Storytime: Mom Knows Best

I’ll be completely honest right now, I don’t really know even how to start this post off. I think I’ve thought about writing it for so long now and I’ve actually written and re written it several times. I’m still not sure how this is going to go, but I really want to share this. Being a mom can be scary at times and even the most confident, will stumble at a time or two.

I know that this can lead to a sensitive topic for some, so I want to quickly say that weight gain is a serious thing and I know that. It can be a sign of a lot of potential problems and I took every bit of what we were being told (as well as some of my own instincts and research) in. I am not a doctor andI do know that there are times that I will need to listen to Doctors (and do!) and understand that they know better than I do, but on the whole I have realized that sometimes it’s best to also take your own judgement into consideration. Our issue was not that he was not gaining weight, but that his picture of health as a whole was not taken into consideration from the beginning. What I was seeing and how little man was acting as a whole did not match what we were being told.

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Sweet Little Man (around 12-13 months)

Our first son is 14 months old now and I can definitely say that I’ve learned a thing or two about being a mom and being more confident in myself and my decisions as a mom. Things that I will be keeping in mind as we welcome our second son this summer. One of the most important things that I have learned is there is nothing like Mom’s Knowledge/Intuition.

We struggled with Doctors and Colton. I should preface this with the fact that both myself and my husband are above average height with small to average frames. My husband is 6 ft tall and thin and I’m around average (ish) height and thin as well. Colton follows along the same line, which we realized very quickly. When he was born he was long enough to fit into 3 month clothing, but definitely not anywhere near in the weight department.

At Colton’s two month appointment, I had a Nurse Practitioner sit and insinuate that I was starving my child. That I was not providing enough for him. Now before you say, well what did she say, maybe your hormones blew what she was saying out of proportion. No. She said that I was not providing enough and he was starving. He had gained weight and grew quite a bit longer and I was struggling to reconcile what she was saying with what I was seeing. I could see the growth in my child. He was happy, eating healthily, meeting the milestones that he needed to be (although not many at that time) and I was in shock at what she was telling me.

*It was about a month after this appointment that we realized that my milk, while it had come in, my supply had not been able to keep up with the demand. So while he was getting enough from me up until this time, it wasn’t enough for a long term nursing situation.

If that wasn’t bad enough to be told as a first time mom, when your son is 2 months old, it got worse. The first time she said it, I was in a little bit of shock. The second time, my mommy instincts kicked in and I said “Ok. What do we do”. Instead of working with me and coming up with a plan, she just continued on with her statements. We went back and forth, with me trying to come up with a plan. If my child truly needed more, I was willing to do whatever it took to get that for him. In the end, after several times of asking, I decided that we would supplement with formula. Eventually we ended up switching entirely over to formula.

*Honestly, I could (and maybe I will at some point) write a whole separate post about this experience, but for now this little summary will do.

Colton continued to grow longer and started filling out a little bit. He started to surpass the developmental milestones that they are supposed to meet and again, I was looking at a happy and seemingly healthy baby. I had recovered from my complete breakdown after Colton’s two month appointment and everything was back on track. Then, we headed to his 4 month Well Baby appointment.

Again I was told that he wasn’t gaining enough weight, although he had put on a lot for him and grown much longer, and that I was not doing what I should be. Let me just say, I was letting Colton decide how much he wanted to eat at every bottle. I couldn’t force feed him more than he wants and he was eating close to 6 ounces every single bottle, if not more. He had surpassed most of his developmental milestones and was working on 6 month milestones. I could see with my own eyes that he was doing wonderfully, but I had a Nurse Practitioner (and then a doctor) telling me that I was failing. It was at that point that I said to hell with it, switched doctors, and started tracking things on my own.

It was clear to me that my son did not follow along the growth curves like other children did when it came to weight. He puts on weight, but he is more likely to grow longer than wider. His first doctor did not even bother to review not only his growth as a whole to include his length, but to look at how we, as his parents, were built. I was mad leaving his 4 month doctors appointment. My gut as his mother was continually telling me that he was just fine, healthy and that we were doing everything we were supposed to.

