inviting calmness | month one

there is a quote that i have grown to love. 

 “that was the day she made herself the promise to live more from intention & less from habit.”

 – amy rubin flett

i just love these words. one of my main goals for this year is to live more in the moment, to find balance and to be intentional with my time and energy. when i took a few moments to connect the dots of this simple message, it became very powerful. as each season comes and goes, i am always met with more questioning. questioning is good, it means something matters. 

what areas of your life have become more like habits? 

i want to feel lighter, more spiritual, as healthy as possible. i am yearning for a strong balance 

between raising and creating influential toddler activities for our son, working out/yoga, eating healthy, my faith, dates and quality time with my husband, meditation, reading more books, hanging out with my girlfriends, and putting my heart and soul into my business and this space. 

last year was honestly a whirlwind (in the best way.) and so this year… i want balance and i want to live with purpose. i don’t want things to go on the back burner so easily; i desperately want to find time for each one of the priorities in my life. 

i stopped breastfeeding a few days after christmas and the process was worst than being pregnant for me (holy hormones!) did any of you go through this? however, for the first time in almost two years, i have felt that old and sturdy calmness within myself over the past week… and that has been the best feeling in the world. deep down, i knew i felt different… but it had become the ‘new norm.’ i feel like any anxiousness from that process was (not gently) but yet finally released. 

here are some ways i have tried to invite calmness so far this month:

+ this month i have started to organize our life and our home: 

1. throwing away extra things 

2. getting closets into tip-top shape 

3. communicating and creating task assignments -delegating! (something i am not good at doing!) 

4. keeping up-to-date with calendars (and using cute washi tape for fun)

5. putting things away right away (less work later!) 

6. staying on top of bills and house projects

7. scheduling out which chores to do daily around the house

8. cleaning out my purse, wallet, and the diaper bag every time we get home, while also always putting the car keys in the same place (they have been found in the refrigerator this year)

9. it was a splurge but we had our house deep-cleaned last week, for the first time since we built it two years ago 

(doing these things has brought so much calmness already)

+ reading: two books are on the way! one is a devotional for mom’s (more info soon) and one is talking as fast as i can by lauren graham. i haven’t read an (adult) book in over a year- besides my journey through the book, the curated closet, which i hope to also share soon. i mean the very hungry caterpillar is cute and all… and on the night you were born, is so heartfelt/beautiful… but i am ready for a good novel. especially to kick my tv/phone before bed habit. instead, i want to talk to my husband, listen to music, journal, and read. 

+ time with others: i was able to go to book club, two nights with girlfriends, and a date over the past week (it was beyond so nice- and all so needed!) for our date, we tried haberdish in noda and it was absolutely fantastic! i would highly recommend… the cocktails, the hushpuppies, the fried chicken. yum. plus, the atmosphere is really awesome. 

+ business: i planned out my entire month of february, while cuddling up with my husband during the bachelor last night! (who’s your favorite?) 

next steps: more prayer/devotionals/church, a schedule for parks (activities throughout the city- what are some of your favorite things for a one year old?) and yoga/meditation 

a stroll through a local flea market lately – hoping to share my trip soon