It’s a new year!! I’ll be adjusting to that fact for the next month, for sure. In fact, as I was going through my emails this morning, searching for an “older” email, I saw the date “2018” and thought “that’s not what I need, that’s way too recent!”. Um…no, Dacia, it’s 2019 now. Sigh. Time just passes too quickly for me to keep up these days.
Well, with the new year, comes all those wonderful desires to be better, to make better use of our time, set and achieve higher goals, and make resolutions that we’ll actually stick to. I can tell you without a doubt, if with a little shame, that I didn’t fully complete a single resolution I made at the beginning of 2018. Not to say that it was a bad year, on the contrary, it was a great year. I worked my butt off for my business, met (and exceeded!) my business goals, met and worked with some amazing clients and other small-business owners, even made the decision to start another business with two of them (We’re working together to develop and deliver hands-on photography classes for beginners, check us out over at The Camera Crush for more details!). On the personal side of it, my son Noah started preschool *sob*, my youngest, Jake, made leaps and bounds in his development that make my mama-heart swell with pride (he was a 28 week preemie, so any and ALL progress is huge in our house). We went on our first vacation together as a family, and got to witness and celebrate my brother-in-law’s marriage to his beautiful wife. It wasn’t without its struggles, of course. My daughter, Julia, went through some painful medical issues for the last half of the year that really had all of us on edge with worry, and that we still don’t have answers for. But overall, it was a wonderful year, and I’m so grateful for everything we were blessed with. And let’s be honest, we don’t need to wait until January 1st to set new goals, do we? If we want something bad enough, there’s no time like the present. But since we’re at the beginning of the year anyway, why not make the most of it, and set our hearts, minds, and aspirations to the things we want?!
So, here are some ideas I came up with for things we can do to start the year off on a good note!
1. Self-Love – something we can all improve on, I think, especially as mothers. We tend to prioritize our children’s and family’s needs above our own – and while that’s part of what makes motherhood so amazing and essential to the nourishment and progression of society, we can often lose sight of the importance of taking some time to realign, and meet our own needs. Don’t get me wrong, being a mom and spending time with my children is one of the most fulfilling and rewarding roles I play. But if I’m being 100% honest, by the time 7pm – okay, more like 5pm – rolls around, I’m ready to throw in the towel, crawl into bed with a glass of wine and binge-watch Friends or The Office. My husband’s military career means that a lot of times I’m playing the role of both parents, and the exhaustion is real, my friends. I wholeheartedly believe taking a day every now and then to go spend at Raffa Urban Sweat Spa, or an evening to go line-dancing (these are my two go-to self-love hobbies, aside from photography, of course) is necessary food for the soul, and that by being a little “selfish” once in a while, I can be a better mother, wife, and friend. So find some things that bring you peace and joy, and make some time for yourself this year!
2. On the flip side of the above-recommendation: how about spending MORE time with the ones we love? We all get caught up in the rush and chaos of work, chores, and schedules. It’s so easy to keep pushing that time with family and friends to next week, or next month to get more done. But what if this year, we put aside some quality time each week to spend with those who make our lives worth living?! I may have wanted to fall down from exhaustion afterwards, but getting outside to play some kickball with these munches, hearing them laugh, watching their hilarious expressions as they ran around the field making new memories, made me feel so grateful to be alive!
Musing number 3: Wanting what you have versus having what you want: this is one of those perspectives that I find really uplifting and inspiring. In those moments of envy, comparison, selfishness, and irrationality, thinking about – and more importantly, being grateful for – all the things and people I’m blessed to already have in my life, gives my soul the greatest sense of peace and satisfaction. Although it certainly doesn’t always come naturally, making a consistent effort to be grateful and put efforts towards that which I am already blessed with makes for a happier life.
4. Take more pictures (and get in those pictures!) This is always a resolution of mine. Which makes sense, because I’m a photographer, right? Well it could just as easily apply to anyone! You don’t have to hire a professional photographer more than once a year to document all those little, but significant, moments in our lives. But making a consistent effort to document our lives in pictures, and the lives of the people that matter most to us will allow us, and our children, to remember us as we were, and the experiences that made us -and them – who we are.
5. Last, but not least, on my list of inspirational things to do this new year – are you inspired yet?? – is to create a schedule for myself. A goal that was consistently at the back of my mind for most of 2018, I will bring to fruition this year. A schedule, rather than my willy-nilly, aimless, do-it-when-I-think-of-it current modus operandi. Because with a schedule, maybe I’ll actually be able to spend more time with the people I love, and work towards the other goals on this list!
Here’s to a happy, fulfilling 2019!
Don’t forget to register for the Glitter Mini Session Event, coming up in February, 2019! Click the image for more details, and to add your name to the wait list!