Things got better once we switched his doctor. We still have issues from time to time with the concern over his weight, but it’s not in a way of his doctor saying we are starving him. I take most of his weight gain concerns in, keep a watchful eye on how his eating is going, and overall watch how his behavior is. I am with him all day long and I am the first to realize when something is wrong. Realizing that I am his number 1 and best advocate and that at times, I will know best and will know better than the doctors has been the best thing both for him and for us as a family. By having this attitude, my son is not only happy, healthy, meeting milestones way above his age, and growing appropriately, but our family is also happier and healthier. I am happier and healthier.

MiaLeave a comment

Week In Pictures – A Family Visit and Shopping!

Hello everyone! Gosh, it is already 5-6 days into March! This past week has been a whirlwind as my husband went out of town for most of it for work and my mother came into town for a visit. We did quite a bit of shopping and just got to spend some time together. This was also my first full week in a new planner set up as well as adding some more to my journal. The week ended with some more shopping for the new baby as well as our little man.

I had a few things that I needed to pick up, some more spring/summer maternity clothes, some books and I had a few appointments throughout the week as well. This kept us plenty busy for the week and it seemed every day we had to do something!

I was able to get quite a bit of some new tops to gear up for the warmer weather (of course now that I have, it’s getting cold again) and I’m very much looking forward to spring and summer outfits that I can put together! Sweet Little Man and #2 also got some new clothes for summer as well. We’ve got everything saved from when Little Man was a baby, but with them being born at opposite ends of the year, there are some clothing items that we need to have. I also want to do a different theme for his nursery than we did for Little Man as they are different.

Little Man had a “woodland” animal/fox theme with Oranges and Browns in his nursery and I think #2 is going to have a mountain animal/bear theme with Blues for his nursery. I love what we have picked out so far and I think it is going to come together really well! We’ve still got to move quite a bit of furniture around and switch rooms around before I can decorate the new room, but I’m definitely in a nesting mode and think I will be for a long time still.

One other big thing that I did this week was to get my eyes re checked out. I’ve had glasses for a long time for when I’m reading/working at the computer/watching TV and when I was in school, but I’m one of those people that doesn’t typically wear them. I just strain through the situations and work through it. It has been steadily getting worse and I think it has some to do with the amount of migraines I deal with. I got a new prescription and some new glasses to go along with it. So far, it’s been such a difference! To be able to clearly see things has been so nice! No more straining to see for me.

How was your week?

MiaLeave a comment

February Favorites

Good afternoon everyone! I want to try something new out for the next couple months and that is doing some monthly favorites! These aren’t going to be specific to anything, but rather just some bits and bobs that I have started to or re discovered throughout the previous month. They could be just about anything, although I will try to stay away from books and tea’s as that is my business (although one or two may pop in from time to time), so that is handled on my business site and blog. If you are interested in that, The Cosy Book Shoppe can be found HERE. Shameless self promotion over now, so let’s get into some of my February Favorites…

To start with, I’ve been loving the Simple Moisturizing Facial Wash. I have fairly normal skin, but it can go from one end of the spectrum to the other in terms of being really moisturized or really dry. I used to use the Cetaphil face wash and I loved that, but I believe that they have recently changed the formula or they have removed the one that I used from shelves. The Simple wash allows my skin to continue that good balance between the two opposites and I’ve been loving it!

Along the same lines of skin care, I’ve re discovered a love of the Aveda Hand Relief Moisturizing Cream. I’m obsessive about hand washing, it’s almost an OCD factor that I have. With all of that hand washing, my hands dry out so quick. I use the Hand Relief in the evening and I find that it gives me some much needed relief at the end of the day. I use a lighter moisturizer in the morning and between the two my skin is very thankful.

