I love learning new things. If I am excited about it, then I am all over this new learning curve. 

One thing would be my blog. I was so excited when it started getting followers that I took it upon myself to learn how to really make posts work – how to use (most) of the buttons in the toolbar, add media, link to other people’s blogs properly. I was all over that like white on rice. I still have some things to learn, but I love learning them.

I also love learning how to do more creative things with my nails. I love posting the pictures on Instagram and here on the blog, and getting feedback. My kidlets are loving the new designs every few weeks and I have already been asked to do nails on a Saturday (just no gel polish as per mama’s request). I’m going to see if I can get a gem on and off without using the super harsh chemicals that I use for the gel polish. They would love that!

But one thing that has not come easily for me is French. I’ve been at it now since the start of November and it’s slow going. Emphasis on the slow! I find that I have to do practice rounds on the website for like at least a week just to get into the groove of a few new words, and then when I have an old word pop up in the practice lessons I almost always have forgotten it. Trying to do the listening parts, il and ils (or elle and elles) always sound the exact same. Even if the speaker says “Il mange” or “ils mangent” they literally sound the exact same. I’ve even tried the slow audio version and you can’t tell if its singular or plural. Then, of course, there is the issue of masculine vs. feminine. I basically count it as a win if I can spell the word correctly but get the gender wrong. (Isn’t gender just a social construct anyway and we shouldn’t impose it on things without their consent?). I’m struggling with my French lessons and trying to keep my positivity up with them.

I just have to remember what I told 2nd last night when they said: “I’m just too stupid to do this”. That while we may struggle (we both have a deep seeded dislike of math), we just need to learn how we learn to make ourselves better, learn little tricks to make it easier for us. And to let ourselves make mistakes. If that advice can work for 2nd, then it can work for me!

What has been something you have struggled to learn? Let me know folks!

January 19 Apply yourself Describe your last attempt to learn something that did not come easily to you.