hello, 2021

 Hello, 2021. 

I have always been a fan of Mondays.  A new week with a fresh start always makes my heart happy.  I guess you could say the same for a new year.  A fresh, clean planner and some new stickers and I am ready. 

 I am sure many of us wish we could wipe the year 2020 from our memories.  It was a YEAR. For most of us, it caused us to evaluate what was important as so much was changing and a lot was taken from us (no matter our circumstances, we all experienced some sort of loss in one way or another).  Just a quick scroll through social media gave us all the feels.  People became angry, frustrated, hurt and sad.  We were all hurting in some way. Unfortunately, 2021 came and things did not change.  COVID is still running rampant (especially in my state. . . ugh) and politics just make us want to go hide under the covers and not come out until its all over (Today's inauguration was so beautiful!).  Seriously, that sounds so tempting. 

2021 didn't come like we wanted.  We have lost much are grieving hard things.  Yet, I look at this new year with hope.  I am not sure what this year will bring and am trusting that however 2021 turns out, I will remain faithful to my call to be a follower of Christ. 

Last year, I tried my hand at setting seasonal goals for myself.  These were things that I wanted to accomplish in a 3 month time slot.  If some things happened and some things didn't, I wasn't going to approach that as failure. . . life happens and I just have to be okay with that.  Here are a few things we did last year:

:: 2 baby blankets, 2 baby quilts (well, almost finished with #2), 1.5 quilt tops sewn

:: I found a pattern for face masks that I liked and made some for the kids and I. 

:: Hallway doors and closet doors painted

:: Bathroom shelves, light, and accessories replaced

:: Disneyland before things shut down

:: LOTS of bike rides

:: Started taking lots of walks

:: Spontaneous trip to Wyoming

:: Lots of free printables made

:: Lead several socially distanced and zoom Bible studies 

:: Had my first piece of writing published in another online journal (you can read it here).

:: tore down the ugly shelves in our family room and ended up with a delightful plan b and I love it! 

:: replaced our wood burning stove with a gas fireplace. 

:: updated our backyard patio

:: Made the front of entrance of our home more welcoming and added adirondak chairs to the front.

:: made my first Stitch People portrait. . . it's so much fun! 

 

I will be honest and tell you that there were times when anxiety and boredom crept in during this whole shut down.  I realized how much the things that drive me were missing when we were stuck at home.  (We are still stuck at home, but I feel more comfortable masking up and sneaking away in a safe way now, which helps a lot!).  Also, my kids are all at home learning via distance learning.  It's not ideal, but their teachers are knocking it out of the ball park and my kids are still learning and thriving.  They definitely would rather be at school, but they know that this is just a season and they are making the best of the situation. Between moments of inspiration, there were times when creativity was not coming, but once I found it (thanks closet door painting project!), I found a reason to get up and get busy.  

Now that 2021 is here, I have sat down and made some goals for this year.  Here's a peek:

:: Tackle my pantry. . . It's gonna be a project!  I am so excited!

:: Decide just exactly how I want my living room shelves to be styled.  I am waiting until I know instead of just buying things and not being 100 percent happy. 

:: Another cross stitching project or two or three. . .

:: Bind Jon's quilt

:: play with new quilting rulers and make some more quilts. 

:: Do more art with my boys.

:: Travel (praying for this one!) 

:: try some new things. . . like macrame!

 

I've been going through the She Reads Truth Faith in Practice study and have just been loving it!  I've been really thinking about the spiritual discipline of sabbath and the importance of taking some time to rest.  Studies have shown that people who take a day to really rest, are way more productive during their work week.  This year I want to really sabbath. . . whether it is part of day or a whole day, I want to take time to really rest.  I realized this weekend that for me, resting is spending time with my family playing games and going on walks and talking over coffee.  Today, I started the week off more rested than I have felt in months! I've started the hashtag #Sabbathwithintention this year to document my sabbath growth over in instagram.  Feel free to join me and post yours, too!  I will definitely be writing more about this later!  Stay tuned. 

I think my biggest goal for this year is to thrive.  Being stuck at home during a pandemic does not mean I cannot thrive. I will be the first to admit that those first few months of Shelter in Place, I struggled big time.  My desires to travel and explore, that are so deeply woven into my being, were stifled and it effected me.  Adventures are planned and some we're still dreaming about.  I am filling my days with things that bring me joy and I have every intention of thriving.  

The subtitle of my blog is "finding creativity in the midst of motherhood." Let's join hands (well, pretend to, at least) and thrive this year.  Let's find ways to use our creativity. . . even when it's hard.  Let's not worry about comparing our creations with others, but celebrating the task we completed.  

I hope and pray that your 2021 is off to a great start!  Let's do this, 2021!