A food favorite for you are the Girl Scout Thin Mints! I’ve loved these ever since I was little and selling them myself and they are the cookie that I treat myself to every single year. My husband came home this year asking whether we wanted to buy any this year and my response was “You have to ask?” Thin Mints are highly requested in our home and we typically end up getting at least 2-3 boxes a year. They never last long, no matter how hard we try, and we then spend the rest of the year trying to have all other sorts of chocolate mint options in our home.

Another food favorite WAS Cranberry Sprite Soda. Why was, you may ask? Well because it is no longer being sold in stores that we have around us (or around the country). I was first introduced to the Cranberry Sprite around Christmas and I absolutely loved it! So so good and I was eagerly awaiting the option to get home and get a whole case for myself. *Quick clarification, this is most definitely a pregnancy craving (although I would still drink it if it wasn’t) and I am definitely over reacting with my disappointment because of that.* We were waiting for the Superbowl soda sales to hit as we typically don’t drink enough soda to justify not buying it on sale and by the time that the sale hit, the Cranberry Sprite had sold out and been pulled from the shelves. I continually regret not simply purchasing the 12 pack when I could.

A couple of style favorites for you for the month. If you follow me or know me, you know that I am pregnant. This means no “normal” clothes buying and I was trying to hold out on buying some more maternity clothes until a little more into spring/summer. With the influx of warmer weather I found myself needing some tops and bottoms to accommodate them. I’ve been loving Liz Lange maternity for not only the price point, but also the fact that there is a good variety of styles to choose from. I find the clothes to run a little bit bigger, which is nice for growth, but it also means that when shopping that needs to be taken into account when picking sizes.

Another quick end of the month addition to my style favorites are the Xhiliration Sleepwear! I picked up a pair of their pajamas at Target this past weekend and I am obsessed! They are the most comfortable pajamas that I have ever worn and the designs are really nice. I picked up a floral pair and I think I am going to go back and get one more set with a different pattern to round out some summer pajama sets. They are fantastic!

Finally, for multimedia/tv/movies, I’ve been loving two things. The first being a TV Show called Six on the History Channel. My husband is in the military and is very much into a lot of military shows and movies. This particular show follows Navy Seals as they go through missions with an over arching mission in mind. It’s been a great show to watch and we’ve been enjoying watching the new episodes. The other thing that I’ve been loving is Ed Sheeran’s new releases in the music world. I’ve always loved his music and this latest album that he has coming out is no different! I’m looking forward to listening to the rest of the songs when it is formally released!

So, that’s what I’ve got for February! These won’t typically be this long, I’ll try and trim as I go moving forward for you. Has there been anything in particular that you have loved this past month?

MiaLeave a comment

Week In Pictures: Spring Weather Already?!

Good afternoon everyone! After all the craziness that I feel like February has been, this past week has been all about getting back to our routines.

I’m a planner and organized person by nature and love to have my routine. That’s not to say that I can’t be spontaneous at times, but I definitely like to have a general outline of things in order to feel sane. This past week was getting back into that bit of myself. I put my full cleaning routine back into effect (rather than the spot cleaning we were doing), decided to overhaul my planner and planning system, and started getting back into waking up early and having my “me” time in the mornings. These were all things that fell through the cracks when our month started getting busy and we were doing so much.

With that going on inside the house, some spring weather made a showing this week outside! We got a taste of 60-70 degree temperatures, which meant plenty of time spent outside for all of us. For a while little man didn’t like walking on the grass because it felt so uneven compared to cement or the flooring in the house, but after playing outside at the Cathedral, he has a whole new outlook when it comes to grass. He is now relatively unstoppable outside and both him and Copper had a good time running around! They wore each other out as well which was always nice for me as it led to a good nap and a little sleep in the next morning for little man.

We didn’t explore over the weekend as we had some errands to run and the weather wasn’t going to cooperate for long, but we still managed to get a little walk/hike in before the late afternoon storms started to hit! I absolutely love being in an area where we have nature all around us and so many different options to go walking and hiking. We like to be outdoors and get active so this area has been perfect for us so far!

