I’m sure it’s just hormones (or something along those lines), but I’m feeling very emotional…I’m having a particularly difficult time letting the holiday season go this year. It could also be due to the fact that Christmas was so different for the first time in ten (!!) years – instead of traveling to see my family, we hosted Christmas. Don’t get me wrong: it was lovely, and I look forward to continuing this tradition (and making new ones!) for years to come…but, as with any new tradition, it felt different, and the end of the year really seemed to sneak up on me. Plus, for whatever reason, this is the first year my holiday decor hasn’t felt like a hodgepodge mess, and I’m going to be really sad to take it all down.
Anyway…moving forward! 2018 wasn’t incredibly monumental for my little family, but at the same time, it feels like things took a shift in the overall sense. We decided to officially begin trying to start a family (which doesn’t feel like a major step since we’ve been discussing it for so long, but in actuality is, of course, HUGE). We took a look at our finances, and made headway in saving more and leaning on credit less. We finally made progress with our landscaping, and (FINALLY) completed step one in fixing up Jeff’s office space (which will eventually become the nursery if everything goes as planned, and in the meantime can finally be used functionally as work space/a second place for guests to stay). While no major changes were made to our everyday life (well, mine – Jeff started a new job), 2018 was about setting ourselves up for the future.
We traveled to Florida, Cape Cod, and the Poconos, and took several day/overnight trips to Philly. Speaking of Philly, Jeff started at a new company in the city, and was introduced to commuter life. I had a couple of different opportunities within my own career fall through, but learned a lot in the process (and will be transitioning into a new position – along with a promotion – within the first quarter of the new year…hooray!) I conquered some pretty major fears, and put myself in the position to be more proactive about my health going forward. I took a solo road trip to my hometown to visit family. I feel like I accomplished a lot of personal growth in 2018…I’ve gotta say, I’m pretty proud of myself.
I went into 2018 with some pretty major goals, and I’m happy to say I conquered (or at least made progress with) most of them. I feel I made major progress with my most daunting resolution (prioritizing my health) – for as long as I can remember, I’ve had a paralyzing fear of doctors/anything medical, and I actually went through with several health screenings in 2018. Once I ripped the bandaid off, it became much easier to face minor medical issues, and I actually sought treatment for multiple (again, minor) illnesses throughout the year. I realize this sounds a little ridiculous for an adult to be proud of, but it was a pretty momentous accomplishment for me (and it’s what allowed us to confidently start trying for a baby).
My other goals included bringing less stuff into our home/purging unwanted items, getting our finances in order, exercising consistently to manage stress, taking care of my possessions, and being kinder to myself, and I feel I at least somewhat made headway with each item. I did great with purchasing less for the first half of the year, and while I do still need to do a major purge of unwanted household items, I cleaned out my closet and started selling clothes and shoes on Poshmark, and got rid of a lot of junk (and started setting aside unused stuff that’s still in good shape for a yard sale next year). I exercised relatively regularly…I hope to be even better about it this year, but I wouldn’t call last year a total fail. The only goal I didn’t really accomplish was “taking care of my possessions,” but in interest of my last goal “being kinder to myself,” I’m going to call 2018 an overall win, and continue working on everything on last year’s list going into the new year.
We’ve set 2019 up to potentially be a pretty huge year – we have some big plans for our house (we’re starting to get into “let’s make sure our house is ready to sell, should the opportunity arise” mode, although I personally am in no hurry to move), including finally rebuilding our huge wrap-around porch this summer along with our neighbors. I have some pretty major career changes coming, and plan to work on some long-overdue professional development. I’d like to travel as much as possible (possibly including a solo trip overseas). And of course, we hope for 2019 to be the year we welcome our first child – or at least create him or her (ha)! I also have the usual minor resolutions – be more consistent with physical activity (again, still), work to regulate my sleep schedule, be kinder to my hair (specifically, I want to learn how to air-dry without looking like a disaster, and keep heat-styling to a maximum of a few times a week).
Overall, 2018 was pretty darn good to us. I hope for more of the same for 2019, and once I get over this weird hormone slump (or whatever it is), I’ll be ready to take the new year on! Whatcha got for us, 2019?