hello 2017
It is amazing to me that another year has come and gone so quickly. 2016 was both wonderful and terrible, filled with a lot of love & laughter, but also quite a few tears.
In 2016, we began the year with Gabriel losing his grandmother. Watching my mother-in-law struggle with the loss of her mother was incredible painful, but I was thankful that Gabriel was able to go home and support her. However, death had not left us alone quite yet, and in April, our hearts were broken when Jesus called our six-month-old nephew, baby Troy, home to be with Him. The loss of that brand new life was quite honestly one of the most devastating moments of pain I have ever experienced. I can count on one hand the number of times I have seen my husband cry, and that was one of them...the most heart wrenching sobbing the moment we heard the news. It is easy to celebrate a life well lived, filled with celebrations of marriage and children, but it is so profoundly difficult to comprehend that this little one, who hadn't even begun to live life...this little one, who brought so much joy and laughter...was gone forever. Moments such as these are a stark reminder that each moment should not be taken for granted, it is so important appreciate those around you and where you are in life, regardless of your circumstance.
Yet 2016 also had its moments of wonder. We were completely shocked to find out we were pregnant in mid-February (I was only 3 weeks! We found out so early!) and only two days before we left for our belated honeymoon in Cancun. Spending the week in Cancun with my husband was absolutely amazing, even though I was unable to partake of the all-inclusive drinks that our package offered (thanks Dresden! haha!). We bought a condo in Golden Hill shortly after finding out we were expecting our little man, and have enjoyed putting down some roots. In October, we welcomed Dresden Zane into this world, and he has consumed our lives ever since. We are thankful that we were able to finish off the year by going home to Texas. Being surround by friends and family was unbelievably refreshing.
This year had to have been the quietest New Years Eve, ever. We expected Dresden to wake up around midnight (he graced us with sleeping until 2am - 5 hours!) and when he didn't, we rang in the new year in a dark nursery, holding each other and watching our son sleep. And I wouldn't have had it any other way.
This holiday is bittersweet as we celebrate, knowing soon that we will have to say goodbye for an extended amount of time. 2017 is beginning with the challenge of experiencing our first deployment, ever. I have shed many tears but I am choosing to look at this time as a time of growth, and I am excited to embrace the next few months instead of dread it. I want 2017 to be a year of wellness. Not just physically, but mentally as well. I've struggled with the idea of what that looks like exactly, and I've outlined just a few points that I have decided that I want to focus on:
-being intentional in my relationship with God. My entire life, I've always felt like I needed to have my life together before I entered God's presence. As a little girl, I would make sure I cleaned my room, got dressed, and did all of those things BEFORE I sat down and did my quiet time. If one of those things didn't get accomplished, I didn't do my Bible study. That mentality has carried over into my adult life, and I have finally gotten to the point where I understand that I will never have my physical life together enough to make me happy to the point where I feel ok pursuing God. But God isn't for the whole, he is close to the broken hearted (Psalm 34:18). I want dig deep into the Bible, I want to experience God in a way that changes me permanently.
-working towards a minimalistic lifestyle in my home. Gabriel and I are both terrible at collecting and keeping things, and we really need to learn to let go. I just purchased the life-changing magic of tidying up by Marie Kondo and I am so excited to work on changing my mentality in viewing our material possessions and just getting rid of things we don't need. A "sub" resolution under this point is to create a capsule wardrobe. My brother Joshua has always pushed the idea of having a few pieces of quality clothing, and I never was sold on it. I have fallen into the trap of "fast fashion" and I realize it has given me no happiness as I buy cheap articles of clothing that are currently in style, only to be stuck a week later with '"nothing to wear." Not only does this hurt my wallet, but it hurts our environment as well. If you've been teetering on whether or not to do a capsule wardrobe, you should watch this video and read this article. It gives a much bigger perspective on how our clothing isn't just about us.
"A dramatic reorganization of the home causes correspondingly dramatic changes in lifestyle and perspective. It is life transforming"
-Marie Kondo
-pursuing health physically. With a new baby, it is going to be challenging, but I think the most important piece is to eat healthy. I'm also committing to some sort of physical activity at least 1x per day, even if that is just doing yoga after an extremely long day. It is important to push myself out of my comfort zone, and I want to be intentional in my pursuit of physical health. I find myself all too often giving excuses for why I can "work out tomorrow".
-pursuing health mentally. For me, this looks like carving out time every night to reset, unwind, and prepare for the next day. I've pinned a few ideas on Pinterest in regards to my nighttime routine and so I am going to actually create a nighttime routine that I will strive to follow. This also means getting rid of anything in my life that is causing additional toxicity or stress! Creating and keeping boundaries will be an important part of this resolution.
-growing my Beautycounter & Doterra business. Having a healthy life begins with what we put in and on our bodies, and I am so committed to the mission that these two companies bring to the world. It's important that we know better, so we can do better. If we live well, but are filling our bodies with toxins, what is the point? These two companies have given me an opportunity to earn income outside of the home, and I am grateful for the freedoms that they've already given me in just one year!
I am going to have so much time to grow myself and work on my new year's resolutions, and I can't wait to look back on these next few months as a time of determination and perseverance. This is a lot to work on, but as Emily Ley says "Grace, Not Perfection" and I realize that each day will bring new opportunities and challenges that may or may not all work out exactly as I want them to.
So, hello 2017! Come on and bring it.