Resolutioning

Dear Em,
It's not every year that I make New Year's resolutions, but this year I started with dreams in my heart that I wanted to focus on throughout the year & beyond. When I thought about things, I kept coming back to three areas of my life that I wanted to make more of a focal point.

- Finding the Good: I felt like I ended last year in a little bit of a judgmental & complainy place. The judgements weren't doing anything positive in my life. They certainly weren't making me happy. Instead, they were just pulling down me & the people around me. I would like to spend more time actively looking for, focusing on, & celebrating the good that surrounds us every day.

- Health: I need to be better to my body. It's the only body I've got, & last year I didn't feel like I had done my best to take care of it. Rather than setting a weight goal, I would like to be more conscious of what I'm filling my body with (we've already begun with a few healthy & yummy recipes that I'll share later). I would also like to increase how active I am. I'm hoping to make room in my life for more walks & hikes & biking adventures & workouts too.

- Adventure: I am so excited about our travel plans for this year! We are taking a couple trips that have been bucket list items/dream vacations for me for a long time. While I am so excited about the adventures that lay ahead for us on those trips, I want to find family adventures at home too. I want to fill this year with sledding & beaches & hiking trails & zoos & day trips & exploration in the areas around us. I want to this year to be about trying new things & new foods & maybe sometimes adventuring outside of my comfort zone.

I asked you if you wanted to make any resolutions this year. You asked me what a resolution was, & I explained to you that a new year is a new chance to learn & do new things. This sounded really fun to you, & you dove right into resolution making. Here's what you came up with:

- "I want to start writing more words...on my own." This made my heart so happy. I'm glad that you enjoy writing, & I love that you've given yourself that goal.

- "I want to start brushing my hair...on my own." Ha! Your hair is so long right now, & brushing it out can really be the bane of both of our mornings. I'm not going to lie. I would love it if you brushed your own hair too.

At this point, we talked about how resolutions don't have to be things that we do "on our own." They can also be things we want to do with our family & friends too. You smiled at that one as you announced your last resolution.

- "I want to do more hiking." I'm so excited about this one. Not only does it fit in with my health & adventure resolutions, it will also involve more fun family time.

I'm listing these resolutions on the blog, because I plan to refer back to them throughout the year & see how we're doing. Not to toot our own horns, but I think we're both off to a great start...except when it cones to the hair brushing.

I love you so,
Mommy