January

We're half-way through January and I just sat down a day ago to think about my goals for this year. I always make a list in my journal of highlights from the past year, what I'm looking forward to in the new year and then I tend to make a few goals. This year I felt tired of making the same goals I've been making for years and decided to focus on things that I felt needed to happen now, not goals that are in actuality habits I'll be developing and perfecting over a life time.

One of those goals is to do more writing so every Friday I am going to publish a blog post. I have not written with such regularity since I was a junior in college and writing three stories a week for the college newspaper. I am excited for the challenge and hope that my four loyal readers appreciate the increase in content and hopefully quality.

January can be a tough month; a letdown after all of the Christmas fun and family time. Some Januarys I have felt the blah and impatient with the winter and cold but my attitude is starting to change as I age. Twenty years ago today I held hands with my husband for the first time (though we were 17 and I had no idea I was going to marry him!) and I gave birth to my last child three years ago in January. There is a national holiday to celebrate and the hope of snow days.

I have come to appreciate how the excess and expense of December can turn into the economy and efficiency of January. All of the indulging and planning and celebrating and shopping and even serving can leave a mom feeling pretty depleted, a feeling I especially had this year after a challenging December. Lately the magic of Christmas has been more elusive and so I tell myself to do more to serve my friends and family and church and yet even then, the pressure to have special feelings around that time of year and to do, do, do can be exhausting.

Which has led me to appreciate the simplicity of January where everyone is taking a big, deep breath after the holidays. Very few events are planned because of the cold weather and I've had days with no commitments to anyone outside of my family, which is such a relief. My gym classes are annoyingly packed but that will get back to normal by February. There is no story time, no soccer, no play dates at the park, no recitals and no school parties. After giving my heart and soul away to everyone around me for a month it feels nice to sit alone by the fire and feel the peace, calm and quiet of a snowy night.

I have decided I like the idea of getting our finances back on track after splurging on Christmas fun and having the house all clean after putting the decor away. I love breaking out a brand new calendar and appreciate it being uncluttered and full of possibility. It is a time to make goals, look ahead to the year with wide-open potential and decide what adventures await your family. I'm looking forward to my three-year-old being potty-trained, my almost five-year-old starting school, my almost eight-year-old getting baptized and my eldest hitting double digits. I'm excited for our annual beach vacation, celebrating my 15th wedding anniversary, getting more financially sound, reading 35 new books and having more time with my husband because of a job change. 

So thank you, January, for being relatively unscheduled and non-demanding. Thank you for being cold so I have an excuse to stay home and watch movies with my kids and drink hot chocolate while not letting the huge fort in the basement bother me because no one is coming over either.  I am grateful for beginning this new year and it all starts with January.