I’m not sure how I let December pass by without a single blog post. I guess sometimes I just don’t feel it, and I’m not a blogger who churns out 2 or 3 posts a week to keep the numbers up or get more followers. I write and post stuff because I want to, not because I should.

Whilst I temporarily ducked out of blog land, here’s what I’ve been up to;

Making our house a home

This month has been about making our little home a bit more ‘us.’ Since we moved in we haven’t touched it and it looked a bit lost and in need of some TLC. Our stuff from the old house didn’t look right and reminded us of an old life, so thanks to eBay and a bit of paint, we’ve transformed the living space into something that reflects things we love. More on that soon.

Winter surfing

In between work, decorating, and catching up with family and friends in the run up to Christmas, there has of course been a few surfs. Not as many as I wanted and that’s been partly down to conditions. There’s been some fantastic swell but it’s even been too big in the Bay at times for me to get out back and I don’t want to surf the whitewater.

Sometimes, and I’m human after all, I’ve lacked motivation. But I do love winter surfing. The exhilaration of the cold water, empty line ups, the smell of bonfires, the obligatory post-surf hot chocolate, warm bath and the sense of achievement afterwards make it totally worthwhile!

Wave watching

December’s been a great opportunity to wave watch. So when a big swell popped up on the charts a couple of weeks ago, the word quickly spread that The Cribbar, Cornwall’s big wave surf spot would be firing.

I’ve seen the Cribbar once but I’d never seen anything like the size of the waves I saw on 15th December. It took my breath away and I got quite choked up emotionally (but I’m a bit sad like that!). The sound of the waves detonating off the reef sounded like a bomb going off. It was incredible and for me, a very close second to a bucket list item of mine – to see Mavericks in California firing. I became fascinated with that wave when I saw Riding Giants a few years ago. I’ve since watched every film/documentary and read every book I can get my hands on about it.

I guess deep down I’ve got a bit of a thing for big waves!

Christmas

Without family here, it’s been really quiet. But I caught up with friends, spent quality time with Ste, surfed on Christmas Day and did a coastal walk on Boxing Day. I ate a lot and haven’t done any proper exercise for months but I’ve joined the gym to help motivate me back into surf fitness. I’ve been swimming and I’m looking forward to starting Spin classes again, as well as Body Pump.

Looking ahead

Which brings me nicely onto 2017. I’ve got a lot of intentions and goals for next year. There’s a big theme around self-care, saying no (I’m way too much of a yes person!) and no longer giving my time to things that don’t work for me. Turning 40 this year made me realise how precious my time is and I no longer want to waste it on things that don’t make me happy or fulfill me.

I usually dread the new year, but I’m excited for what’s to come – more adventures, exploring, improving myself and hopefully my surfing!

Hope you all have a fantastic new year! See you on the other side 🙂 x