And so I'm back....

Ok, so I've been away a lot longer than I first thought.......in fact, it's been almost 2.5 years.  The absence has not been intentional, but there have been a few things happening these last few years that have meant keeping a blog has been a little difficult.  I have missed it though and figured that the start of a new year is a good time to start blogging again.  Here's the plan, I'll blog once a week, always posting on a Sunday, and carry on where I left off and writing about the changes I'm making and why I'm making them.  Trying not to be too boring in the process.

So, what have I learnt in these last 2.5 years:

• Just how much waste I produce.  Even though I am not a large buyer of anything and recycle everything I can there is still a large amount of waste that I produced.  There appears to be packaging on almost everything and while carrying recycling to the recycling points (now on my street, thank you Council) was good exercise I'd rather reduce what I produced even to the point of having to recycle less.  It has also given me a clear idea of where I need to work - fizzy drinks anyone?
  
• How much stuff I actually own.  Having moved 3 times in the last 2.5 years it is very clear to me how much stuff I actually have.  There's nothing like having to box up and carry items up stairs to make you realise that you don't really need it all.  There are some things that I can't get rid of (some furniture that have been in the family for years and books that used to be my father's) but there are a number of items that I keep out of choice.  At the moment most of these are boxed away in storage, but the plan is to not need storage at all in the future.  One very obvious, but completely unnecessary, group of items is the back ups of beauty products I seem to have carted with me every where.  I have been working on these, but there are still a few to get through.  Less will certainly be a lot more!
  
  
• Make up takes a ridiculously long time to use up.  I'm not entirely sure how or why I ended up with so much make up, I don't even wear it every day.  I tend to only wear it if I'm going to work or going on a nigh out, but this is something I'll need to change to get through it all and reduce it to a size more suited to my use.  It's taken me a very long time to use what I have and there is the same again to be used up.
  
  
  
• Natural products work just as well as others.  As I've been changing my beauty products to more natural, simple products I've seen no negative impact on my skin.  In fact, there have been some positive results.  The slight problem I've been having with adult acne has now gone (partly produced through coming off the pill), by skin is less irritated and I've had less problems with eczema, and the slight discolouration and scarring I have on my face from getting older and getting spots with dry skin has now reduced greatly.  I'm still trying products out and will write about them in the future.

All this has helped me decided on the goals I want for 2016.