.--basically all things Fixer Upper and Joanna Gaines.

Holy shiplap, I've lost my mind!  There are so many things I need to buy and change, but I'm determined to make it happen.  I've created some farmhouse decorations that I wanted to share with others on TeachersPayTeachers.  Below are some of the things I have created and added to my store.






I plan to either paint my current book bins or buy new book bins to resemble galvanized metal.  I also plan on buying shiplap bulletin board paper and eventually creating farmhouse labels for everything in my classroom.  I always feel like once my classroom is decorated, I can focus on all of the things that truly impact my kids.

Are you changing things up this year?  What is your current classroom theme?  If you're planning to change things in any way, stick with it and make sure that at the end of the day that you focus on what's most important--students!

Forever Yung,
Kyra

Summer,  noun
1.  the season between spring and autumn, in the Northern Hemisphere from the summer solstice to the autumnal equinox, and in the Southern Hemisphere from the winter solstice to the vernal equinox
3.  the period of hot, usually sunny weather  (according to Dictionary.com)

Summer, noun
1.  the season to recharge and self-reflect on the past year of teaching and plan ways in which you can enhance your classroom experiences to best meet the needs of your students
2.  the most well-known season when teachers actually "Netflix and chill"
3.  the time of year teachers focus on and finish reading that book he or she started back in October
4.  the season where teachers catch up on their vitamin D levels (if catching up is even a real thing)
5. the time of year when teachers don't feel guilty for taking an hour each day to focus on themselves (according to Kyra Yung, 2018)

We all have our own interpretations and perceptions of the things around us.  How would you define summer?

Oh, sweet summertime, how I love you.  Summer has always been one of my favorite seasons.  Summer is truly my time to recharge, self-reflect, make new goals, and, lately, focus more on myself.  I've always been one who tries to serve others and put others first, but this summer has been a little different.  I've actually taken time to focus on myself.  Not that I'm not focusing on others. I've just made time for myself and figuring out what I need to be the best person I can be for others.  I've taken time to read books, soak up the sun, focus on personal and professional goals, relax, catch up on Netflix shows, listen to and be inspired by new podcasts, and spend as much time with family as possible.  I even closed my Etsy shop for the entire month of June in order to completely recharge.

While my Etsy shop was closed, I reflected on my shop and truly focused on my vision for my shop.  I decided to change my shop name from Click Clip Create, which was inspired by my TeachersPayTeachers store, to The Yung Life Designs.  The Yung Life Designs is more fitting for my store and it also matches my blog.  Having two different names for my shop and blog was a lot like having too many passwords.  If I have too many passwords, I'll never remember all of them.  The Yung Life Designs really revolves around the people in my life and things I'm inspired to create because of them.  I mean, I started my shop with baby items because my nephew made me an aunt for the first time around the time I opened my shop.  I truly felt as if my shop name should reflect that.



Last week, I focused on creating an inspiration board for my shop, with all of the items and designs I would like to include.  My inspiration board really helped me focus on where I want my shop to go next.  This may or may not be a good subject with my husband, who is currently organizing some of his tools in our garage so he can start building some new signs.  😆😬 Today I focused on creating 10 new t-shirt designs and they are listed and ready for purchase.  Below are the new designs!  I hope you love them!












Summertime has really helped me focus on myself and all of my goals.  How others seem to have their life put together all year long and have that great work-life balance is amazing to me.  I'm trying my best, but there are times we all have to take things one day at a time.  No one has a perfect life, but little by little, we try to make The Yung Life the best it can be and summer helps me with that so much.  Thank you, summer!  I'm still not the best at blogging on a consistent basis, but I'm working on this as well.  What are you trying to work on?  What goals are you setting for yourself?  Which goals have you achieved?  If you haven't thought about this, take the time to reflect right now.

Forever Yung,
Kyra

One of my favorite things to do at the end of the year is to give my students an end of the year gift.  A few years ago, I stumbled across Lessons with Laughter's blog post about end of the year gifts.  I absolutely loved her idea about creating a survival kit.  Thanks, Molly! 😊

This year, I wanted to make sure I made a personalized gift for my students.  I bought sand buckets at Dollar Tree for $1/bucket, but I also saw some that were just as affordable at Wal-Mart and Target.  I then used my Cricut to cut student names out of vinyl and I adhered them to the buckets.


 I created a Survival Kit for Life card and bought all of the necessary supplies.  Included in my survival kit is a summer packet, which includes a list of activities parents can do with their kids over the summer, as well as extra practice pages.   I also included a DVD of my end of the year video, which I created using pictures of my students from throughout the year.  I've only cried twice watching it--I'm going to miss this group of kids so much!

Summer Packet and Survival Kit for Life