January

January 2, 2022December 31, 2021 Dawn - The Sparkle Diaries.4 Comments

Some people find January and the start of the year very flat and depressing. After all the hustle and bustle of the Christmas and New Year season, the glitz and the glamour, the excitement and the sparkle, I suppose January can feel quite uninspiring. Winter weather, darker nights and mornings, a long time to wait for payday, January can be a long, dark month.

I don’t know why and taking the above into consideration, I have always loved January. The evenings are starting to get brighter with the promise of Spring on the way. I love it especially if we get those cold, clear, frosty days, it’s almost like a cleansing of the new year ready for the activities ahead to take place.

I suppose I am ever the optimist. Always trying to see the positives, look for the bright side of situations, seeing the sparkle however dim it may be in some situations. I must be a pain in the ass to those who see January as a dark place. I hope though that by reaching out to those who are struggling, listening to their story and giving a loving word, we can let a little of the brightness of the new year through and help them to see a path forwards.

January you are awesome, the gateway to a new year, fresh and brighter days ahead.

With love and sparkles xxx

Life Sparkles

New Year 2022

January 1, 2022December 31, 2021 Dawn - The Sparkle Diaries.Leave a comment

Here we are another new year beckons. Has 2021 gone by in a flash for you? Did you set resolutions last year and did you keep to them? Did you set goals or make plans and did you carry them out or was it a case that as the year progressed you had ideas and acted on them? Sometimes we put a lot of pressure on ourselves, especially at new year, to make plans, set goals and follow dreams whether they be diet and fitness (which yes, I’ll be on that one yet again) or career changes, life changes…the list goes on.

I was watching a video recently about not setting resolutions but choosing a word to live by for the year ahead. The man in the video had chosen the word ‘Growth’ as his word for 2021 and tried to ensure that the actions he took throughout the year led to growth within his life in someway. I thought this was a good idea, rather than setting resolutions that I wouldn’t keep to, I would choose a word for 2022. However, I can settle on one word for the year ahead, I have too many in my mind and cannot decide on just one.

I am proud of myself for pushing ahead and recording the four songs I have written. I feel this year has been a year of preparation and hard work ready for next year and launching the music career properly. I know I have a lot of hard work ahead in order to make things happen, I’m ready. I feel there is good energy around for 2022, I think that it is really going to sparkle for everyone. As you get older you appreciate each day and take less for granted. In 2022 I want to celebrate each day, whether I’m working, relaxing, planning or singing. Each day is a new day to live and focus on our health, wellbeing, inner peace and happiness. We really do need to share our inner sparkle.

Wishing you all the most wonderfully Happy New Year, I hope 2022 brings you all you could wish for.

With love and sparkles xxx

Life Sparkles

2021 A New Chapter

December 31, 2020December 30, 2020 Dawn - The Sparkle Diaries.6 Comments

Well here we are once again at the end of another year and what a year it has been. Who could have imagined this time last year that we were about to enter a global pandemic and all the changes that has made to our lives. Is there anyone on earth untouched in some way by Covid-19? Absolutely everything changed. All the things we did on a daily basis and took for granted were stopped. It was a shock to our system, our very being and yet here we are, on the brink of another new year. The year has sped by. For all the restrictions, lockdowns and changes, we find ourselves with Christmas over and the New Year just about to start.

We start the year full of hope. We have vaccines rolling out and we live in the anticipation that by Summer 2021 things will have returned to more of what we used to call normal life. The scientists and medics have worked so hard to discover and test the vaccines. Our front line workers have experienced a year like no other and sadly, some of us have lost family or friends to the virus. But we still have hope. We have made the best of what we have had this year. We have had technology to help us keep in contact with family and friends, to continue working, to shop, to workout and to binge watch TV shows. We have come together to support each other, help each other, think of each other and be more community minded.

2020 has been a period of reset for me. In an earlier blog post I wrote that I found lockdown peaceful, healing and therapeutic and I still feel that way. I have appreciated everything a lot more, what I had, what I lost and what I have gained. Lockdown and restrictions have given me a different life and a different outlook on life. I am at peace and comfortable with myself and what I want to do. During lockdown I did new things; gardening, singing into the phone and posting the videos online, chatting away on Instagram and it has been so lovely to receive positive feedback for sharing the sparkles.

I have always loved the month of January. I know some people find it a little bleak after all the festivities of December. I have always found it cleansing, exciting and the new broom of the year. Sweeping away the old year to make room for the new. I wish you all a very happy New Year full of happiness, good health and return to what we used to deem “Normal Life”.