It’s been relatively low key over here, which has been nice after what has felt like a constant movement/busyness of a month! February was full of so much and quite a few new, exciting adventures. I’m excited to see what March is going to bring to our humble home!

MiaLeave a comment

Let’s Talk Pregnancy #1 vs Pregnancy #2

Good afternoon everyone! I hope that your week has treated you well and if not, well it is weekend time! This week has been a rough one for me and has really been trying. With that being said, since it is Friday and I am celebrating being over halfway done with Pregnancy #2 I want to do something a little fun!

A week ago we found out that we are expecting another little boy! This is very exciting for us and we are looking forward not only to meeting the little guy, but that our sweet little man will have a little brother to be best friends and grow up with! They will be very close in age and will be able to do a lot together! Since both my pregnancies have had their differences, I wanted to do a little Pregnancy 1 vs Pregnancy 2. I will start with the major differences and then have some similarities.

To start with, in Pregnancy #1 I had very little “morning sickness”. The only time I was sick was for maybe 2 weeks in the beginning and then it all went away. With Pregnancy #2, I was sick from about 3.5 weeks on. I won’t go into all the details, but it was bad. I had a really tough time and was very very ill. Once my doctors prescribed me some medicine it helped, but it didn’t truly let up until around 15-17 weeks. Even now I still deal with loss of appetite.

Another difference is in Pregnancy #2 would be my body changes. Pregnancy #1 I carried really low. Sweet little man just loved to be right in my hips until the very end. He didn’t deviate too much from his location, although he would kick and get mad as heck if I was sitting upright and he was getting “smushed”. With #2, he is definitely all over the place- up high and down low. I’ve felt him getting closed to my ribs a couple of times already!

Another little difference is how I have approached the pregnancy. Obviously Pregnancy #2 I have a toddler running around, so I’ve been more focused on him and making sure that he is doing well and less focused on myself than Pregnancy #1. I have been much more relaxed this time around with some of the restrictions of pregnancy. With #1 I was very hyper aware of everything that was going on and everything that I was eating and drinking. This time around I haven’t been able to do that. I stick with the major things to avoid in any pregnancy and try not to consume too much caffeine. Beyond that I’ve just been a lot more relaxed about

So, those are the major differences at this time. My cravings have been mostly the same, although I’ve tried to be a little healthier this time around. I’ve been loving the carbs, fruit and spicy! I’ve been hating Peanut Butter and Green Beans. I know I said that my sickness was different as well as my body changes, but where I’ve gained my weight so far has been the same. I have gone all belly once again (look for a picture to come soon!) and everywhere else has stayed the same.

So those are just a few things that I’ve noticed that has been different and the same with both pregnancies! I feel really good now though at this point in my pregnancy and I feel like I’m really starting to be “settled” in pregnancy #2.

Mia3 Comments

Week in Review: Ball Week!

Hello everyone! Before I begin, I want to just say that this week is going to be a three post week to help make up for the posts that I have missed lately. I had a couple of things that I wanted to share, but the time just got a way from me. So to start off, I am going to share a little bit of the week and formal event that we went to earlier in the month!

Leading up to the main event was a pretty typical week, although little man sure did learn some new ways to be extra adorable and extra destructive! While I found some time (and a day of cool temperatures) to pull out my fuzzy fox socks and enjoy a nice cuppa!

We had the opportunity to go to a formal ball and we took the chance to have a night out and relax. Sweet little man got the chance to have a playdate with some friends and a little sleepover. I was a little anxious about leaving him for a whole night, but overall I was relatively calm. I knew that he would be well taken care of and would have a blast playing with the other kids. I figured if he was going to have an issue it would simply be right before bed (as that is when he really puts the pieces together that one of us is missing) and while he did have a little bit of an issue, it wasn’t bad and they said he calmed down quite quickly and easily. I knew that he would be in good hands, so I knew deep down overall I wouldn’t have to worry. It made the whole process a little easier!

