A New Year For New Adventures

Happy 2018! I hope everyone had a great time ringing in the new year. There is always something that feels refreshing about starting a new year. We had a really good 2017, so I can’t say I was wishing it away, but we do have some exciting things on the horizon for this year that I am anxious to see how everything plays out.

We had so much fun celebrating the new year and were happy to do our 12pm kids countdown again. It was a sparkly, confetti, good time cleaning it up—fun. Little nugget might have been more concerned about holding onto his pretzels instead of his number balloon or confetti popper, but that’s real life. We could have reconvened and tried for different pictures but I love sharing our real life moments and capturing what actually happens. That’s also something I hope to share more of in the new year.

We celebrated at my sister’s new house and then at night headed into Philly to celebrate with some of our friends. It’s always a nice excuse to get dressed up and spend time going out. Eric’s parents offered to watch the boys again, and while they are still so young and not making it anywhere close to staying up until midnight, we figured we might as well enjoy ourselves.

I’ve never really been big on resolutions, but I do like to think of goals or things that we can work towards in the new year. I guess when you really break it down, it’s basically resolution’s little sister—just labeled differently.

This year we decided to get the nuggets involved and asked them what they would like to work on in the new year. At first A said getting more Paw Patrol toys. I quickly realized I needed to break that down to very simple terms for a two and four year old to understand. After they grasped the concept, they said things like to be kind to others, make new friends, make more cookies, and give some toys to kids who don’t have them. That made my mama heart so happy even if they decided it would be baby toys that they’re too big for. We actually went through a lot of their toys after Christmas and will be donating a good amount. It also feels great to free up some space and teach them about giving to others. Although, I don’t think any Paw Patrol toys will be making it into that pile anytime soon.

One of the things Eric and I have been doing the past few years is thinking of a word to incorporate our focus on throughout the year. This year our word is Trust. We have encountered things throughout our lives that while they might not make sense at that moment, we try or best to remain faithful and Trust that God has a plan for us greater than we could ever imagine. It’s happened so many times that we will look back and end up be thankful that something didn’t go the way we planned and are so grateful that His guidance is with us leading our path.

Here’s to a great year, new memories, new adventures, and all of life’s craziness in between.