Resolution

It's a new year, and one that is already filled with possibility and uncertainty. I typically don't do new Year's resolutions, opting instead to select "one little word" that represents the growth I am striving for. This year my word is "document." Many things have made this concept significant to me.

By nature, I am introspective and I often journal to clear my thoughts when my mind is cloudy. This past year however, I found that I most typically journaled when I was upset or stressed, leaving my preserved memories as those written in moments of frustration. I don't want to remember my life from that perspective.

If you know me in real life, you know I just had another baby. Having this baby was terrifying to me as I was not sure I could handle four children (I'm still not sure I can), but now that she is here I am completely in love. I can't even begin to imagine our life without her and she's only been here for a couple weeks. Since I will be going back to work in a month or two (sad!) I am very aware of all the moments that I will be missing. I want to document everything I can so that I remember the joy of watching her grow this year instead of getting overwhelmed by how much I feel I am missing.

This is also the year that the hubs should be finishing his Ph.D. Which means job searching, moving, and a plethora of other changes that accompany his accomplishment. I'm afraid that we will be very busy and I don't want to forget the good times that are inevitable amidst the chaos. I also tend to deal with stress by dreaming about the future. My Pinterest boards will be seeing a bunch of activity over the next six months I expect...

Life gets crazy for everyone, but this year looks to be especially busy for our little family. As a single parent putting myself through school and a bunch of other responsibilities, I turned to blogging to connect with the outside world and give myself a reason to do something worthy of being photographed and shared. Even in the middle of it, I felt it was silly and often only got outside and had adventures for the purpose of having something to blog, but now as I look back on those years I see the many good times that Squirt and I had because of my determination to document out life. It may be silly, and I'm sure it wouldn't work for everyone, but using the past as an indicator I am making documentation my goal for 2016.

To accomplish this goal I will:

• Take more photographs (selfies included!)
• Blog weekly 
• Compile family yearbooks beginning with our first year

Feel free to email me gentle reminders if you notice I am falling behind. At this point I could have a fairly dismal showing and still show growth in these areas.