The 2026 Retro Reflection
Talk about a major blast from the past! I was going through my blog archives and stumbled across this post from April 2020. It is a literal time capsule of the exact moment the world flipped upside down and we entered the very first lockdown.
Jake and I had our Copenhagen trip completely cancelled, we were isolating in separate houses, and I was frantically trying to fill my days with baking, Disney Plus, and a desperate desire to deep clean my carpet just to have something to do!
Looking back from 2026, it’s so funny (and a little comforting) to see what my priorities were during such a bizarre month. I’ve left my original post completely untouched below. So, reminisce with me, and see what my lock-down goals looked like!
My Original April 2020 To-Do List
Well, it’s fair to say that my plans for April have changed drastically compared to the start of the year! Jake and I were supposed to be jetting off to Copenhagen next week, but instead, we’re self isolating separately, which I’m finding quite hard.
To help myself get through it, I’m trying my best to keep busy. That’s exactly why I thought I would sit down and share another monthly to-do list, especially since my last check-in was all the way back in October.
This is my official April To-Do List for life in isolation:
Start Exercising Regularly (The Right Way!)
In March, I set myself a personal challenge to reach 10k steps a day for a full week. While that might not sound like much to some, considering my usual weekly average is a lot lower than that, it took a lot of work.
I used the treadmill every single day but probably pushed myself a little too hard. I went from 0 to 100 way too fast. In the end, I actually ended up being quite ill on the Sunday and couldn’t finish the challenge anyway. Now I realise that I need to slow down and build up my stamina gradually, which is exactly what I plan on doing this month.
Bake More Often
I absolutely love baking, and because I want to get better at it, that means a lot more practice. At least now I actually have the time for it!
Cookies are probably my absolute favourite thing to bake. I think I might try to play around with my standard recipe this month, experiment with new ingredients, and branch out into trying a few brand new bakes too.
Try Making More Savoury Dishes
Back in 2019, I realised that I love cooking just as much as I love baking. I started off with much simpler dishes, but there’s just something so incredibly satisfying about cooking a meal completely from scratch.
Sometimes it can be hard to find the time during a normal routine because the prep and cooking times can be long, especially when you factor in the mountain of washing up afterwards. I’ve recently made my own homemade Carbonara sauce from scratch, and I’m hoping to try making more recipes like that.
Take Advantage of the Time & Watch More Films
I’ve never really been a big film watcher, but in my 24 Things to Do Before 24 post, one of my main goals was to finally watch more movies.
What better time to get this goal ticked off the list than during isolation? I’m already happily making my way through the brand new Disney Plus launch, but if anyone has any good Netflix recommendations, I would love to hear them in the comments, as I have absolutely no idea where to start.
Deep Clean and Declutter My Room
I’m talking a total, intensive deep clean here. I seriously need to have a proper sort through of everything I own and definitely declutter a few things, not that the bags can go very far at the minute. This is probably the least exciting thing on my list, but desperate times call for desperate measures. I also desperately need to clean my carpet, so I’m putting it in writing here to force myself to actually do it.
Let’s Chat in the Comments!
What were your ultimate lockdown hobbies back in April 2020? Did you attempt to bake banana bread, or did you spend your time deep cleaning the house out of pure boredom like me?
Thank you for reading, and stay safe!
I want to organized some of my skin care and over all clean my beauty space 🙂 Lets see how that goes 🙂
https://villemo20.blogspot.com/
I hope you’re able to get it all done! Good luck xx
I’m on doctors orders to rest so I’ve no real plans for April but I’lll bake for my Hubby’s birthday mid-month and try to make his birthday as special as it can be! x
Sending you lots of love and I’m sure you’ll make his birthday special xx
It’s a shame you don’t have the trip and you’re self isolating alone but looks like you have some things to do to keep yourself busy 🙂
Hope that you had a lovely weekend 🙂 We all stayed home and stayed safe of course.
Thank you, yeah it was hard at first, but I’ve come around a lot more now. Thank you, and you too xx
Totally with you on the starting to exercise regularly again- i’ve been so lazy recently!
Danielle’s Beauty Blog
I hope you’re able to get back into it too xx
100% going to be watching all the films – Disney + is helping me there. I do feel you when you set exercise goals, it’s so easy to burn yourself out. Taking is slow and bit by bit has helped me out massively. Especially as it was something I got into a routine doing, it’ll slowly come back and that’s when you can push yourself that bit more. Best of luck lovely xx
Amber | http://www.amberatlanta.blogspot.co.uk
There are so many great ones on Disney Plus! Yeah, taking it slow is definitely the way forward and I’m glad it has worked for you. Thank you xx
I’m so in the mood to sit down and watch a movie or TV series right now! I literally haven’t watched anything in weeks compared to everyone else 😂 xx
Lauren
I hope you’re able to get some stuff watched!xx
I’m going to try and exercise more too! I’m challenging myself to a 30 day yoga challenge on YouTube!
Chloe X
There are so many amazing workouts on YouTube! Good luck xx
Oh how my monthly to-do lists have changed too haha! I seriously need to go through my makeup and have a good deep clean of my brushes! x
Megan Elizabeth
They’re so different aren’t they haha! Good luck, that’s definitely one of the worst tasks xx
Always love your monthly to-do lists! I’m definitely making my way through Disney+ at the moment haha xx
Tiffany x http://www.foodandotherloves.co.uk
Thank you, I’m glad you enjoy them! Haha, me too! There is so much good stuff on there xx
Cleaning the carpet well doesn’t that sound like a tedious task haha!!
I’m not looking forward to it at all haha!xx
My April to do list has changed so much too! I’m currently cooking so much more, and savory dishes are my go to. Good luck with your April goals girl xx
So sorry to hear that you have had to cancel your trip and are isolation separately from Jake, I really empathise with that as I’m not isolation with my partner and my little one is missing his dad a lot! Hopefully with this is over it will make the time spent together even more special and you can both take a long trip together.
My list changed drastically as well Haha, trying to find things to keep busy in the house has been a bit of a nightmare. Good luck with your list hun xx
Jordanne || Thelifeofaglasgowgirl.co.uk