Happy New Year, friends! I know we are officially 8 days into the new year but today is a good enough day to start my “new year” goals. It felt so refreshing to take a couple weeks off from the blog. It went by in the blink of an eye but it felt good to rest, recharge and really spend quality time with family. You don’t realize how much time you dedicate towards something until you take time away. Not only physically but mentally and emotionally. I loved freeing up some space in my head. It gave me the chance to actually think about all of my hopes and dreams for the year ahead.
2017 was a blur. I was basically pregnant for all of it and ended the year on such a high with baby Jack. It kind of felt like the entire year was leading up to that moment. Not only did we have a baby but we bought a house in February, moved in June and spent the rest of the year moving (ha, it still feels like we just moved). A big year for the Adams family! 2018 has some big shoes to fill.
Do you acknowledge resolutions for the year ahead? I usually always do but in all honesty, this year it feels like I’d be setting myself up for failure. A resolution doesn’t have to be defined. If we accomplish something we strive to do – great! Gold star for us. If not, there is always next year. Instead of putting so much pressure on resolutions, I’ve decided to set goals for myself. I’ve also taken some time to acknowledge the areas that I personally need to work on. Here are my focuses for 2018:
P E R S O N A L G O A L S
- be more kind and patient. This is a big one for me. Especially with Dave. Parenthood can be a rough ride and especially hard on a marriage. Dave and I had some rocky moments when Charlie was born and although it is night and day with baby #2, I still need to be conscious of my actions and reactions. Sleepless nights are not an excuse for anger. I need to remind myself to take a deep breathe and not try to control every little detail.
- relinquish control. As I said above, homegirl likes to be in control. There is no need to elaborate here, I just need to chill the f*** out sometimes.
- exercise, drink more water, get more sleep. Blah blah blah. It’s the same thing every year but in all honesty, investing in a personal trainer last year was the best thing I ever did for myself and I plan on doing it again. All in all, it makes me a better mama, wife, friend, daughter, sister – the list goes on.
- read one book a month. Every year I buy all of these books with big plans to read them and then end up sitting on my dresser alllll year. This year I am being more realistic. 12 books in one year sounds way more doable! Reading honestly makes me feel smarter. Something this sleepy mama who is physically incapable of forming sentences, needs.
- save more money. I am going to elaborate on this because I always get questions about how Dave and I save for our family as two entrepreneurs (and in my opinion, we do a pretty good job!). This year Dave and I really want to budget more for the future – for our home, for our kids, etc.
- keep my priorities straight. Some days are going to be better than others but all in all, I need to remember the hierarchy of what is really important. Mental notes!
A few more to-do’s that aren’t necessarily goals but are worth noting: we will be renovating our kitchen and adding a bathroom to our first floor (yes, our 90 year old home currently does not have a bathroom on the main floor #oldlady), I need to take a warm vacation with Dave and we need to baptize our babies (I still haven’t baptized Charlie omgggggggg ugh).
I sort of had a realization these last two weeks. Nothing crazy because I’ve thought this a million times but it is truly something I am going to acknowledge this year. We all have those moments when something bad happens to someone close to you. A friend loses a loved one for example and you think to yourself, why does anything else matter? Right before the holidays, a close family friend lost their 10 year old son to cancer. Ten.
I hate to say that his death was a little bit of a wake up call to me. Life is so precious. Family is so precious. Tomorrow is never promised and everything can change in the blink of an eye. Of course there are going to be moments in our every day life that stress us out. I am going to get anxiety because I’m late for something, I’m going to procrastinate and be super last minute for a deadline, Charlie is going to have a tantrum in the grocery store and I’m going to feel like I’m stretched too thing. It’s inevitable. But I’m going to give myself a little grace in 2018 and let those moments consume me for only a second because life is too short. It’s so easy to get wrapped up in what everyone else is doing, the pretty pictures on social media, the people that seem like they are truly living their best lives and you’re topless on the couch for the 4th day in a row (hands up over here). So whether 2017 was a shit year and 2018 is gong to be your best year ever, just remember this:
“Your journey has molded you for the greater good, and it was exactly what it needed to be. Don’t think that you’ve lost time. It took each and every situation you have encountered to bring you to the now. And now is right on time.”
Ok, I digress. Let’s talk about what you can expect here on Sequins & Stripes! I am so excited to bring you more in 2018. More Liz, more family, more snapshots of our life at home, more wellness, more recipes, more home progress, etc. My favorite part of this website and my social platforms is the conversations that are created with all of you! I remember at the start of 2017, I really wanted to streamline my content for this site. I comfortably fell into my roll as “mom” and wanted to share more aspects of our life with you. My life is clearly no longer focused on the outfits I wear every day which I think shows in the additional content we have been testing over the past 12 months. As we enter 2018 I have some really exciting ideas to bring even more content your way.
B U S I N E S S G O A L S
- grow my social channels. This has been a huge goal of mine for a year or so but is seemingly becoming more and more difficult to do. My goal is to share more on my platforms. I really want to do more Instagram lives, whether that be Q&A’s, tutorials, shopping hauls or I even mentioned weekly cooking dinner dates over a glass of wine. Wouldn’t that be fun! I think I’m going to do it starting next week. Let me know if you have any other suggestions for what you love to see on my social channels in the comments!
- create more video. Many of you may not know that I have a Youtube Channel (it is pretty sad, I haven’t made that many videos). Whether you enjoy video or not, I personally love having them! It’s a fun way to save our conversations and I think it is a fun way for you to feel like I’m not just robot behind a screen.
- set aside money for taxes early. Dreaded taxes get my every year. I am usually so organized with my accounting but sadly I am currently a few months behind. This year I am going to be more prepared before April rolls around!
- be more proactive about working with brands that I want to work with. Why not? I have nothing to lose! I’m always such a baby about stuff like this.
Everyone always asks me “what are your plans with the blog? what’s next?” and I have the hardest time answering that question. Right now it feels like everything is right where it should be. As long as you all enjoy the content that we I am creating, it feels like we are in a good place. If there is anything you feel like you are missing or anything that you wish you could see more of – please feel free to leave it in the comments. Whether it is more motherhood, if you are here for the fashion, or if you want more Dave and the boys – I am all ears!
As always, thank you from the bottom of my heart for following along on our journey! I really hope to make 2018 the best year yet. xoxo
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