HAPPY NEW YEAR! LET’S RECAP + TALK ABOUT THE FUTURE

2023. It’s here. It showed up and walked right in, without even knocking. But Time is demanding like that. It takes and takes and takes, without regard for what you have to give. Still, we do the best we can. I’m not above a little reflection and getting caught up with the new year train of mind, so with that in mind, let’s talk about 2022.

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LET’S TALK ABOUT THE PAST

Before I talk about the future of 2023, I want to talk about 2022 a little. Living in California has been rough. We moved during peak-COVID and really haven’t recovered. Both Chris and I have struggled to find balance in our lives and make healthy decisions.

Part of the problem there is I love being at home. LOVE IT. So being isolated spoiled me so hard and I’m still struggling with going back to work outside the home. I really thrived on that remote-work life – it gave me purpose, but in space I felt safe and supported. In the future, I’ll talk more about work during this time, but I’m going to keep that to myself for a bit longer.

Now when I’m home, I just want to cozy up into my cocoon of a safe place and it’s hard to work on anything or want to do anything. I feel like I’m in constant recovery mode from every outside exposure.

I finally started to fall more into a routine toward the end of 2022 and the day’s are getting a little easier. A lot of that came from leaving work at work, but when I tell you that’s taken years of intention thinking… And I’m still no pro.

Another one of the biggest helpers has been waking up early and giving myself about an hour and a half awake doing my own thing. Nothing for work, nothing for Chris, not even the dogs. Just me. And my likes, needs, and wants. Perhaps in a future post I’ll share a little bit about what that looks like for me and how it helps.

But all those routines and recovery-work is about to be tested because…

WE’RE MOVING!

The first big news I have to share for 2023 is an upcoming move. We’ve well over-spent our two year commitment in California and it’s time to move again. We’re actually headed right back to Colorado, to our old stomping grounds. As with any military situation, the future is a bit uncertain, but we’re thinking we’ll be in the state for a few years.

Considering I haven’t lived in the same residence for more than eighteen months since 2012, I’m cautiously optimistic we’ll be able to settle in a little more this time. Don’t get your hopes up though. Still, with each place we’ve lived, we’ve adjusted and purged so I’m hopeful I’ll have a home I’m proud to show off in the near future. Hopefully that will manifest with a few more interior design posts here as well!

Speaking of the blog – I’ve planned for content through March, but with this move, I’m not sure I’ll hit every post for the beginning part of January. And while we’re talking about posts…

THE BLOG IS CHANGING IN 2023

Not like a lot though.

Like many, I feel some hardcore nostalgia for the early blogging days. The brief posts and candid experience. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good curated work, but I also love the real, on the fly experience.

So that’s what I’m hoping to bring here in 2023. I’m going to continue to share the things I love, but focus on making it less of a production. You’ll see a lot more informal photos and some more bite-sized posts. Instead of packing posts with tips on tips on tips, I’ll keep them shorter and spread those same tips, faves, and thoughts out in more frequent, shorter posts. Punctuated by a few long ones like this.

My hope is that this will allow you to find a little bit of special in your internet browsing, without demanding a ton of time and attention of your day to day. I want you to be able to take what’s written here and then go exist, outside of online life, soaking up memories where you can find them.

How are you thinking about 2023? Are you setting goals? Aspirations? Or going without so much as a tentative plan?