New Year, New Goals, New Blog!

Monday was a weird day. I got phone calls and texts and emails all day regarding almost every different part of my life: medical stuff, blog stuff, volunteer stuff, family stuff...it just kept coming. It was an unexpected reminder that 1) I have a lot going on these days and 2) I'm handling it surprisingly well.

When M was 9 weeks old, I felt like my goal every day was to survive. Anything beyond that was a massive win. As the anxiety and depression started and began to worsen over time, it was all I could do to tread water. I feel like I missed most of her first year because I was so overwhelmed.

This time around is completely different in the best way possible. I'm calmer and happier, more confident in my ability to handle the chaos of daily life as a mother of three. Which isn't to say the adjustment has been easy. I'm not sleeping as much as I'd like. David has to work long hours and travel occasionally, which is stressful for both of us. We'll need to upgrade to a bigger vehicle soon. We have two kids in diapers. Life--boring and crazy and happy and heartbreaking and everything else in between--keeps going.

But it's good. I'm good. We're good. More than good, really. We're thriving.

And because we're doing so well, I feel comfortable setting some goals to make things happen in 2016. Big things and little things that I've been wanting to do for ages that no longer feel impossible.

I want to read more than I did last year...which was, in turn, more than I'd read in ages. It feels so good to be a bookworm again.

I want to make practical and financial arrangements so our family can do some traveling. The thought of being in a car or on a plane with three kids excites me far more than it scares me, and we aren't yet bound by a school year calendar. Might as well take advantage of it if we can!

I want to exercise. There have been plenty of reasons I've been avoiding it, but after the discomfort of my third pregnancy, I'm so ready to get up and move. I've got my sights set on mastering crow pose and a forearm headstand by the end of the year. Upper body and core muscles, let's step it up!

I have some house projects I am desperate to finish. Our kitchen remodel still isn't done, the master bedroom is half one color and half another, and we haven't had a functioning shower in our master bath since we moved in. THE TIME HAS COME.

Last but not least, this blog is getting a makeover! I've been writing here for ten years now. Every so often I've entertained the thought of doing more with this little platform of mine. Sometimes I never got past the idea phase. Once I even bought a new domain and made serious plans. Money and time and work and so many other things got in the way. But this time? This time it's really real!

Everything here will be transferred to my new site this week!!!

It's going to be a construction zone for a while, since I have a ton of archived posts to clean up and categorize and I'm not entirely sure what I'm doing on WordPress yet...but I'll figure it out. You'll see some changes, obviously, as well as more content on a wider range of topics. That's right: more than just weekly pics of my kids. Try not to be too upset. Ha!

I just hope you'll stick around while I get my bearings, because I sure like having you here. Good things are coming, guys. I can't wait!

Photo of me + M by Photography Hill