Look at that — a new year

Hello, 2019!

Sorry for the neglect of the blog the last few weeks. I took a Christmas hiatus and it was delightful. A lot of family time, a lot of friends, and way too much food. Have y’all seen this meme?

I get it. I get it soooo much.

So naturally, with probably 99.99 percent of Americans, I am resolving to eat better this new year. I just want to fit back into my running sweatpants. It’s bad when even sweatpants are tight.

I don’t really do NY resolutions or goals. I make them and then forget them before Jan. 31. But this year, I have some new habits I want to adopt.

1) Instead of reading a set number of books, I just want to read. One of my favorite books is “Les Misérables.” Victor Hugo writes so beautifully, including the main characters and the world around them, and it’s magnificent. It’s so good, but it is about 1,400 pages. I read it when I was pregnant with The Artist, which was back in 2012. I haven’t read it since then, and I have missed the book. I need to read it again. However, if I endeavor to read it (and “The Devil’s Redemption,” which I ordered with Christmas money – it, too, is about 1,400 pages, but I cannot wait to explore the history and future of universalism), I may seriously only read those two books during the first six months of 2019. And that is okay. Instead of setting a goal to read x number of books, I just want to make sure I read at some point every day. Most days I meet this goal, but I want to enjoy the process of reading and not feel pressured to read a set number of books.

2) Be confident in my decisions, especially parenting ones. I’m the world’s worst in taking other people’s opinion as gospel when it’s an opinion – often not even fact. I worry that I’m not doing the right thing, especially by my kids. But I don’t want to focus on that this year. I know my kids. I may seek out advice, but I want to be confident in my decisions regarding their upbringing. Also – my kids have their moments – don’t ever hear me say they are perfect – but I want to remember that they’re kids. They’re young. They’re little. They’re not perfect. And I want to give them grace when they mess up, especially in public. That’s always so embarrassing – all parents know that feeling – but I want to remember that both The Artist and The Engineer are good kids. And I want them to know that about themselves.

And, as I mentioned before, of course, I want to drink more water, exercise more, sleep more hours – all the things that are good for our bodies. Because I’ve got to go to work again next week – and it’s going to be real embarrassing if I can’t fit into any clothes.