For me, going to a formal event means the chance to really get dolled up and even a little pampered that day. I really wanted to be able to look good and feel good all night long so that played a big part of my “prep” day. I went and got my nails done first thing in the morning, then in the afternoon I got my hair professionally done. Hair is the thing that I struggle with the most and it ended up being easier to not have to mess with it! I did my own makeup in between the two appointments as well as enjoyed some time with little man. It was nice to have some time to just relax and be pampered, something that doesn’t typically happen.

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22 Weeks Pregnant and I loved this dress!

With the actual ball, we had a good time! We got to enjoy our time with friends and listen to some exceptional speakers. I also got to meet some new people (which as an introvert says a lot!) and enjoy speaking to some that I already new. It gave us a chance to have an evening where we didn’t have to worry about getting up especially early the next morning or get home to little man. We definitely did take some advantage of that as we stayed out till midnight (what?!) and decided to go out for breakfast the next morning. It was nice to have a more leisurely start to the morning, however morning is when my anxiousness really started to kick in. After breakfast I was more than ready to see our little man!

*I am not posting any photos of myself and my husband for personal reasons, but I have included my “full look” for the evening.

MiaLeave a comment

A Date Night With Yourself

Good afternoon everyone! It is Friday, which means…weekend!! I hope that your week has gone well and if it hasn’t, well time to celebrate because you can enjoy a little time without those work week stresses. Today I want to talk about a way that you can do that and take care of yourself.

No matter what you do, it is extremely important to make sure that you are taking care of yourself. By take care of yourself I don’t simply mean eat healthier food, drink lots of water, get plenty of sleep. Those are all very important things that need to be done, but I mean take care of your soul. Take your time for you, the time that you need to recharge your person, soul, and make sure that you are prepared for what you need to do in your day to day. If you don’t take this time it wears on yourself and you cannot better do everything else that you do.

This past year I have realized just how essential this time is, not just for me but for my husband as well. I also have had the chance to figure what works best for me that lets me recharge my batteries. This allows me to be a better mom, wife, friend, employee, store owner, and just overall person. There are a couple of things that I’ve learned in finding what works for me.

The first thing I learned is when you want to have your time. Some people like to have their time late at night, others prefer the middle of the afternoon, while some get up extra early in the morning. For me, most of my evenings I try to set aside for family time and my mornings are for getting my day off on the right foot. For me, my perfect time is the middle of the afternoon on Sunday Afternoons. This is when it works for me.

The second thing I learned is what I want to do for “me time” and that it isn’t the same thing from time to time. Sometimes it is watching a movie with a cup of tea in a quiet house. Sometimes I want to get out of the house and go get pampered or go somewhere to read. What I do will change based on what my needs are at the time. That’s ok, the whole point is to take time for myself and what my needs are.

The last thing that I learned is that this needs to be a semi regular time that happens. It may not be every week, but it needs to be at least once a month. Some months I will need it twice a month, but I need that time at least once a month. I do bits and pieces of my time throughout the month (my morning routine being a good example of this) and that helps quite a bit as well.

I find that when I have the time that I don’t have to worry about anything, I don’t have to be a mom or a wife or really a being if I don’t want to be allows me to be a better mom and a better wife. This is something that is true for anyone. You can’t take care of anyone (or anything) else without taking care of yourself. If you incorporate this time on a regular basis, you will find yourself in a much better place.

What do you do to take care of yourself and recharge?

MiaLeave a comment

A Chatty Week!

Good afternoon everyone! It is a Monday and I feel ready to get down to business this week!

This past week and weekend has sure gone by fast! The week has been filled with the normal busyness of work and well life. We took a little “adventure” halfway through the week to just get out of the house and pick up some needed grocery items.

When we first started re switching (yes, re introducing and switching, that is a story I will tell) to milk, I didn’t realize how quick he would actually take to it due to previous situations. I also didn’t realize that his switch would literally be an overnight switch. Also, that switch would include the sippy cup that he just decided which one he loved and that he only wanted that. He literally woke up one morning and when we put him in his high chair, he refused to take his bottle first (which still had milk with a smidge of formula) and simply wanted table food. Once he had that he only wanted plain milk and took the sippy cup right away! Who woulda thunk 😉 Now our sweet little baby is turning more into our little man every day.

