I've made a decision on which project to focus on for the remainder of 2024. I was trying to decide whether to work on creating an online course related to private tutoring I do on the side (focused on academic writing skills for anyone interested), OR whether I focus on drafting a fictional novel (which has been in the works for a long time). Jenny asked me this helpful question in the comments - which project would you be most disappointed not to complete on January 1? And the answer is... the online course!
I am honestly excited about creating this content, and it has the potential to be a significant second source of income (which is an important factor at this stage of life we are in). It's a creative project and I'm learning a lot about different platforms, design elements, of course creating the content, and then there will be the marketing etc. So I'll focus on that, aim to launch it by February next year (the academic year starts in Australia late Feb/early March), and then I can turn to my novel in 2025.
In other news...
E tried out Scouts for the first time during the week, and she loved it! We've been looking for an extra-curricular activity for her, but E is a FREE spirit so it needed to be the right fit (for example, she loves to dance but ballet wouldn't have been a good choice). However, she's pretty fearless, loves being outdoors, loves learning new skills, and gets along well with both genders, so we thought we would try Scouts. I've had no background in the Scouting movement, so had no idea what to expect, but I really liked it. The local Scout Den is in a beautiful bush campground location, the leaders are friendly, it is a good sized group (maybe a dozen in the "Joey Scouts" who are aged 5-8, more in the Cub Scouts the next age up). They do all kinds of activities, both learning and active. Regular meetings are an hour on a weeknight, which seems do-able, but there are a number of weekend activities/excursions/camps throughout the year which will also add some extra fun (but not be every weekend which I appreciate too). E really enjoyed it, so we have signed her up.
I've walked every day this week as part of the Cool Bloggers Walking Club. Last weekend the kids and I had a wonderful outing to the beach, exploring rock pools, paddling in the shallows, having a picnic in the shade by a little playground. Even better the beach and playground were not busy at all, so we enjoyed feeling like we had everything to ourselves. Then on Sunday morning I did an early morning walk in the neighbourhood before Al left for work, and this week at work I’ve walked around the lake every day. And I’ve felt so good as a result!
Rock pool exploring
Picnic in the shade
Lake walks at work
And that’s a wrap! Happy Friday everyone.
[First time commenter, reader for some time via Optimistic Musings, I think]
My daughter also joined the scouts (at 7 yrs old in the 5-7yrs group). While she did not like the group with the younger kids that much, she now moved to the older ones (7-11yrs) and enjoys it (with the occasional day lacking motivation).
The kids are also in an outdoor after care once a week: always outside, they make no use of a building at all only with dangerous weather. No matter the weather, they always come back happy.
Sabine
WELL done on deciding on the online course! A second source of income is great and you can do so many great things with it! Invests it, update the house, travel (that's what I would do haha). Share with us when it's ready so we can share with our networks- I have high school students who may be interested as they go off to college soon.
Ooh, glad you made a decision! Your reasoning is solid. And I'm glad E is doing Scouts! It sounds like a great fit.
Scouts sounds so wonderful! That is an activity I have considered for Paul. But right now we are kind of at our max for activity so I need to wait for things to quite down a bit to consider trying it out. I didn’t do scouts as that wasn’t an option where I lived but I think it would be something he’d enjoy!
I bet it feels good to make a decision about which project to pursue!