April 2025 wrap-up, a few days late
but I have a valid excuse
Welcome to Let’s Do This, a weekly newsletter with ideas and inspiration for taking intentional action.
I could very well have written a newsletter last weekend (and honestly, the Upholder tightening tried hard to get me) but I was in Vietnam and decided to be present. Growth for me!
We had flown into Ho Chi Minh City the previous evening and arrived at our hotel just before midnight. Most importantly, I felt the niggle in my throat on the aeroplane and immediately took my emergency Strepsil.
After a good night’s sleep and breakfast, we went walking the streets looking for a pharmacy to get some medication for Dion and more Strepsils for me. I was right as rain after a few hours and taking my Vitamin C Immuno fizzies but Dion is still recovering.
Are you more of a 24-hour illness person or a lingerer like Dion?
Moving along to the April recap…
Gold stars
We went on a 9-day overseas solo trip without kids. I feel like this needs about 7 gold stars because of all the organisation with grandparents, flights, etc.
A big gold star is I went prepared for the extreme heat and I had only a slight headache on one day (and honestly, that was due to airport/ customs stress).
Dion and I are 4/4 for monthly date nights (all of Vietnam was a date!).
Our family is 4/4 for family fun things. I hosted Good Friday this year.
My bedroom carpets were cleaned, I have beautiful new floors and some new shelving in the study and store room, thanks to insurance.
While we were 10/10 for chaos, I also got a section of our bedroom ceiling redone that was sagging (the house is nearly 50 years old and apparently they don’t do ceilings like that anymore) and two of our windows needed sealing from the outside.
I managed to work out 8 times - 2 personal training, 2 Spanish and 4 Zumba - despite being away from Joburg for 9 days in April.
I read 9 books. However, I read a massive 567-pager which in my head counts as two books :)
I booked and paid for our next holiday. This is my secret to happiness - line up one as soon as the existing one is over.
I updated my investments. Clap for me. I realised I don’t do things unless they’re on my list so in April I put it on my list and lo, it got done.
Logging my work “outfits” went strong and I have 8 photos in my folder. It is full on cold weather here now (yay!) and I’m looking forward to breaking out more of my winter clothes.
My goals % is now on 44.3% for my 25 in 2025 list.
Demerits
I decided about two weeks into April to go back on my full dosage of iron (two sachets of Quadrofer daily) and it has made a huge difference. I’m basically just staying on it forever at this point.
I did not spend a voucher this month. Well, I spent about 20% of an Exclusive Books voucher but my actual goal is to spend one every month.
Some work drama but it will hopefully get better or get resolved in another way.
What I read and loved in April ——>
This wasn’t the very best reading month but still, 9 books is nothing to sneeze at.
My favourite book was:
Unreasonable hospitality - Will Guidara
We started reading this book as a work book club book in January. I was reading as I usually do (20 minutes daily) but it proved too fast and then I couldn’t remember what the beginning of the book talked about, so I slowed right down and started to read only the chapters I needed to read.
I could talk for 20 minutes about each chapter but don’t worry, I won’t. This is a fabulous book about restaurants, the service industry and about leadership. I loved it.
Which books can you recommend to me from your April reading?
If you read a book I recommend, I cannot tell you how happy that makes me. Please come back and let me know (even if you and I are not book twins).
What I’m looking forward to in May
Reading lots of good books
Cold weather, autumn leaves and beautiful changing light
Getting the performance discussions with my team done
This post made me so jealous (lol) because :a. summer is fully HERE and we're already at 47 degrees everyday . b. Vietnam sounds so amazing and I cannot travel this year AT ALL (baby due in 2 months!)
I've been wanting to read unreasonable hospitality since I listened to Will Guidara on Adam Grant's podcast. I actually even bought the book and stashed it on my TBR ...you gave me the push to read it so may pick it up for my MAY read. My reading has been pretty slow this year because I'm just triggered so easily thanks to the pregnancy hormones (sigh) I finished reading Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's latest book Dream Count and that seems to have catapulted my reading again.
Wow, you were in Vietnam... I lived there for five years. It was a special time in my life and Ha Noi still is one of my favourite cities.