So, with all of that we ran over to get some lunch at Panera Bread and then a stop at Target for odds and ends and of course, some milk (we had only been getting 1/2 gallons until he made the full switch). Aside from that trip though, it was a pretty standard week of work and play (more play for Colton and work for me). Our little man is getting more and more curious at what we are doing at times.

We re arranged our lower level to give him more space to play. With that change, we also opened our desks and computers up and he is able to see what is going on on the screens at any time he would like. This is both good and bad as just about every day this week there has a come a time where he wants to be up in my lap banging away at the keys and playing “big and important” on the computer. My calculator seems to placate him (at least for now) and it is something that he can also carry around with him and I’m not worried about him damaging it!

Over the weekend, I had a singular goal of finding a dress for a special occasion that we have coming up in February. It requires a floor length “ball” gown type of dress and the search was not one that I was overly looking forward to. Being 19 weeks pregnant with Baby #2 can mean any number of things for your body and I honestly didn’t know what type of style or dress I was really going for. I am in that time where the baby bump is “cute” before starting to get big, so I wanted to lean towards something a little more form fitting than an A-Line or Empire waist style dress, but I wasn’t totally sold on that. Above all, I wanted to feel comfortable in whatever I chose and look good/appropriate.

I am not going to show pics just yet, as I want to show the entire look, but suffice to say, I found a dress that I absolutely love! I have never felt so good in a dress and I am so glad that I decided to go out on a whim and try it. It is form fitting, but gives me room to breathe (and grow if need be!).

My second goal of the weekend was to get my life and home back in order. I didn’t know when or how I was really going to approach this goal, but I knew that I needed to put in some time to do some writing, a little tidying of accumulated messes, and get my meals figured out again. I think I’ve also conquered this goal as well! I have cleared the last bit of mess from our moving furniture and tidying last weekend as well as cleared out quite a few of the accumulated messes. I’ve still got to sit down and sort some meals out and write a couple more posts, but on the whole, I feel quite accomplished!

How was your week and weekend?

MiaLeave a comment

What is Date Night?

Good afternoon everyone! We are at the start of yet another weekend even if this week may be shorter for some of you due to the holiday, it’s still another week and that can mean long hours or stressful work to be done. I want to touch on a little bit of a self care for your relationship amid the chaos that can be the week. I am going to do a self care post as well for taking care of yourself as an individual, but wanted to start with more of the “Date Night” first.

*Quick side note, because I can’t resist…I am currently in the office/den/guest quarters of our house to get some work done. My husband (who is off today) is upstairs playing with our son and I am just down here marveling at the excited, happy squeals and screeches coming out of my our sweet boy as he just runs around the house with daddy. It warms my heart in a way that I cannot explain. Now that I’ve gotten that little note of emotion out of the way…

When Rob and I were expecting we heard (and I knew) that continuing to take care of our marriage, separate of our son and future children, was going to be key. While I know that we have a strong, solid, loving, caring marriage, kids are hard work and it is so easy (so so so easy as I’ve learned this past year) to forgo that while in the throws of parenthood. I didn’t want us to lose any bit of our marriage and really wanted to develop some time in our week to devote to each other, as most nights we spend as a family.

Here’s a little tidbit about Rob and I, we are one of the biggest pair of homebodies ever. We don’t really like “going out” unless we are making a special trip out (like a day trip or a weekend away) and we just tend to feel more comfortable in our own home. We also aren’t really into crowds or a lot of social events. The social events that we do attend are work events and, while nice to have, are not really what I would consider “Date Night”.

The fact that we are homebodies is not a bad thing, but it can make what is considered a traditional “Date Night” (dinner and a movie or some variation of that), difficult. Combine that with having a young child and not a lot of family in our immediate vicinity, I knew that we needed to improvise.

