First Week of 2026

Hey y'all!

It's been almost two weeks in the new year and I've see so many positive changes in my life lately from the simple goals I've been setting, which I feel have really set the tone for my life this year.

This year, I've managed to read a little every day! Between audiobooks at work and while I clean and reading a book instead of scrolling on my phone during lunch or before bed, I've noticed not only do I feel smarter and more knowledgeable, I also feel relaxed and accomplished instead of just feeling like I wasted my day. I've never been an audiobook person, but I've noticed I have an easier time with non-fiction and memoirs in that format more than things like fantasy or sci-fi.  It also reduces my need to scroll mindlessly since I don't want to be distracted during reading. 

My phone screen time has gone waaaaay down lately as well due to this. I'm ashamed to say that before the new year, I'd easily have 11 hours of screen time a day at least. WITH A FULL TIME JOB! This past week my screen time average was a little under 2 hours! Seeing that shift has motivated me to continue. 

I've began taking the time after work to try and do at least one productive thing around the house or something I've been putting off. I've decluttered my office, redid one of my bookshelves, deep cleaned my bathroom and my computer desk, and opened up packages that I've had sitting here forever. Things that I just "HAD TO HAVE" were just sitting in bags or on my couch and it's shown me a lot about my impulse buying and shopping. I've had little social media (No twitter, facebook, instagram, or tiktok) for over a year now and the amount of spending I was doing just because of being swayed by social media was insane. Not only the "trendy" stuff, but even ads for McDonalds or pizza would make me doordash a ton or feel fomo and make me leave the house to go shopping just for the dopamine. 

It turns out, I have a pretty cool home I live in, I have so much stuff to play and watch and read and listen to that I already own or already pay for and I have a cute cat and an amazing fiance who are all I really need. I've been calling my family more and actually staying present in the conversation instead of scrolling through shorts while I talk and I can feel my conversations holding more meaning.

Seeing this new chapter in my life start so well, I've really been inspired to keep this momentum going.

How has your year been going? Let's chat about it!

Always, Raineedayze

Welcome 2026

 

Happy New Year y'all!

I have always been a person who loves a new year and a time to reset. I'm a list maker to my core and when the new year rolls around, I get so excited to make a list of the new goals and visions for the new year. 

Even though I already started the year a little....delayed (I slept most of the day. Thanks chronic fatigue!) I still have high hopes for the year overall!

So with no further ado, here are my goals for the new year!

1. Read 100 books

This was probably my lowest reading year in recent history and I only read 40 books for the whole year. Obviously, reading any amount is a great accomplishment, however, I know I spent a lot of time procrastinating this year and didn't get a lot of the books read that I planned on reading. So this year, I plan to aim for 100 books and prioritize my library and currently owned books! I'll discuss more about this in an upcoming post ;) but overall, I think I can do it!

2. Plan my wedding!

One of the biggest priorities this year will be planning my wedding. Our tentative plans are to get married in early January 2027 so this year will be our time to plan like crazy. I've obviously never planned a wedding and this is a very daunting task but I'm just reminding myself that no matter what happens, at the end of the day, I get to marry my best friend! But expect a lot of wedding planning updates this year.

3. Get fitter

I know, I know. It's the ever evasive resolution, but this past year has really definitely shown me I need to get fitter and in better shape. Between the daunting task of clothes shopping, general discomfort in public spaces, and my body developing new fun aches and pains, I know that once I prioritize my body, I will be happier. I want to take care of myself to feel more comfortable, not only because of physical changes, but because I shouldn't feel this old this early in my life. 

4. Increase my fluency in Spanish and Tagalog

Ever since I moved, I've been able to really immerse myself in both my Mexican and Filipino heritage due to having more opportunities to surround myself in both cultures. I've always had a basic knowledge of Spanish, grew up in a Spanglish household with family members who only spoke Spanish, but over that last year, my Spanish has grown significantly.  I want to continue that this year and improve both my Spanish and Tagalog, which is rudimentary at best.

5. Get out of my comfort zone

One of the biggest things I've struggled with my entire life has been my anxiety and this past year I pushed myself to leave a job I was very comfortable at for a job that was more beneficial financially and pushed me out of my comfort zone and after seeing how much that has helped me, I wanted to continue that momentum and push myself to do things that help me become more independent and more of the person that I want to be. Whether it's driving more, saying yes to more opportunities, or doing things that I tend to overthink, I want to push myself.

6. Stop Doom-Procrastinating

I know that a lot of this year, I spent a lot of my time procrastinating. I would often spend my free time wanting to read a book or play a game or watch a show and spending all my time trying to decide what to do instead of actually doing anything. So this year, I'm going to try to make myself just DO IT. I want to stop overthinking "what should I do" and just actually do something. There's so many things I want to read, games I want to play, stories I want to write, movies I want to watch, and the constant overthinking and indecisiveness robs me of my little free time and makes any time off seem like not enough.

7. Romanticize my life

One thing I love is watching people who find beauty in simplicity. In a calm morning, a cup of coffee, and a simple meal. I want to spend more time romanticizing the little things, the simple acts of having a morning routine, of cleaning my space, and making my home a happy place to be. In that same vein...

8. Reducing unproductive screen time

Since deleting Instagram, Tiktok, Twitter, and Facebook, you would think that my screen time would go waaaay down. But I replaced that with youtube shorts, reddit posts, and just general mind numbing on my phone. So i want to spend more time living in the simple silence. Obviously, I love to read a lot on my phone or iPad so I'm not counting that as screen time or counting the games or movies/television that I have on my never ending backlog, but more of the just....useless nonsense that I use to fill the silence, especially during moments where I can just....be.

9. CREATE MORE

One of the biggest things I want to do this year is create. Whether it's blog posts, short stories, journal entries, videos, vlogs, drawings, paintings, crafts...I just want to create. I want to make things from my own brain, from my own hands, and do something. I have so many crafts that are undone, hobbies I want to try, drawing supplies I never use...and I want to spend this year using them!

10. Save money

Of course, with the wedding coming up, I will be having to be a lot tighter with my money, but I also want to be more conscious with my spending (especially as I see the amount of stuff I have to put in storage just because it's taking up so much space) and use my money for more productive things like a new running car or an actual home, where I don't have to use a mini washing machine that sits in my bathtub.

What are some of your goals for the new year? I'd love to hear them!

Always, Raineedayze