No but yes

 Assalamu aleikum wa rahmatullah dears :) here again. How are u doing?

Today was a good day, alhamdulillah. I went to the market and picked my contact lenses around midday, and later in the afternoon I went to pick a package from Vinted :) We had a really nice dinner w/ hubby. Some chicken kebab in a tomato sauce with Ghanaian attiyeke. Yum! Now the day has turned to a regular evening. My loves sleep in the bedroom, other in the bed and other in the curtains. You know already to guess. :)

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I decided to be more active this year. I want to do things and live my life instead of being anxious and staying in the house. Of course it's not my decision like that, but I try to lower the doorstep by just going before I have time to think too much. And I practice this especially in the situations when I really wanna go. Why not? So today I went to pick the Vinted package even if I had to argue with myself a bit. It's a very small thing, I know, but gently forcing myself to make these better choices give results in the long run. 

So in a nutshell: if I wanna go somewhere, I go. No ifs, no buts. And as a prize I got a really nice shirt which I will use a lot in sha Allah.

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What comes to clothing, I'm trying the "five clothes a year" challenge again this year. Last year I ended up buying 11 things new. And so many second hand finds! I renewed almost my whole wardrobe. This year I want to do better. I'll concentrate on finding things used, and also preferably will shop in my closet than any shop or flea market. I have now everything I need. And I know, it's not always about need, but I really have so nice options so I rather wear them first. I'm not sure how this is gonna go, because I already started with the Vinted item, but in sha Allah. Girl gotta have some goals, let me try for this one. :)

Oh, and just in comparison: average Finn will buy 40 new clothes every year. And it's too much! The Earth can't handle this. The 5 items is somewhat sustainable, but remember again, the most sustainable piece of clothing is the one you already have and wear. 

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Actually what I wanted to talk about, is a completely different subject. Treats! Part of the good choices I want to make, are dietary. I don't usually eat dairy because of my acne (sometimes I do eat cheese and natural yoghurt), and I try to be smarter with my sugar cravings. Also I aim to eat healthy, home cooked meals. Oh, and avoid wheat because it hardly has nutrients and is not so good for the stomach. But anyways! I am somewhere in the middle of the process with my sugar cravings, where a nice fruit doesn't help enough, and I need something more. So I've come up with few good options. There's so many healthier dessert recipes found online, but these are what work for me at the moment:

- smoothie

- talbina

- dark chocolate

- cocoa yoghurt

- snack bars

- dates

All sweet but a bit better options. Talbina can be sweetened with honey, likewise the cocoa yoghurt. But wait a minute.. what is that? Well, it's my mom's invention, maybe it's a common thing, I don't really know. But it's very easy to make and is delicious. Just mix some cocoa powder and a sweetener of your choice (I use honey or brown sugar) to a small amount of natural yoghurt. Ahh. 

And then a cup of nice tea might help too with the cravings. 

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Yeah, I don't believe in new year resolutions, but it's always a good time to start to make better choices. And instead of just denying things from yourself, think more what you gain and which are the goals you want to reach. What is the direction you want to go, and then keep your eyes on the road. I need motivation and I think I've found it, alhamdulillah. I've prayed for guidance a lot. It's my time now to take action.

But before that, I will relax a bit and maybe get bogged down in Pinterest for a while. Later then,

Aisha