With love and sparkles xxx

Life Sparkles

Happy New Year 2018

January 6, 2018 Dawn - The Sparkle Diaries.Leave a comment

I hope that you all enjoyed Christmas time immensely. Yes it is busier than busy, we are stressed out shopping, wrapping gifts, visiting friends and family or having them visit us, school plays, pantomime’s, cooking…the list goes on.

Ours was a quiet Christmas. Family came for the usual “Fizz and Nibbles” on Christmas Day which is a busy, funny, crazy few hours when our usually quiet house comes to life and it is wonderful. Mom and Dad loved having the family around, catching up, singing songs and everyone talking at once. Mom coped very well with it all, took it in her stride. From 4 pm onwards it was back to us three, I cooked dinner and we settled down to watch the Christmas Irish Music shows.

Over the week we’ve had some visitors, my b/f made it over for the New Year and things were slow and steady. Two all nighters which isn’t bad going at all. We didn’t get to open our gifts until New Years Eve, Mom just wasn’t interested at all which both surprised me and made me feel so sad. Mom always so enjoyed opening the gifts in the past. One gift I bought them was two calendars; one from Knock Shrine and one Nathan Carter. Well, Mom took a lot of interest in the Nathan Carter calendar which was very funny, she just wouldn’t put it down. He is one of our favourite singers, it was so sweet to watch her with her calendar.

I’m quite happy to stay in on New Years Eve, I’m not too bothered about staying up until midnight although we did this year as my b/f was with us. I do love January. Winter in all its glory. The evenings start to get a little lighter as each week passes. The promise of the year ahead, opportunities, challenges, plans, dreams…it’s as if we feel we can make anything happen if we just put our mind to it now we are in the New Year…and we can.

I wish you a fabulously happy 2018, full of health, love, peace and sparkles galore.

Picture via Pinterest

I bet you can’t guess what one of my gifts was? Oh yes he was in the bad books!

He did redeem himself somewhat when I opened this…I love Nashville.

My cousin and I being silly on Snapchat. Laughing is such a good feeling.

I was after some flat ballerina pumps and ended up with these. Not practical at all, not sure I can walk in them but I couldn’t resist the sparkle. Oh well, they were extremely reasonably priced and sometimes you just have to let your inner sparkle take charge.

Happy New Year Everyone 🌟

Life Sparkles

New Year – Another Fresh Start

January 1, 2016 Dawn - The Sparkle Diaries.Leave a comment

Happy New Year and welcome to 2016!! How fast the years roll by these days. 2015 appears to have gone by in a flash. Did you keep your resolutions? You remember those? The promises we made to ourselves of all the things we were going to do for the new year. Nope? Me neither. I don’t remember any specific resolutions although I’m sure I made them, I always do.

I have heard lots of folk say “you don’t need to wait until New Years Eve to make resolutions, you can start over any day”. I agree with that, we can decide to swap and change our goals at anytime but I think there is something different about making our fresh starts at the beginning of a fresh new year. January 1st holds such promise of the year to come. Our hopes and dreams and also our worries and concerns. We for the most part think positive and decide what it is that we want to do, to change, to improve, to make happen.

Once again I will start a healthy eating plan and I have already shopped, loaded my fridge with fresh fruit and vegetables and ordered a Nutri Ninja which I am now impatiently awaiting delivery of. I know of numerous people with Nutri Bullets and Nutri Ninja’s who all love what they can do and some of these people have kept to their healthy eating plan all year!!! What an achievement 👏👏👏. My difficulty will be suddenly avoiding the chocolates, biscuits, cakes and goodies still in the house from Christmas. No point in easing myself out of them…time to turn cold turkey.

Picture via Pinterest

My next new plan is to set aside some time each week for some self care. I totally understand how and why folk say “you can’t look after another person well if you haven’t taken care of yourself”. I have two people to look after and I hope that my swap to healthier eating will not only benefit me, but them also. I need to feel better, more energy, less pains and aches…Nutri Ninja I’m expecting serious results.

As you know I commenced vocal coaching last June, took a long break from August due to caring responsibilities and then returned to it a few weeks ago. I have no hesitations or issues getting around to my singing homework and I hope that this year, even if it takes until December, that I will get the confidence to sing on stage, maybe even do a whole gig!!!

Picture via Pinterest

Although I enjoy my Open University course, there is so much reading and research now I’m at level three, I’m struggling to find time. Today I am five weeks behind with twenty three days to go before my next assignment is due in. Yes, I need to knuckle down. I only have one more module to study after this one so time must be found to get up to date and stay there. I can always find something more sparkle igniting to do instead of this reading, it is usually singing.

So, there are my resolutions for the year. Have you made any this year? Are they similar to mine? Whether you have or not, I’d like to wish you all a very Happy New Year, may all your dreams come true.

Picture via Pinterest