For us, “Date Night”, looks like the following:

  • We order in food or get takeout from somewhere. Occasionally we might cook, but if we do it is super easy meals that don’t take a lot of prep work or cook time.
  • We put away cell phones, books, computers, tablets, whatever that might distract us. During our normal family times, we typically will multi task to an extent and so for our “Date Night” we make a point to put everything away after dinner and focus on what is happening. I also want to make a note that at a certain time during the week we stop multi tasking and focus on our family time.
  • We get a movie. We will either use RedBox or pull up a movie/tv show on Netflix and watch it. Each person gets a chance to pick every other week (one week it’s my pick, the next it is Rob’s). This allows both of us to be able to watch what we want and not always feel like we are having to watch what the other wants to.
  • Typically (not always, but most of the time), we end up sleeping in our living room. This means we don’t have to worry about getting up at the end of the night or having to do anything further other than enjoy the evening. We get to just relax and not worry, which is so nice.

This is our Date Night tradition and it fits perfectly for us! We also don’t have to worry about the expense of having to get a babysitter as we are at home still and our transition into “Date Night” flows really seamlessly. Our son is old enough to where he can play independently (although still supervised) in the same room as us and goes to bed at a reasonable time so that we are not falling asleep right as we get into the movie.

I would love to hear if you have a specific tradition for Date Night or how you handle getting in time with your spouse that is somewhat or all kid free!

MiaLeave a comment

Let’s Talk About 2017 Resolutions!

Good afternoon everyone and Happy Monday! I hope that this week has started off well and wasn’t too bad of a day. For me, it’s been a day. In between my son being extra picky about food and drink (thank you first molars), trying to get all of the work that I wanted to get done today, oversleeping this morning, and my husband being off (which sounds like it would make things easier, but not always LOL), it’s been a busy day. I make sure that I carve out some “quiet” time throughout the day for myself to regroup, but today just hasn’t allowed that. That is ok though, things will even out as they always do.

I wanted to take a little bit to talk about my “plans/resolutions” for 2017. I don’t typically set actual resolutions each year as I find they are easily broken and that it is similar to what I already do when I sit down at the beginning of January and evaluate everything. I do a little bit of self reflection- looking at what went well the previous year and what I want to improve on in the new year. From that point on depending on what the items are will determine what I change for the new year.

I also try to assign a word to each year. This is a common thing that I have seen and after trying it last year, it is something that I want to incorporate into each year. This is something I do after I do my self reflection and have determined what changes I want to incorporate.

This past year has had a few rough patches, some things I could change, others that were out of my control. The first chunk of the year was navigating several changes to include our son, new home, new working hours, and just overall new balance of life. While I personally think that I navigated all of the changes well, I know that there were times that I could have done better or could have reacted to certain situations differently.

In looking at the upcoming year, I think that the biggest thing that I want to change is bits of my attitude and reactions. I want to learn to trust my gut again (that may be a separate post at a later time) and know that there are times that I may know best and to go with that. I lost my trust in my gut and myself at times this year and I want to keep in mind that my gut is usually pretty good. Basically, trust in myself and in my instincts.

Another thing that I want to focus on, especially in the first half of the year, is really focusing on our little family. With our new addition coming halfway through the year I want to make sure that we are able to have some good times as “just the three of us” before we become the four of us. Our sweet son is going through quite a few changes changes this year, the biggest obviously being a sibling, but a couple before #2 comes along. I want to make sure that he feels the love from Mommy and Daddy and that we have some good times together. Going along with that, I want to make sure that we also get some good memories as “the four of us” when that time comes in the second half of the year. It’s going to be a busy year I feel!

Lastly, I think that my word for this year is Peace. There were so many times last year, especially the beginning, that I just didn’t feel at peace with myself, my family or where I was at. This year I want that to change and I feel like the second half of this past year I have really managed to find peace at most times. I want to carry that through this year and keep it going.

What are your resolutions or changes that you want to make for 2017? Do you have a word set aside that you would like to focus on for the year?

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