Hello, January!

Our very lived-in kitchen, with the reminder “the best is yet to come,” felt fitting for this new year.

Happy 2024, friends! The new year started on a Monday, which I love. On Wednesday the kids returned to school so in a way it felt like the first “real” day of the new year. Routine seems to be a very good thing for my family so I’m glad to be getting back to it. So far January is already feeling much more relaxed than the holidays.

We had a really busy and full holiday break. There was a lot of fun but it didn’t feel super relaxing. We’ve also been dealing some big parenting challenges which I know I’ve mentioned and am being intentionally vague about (for my kid’s privacy) but it was a bit of a gray cloud over our break.

This week, once the house was quiet, I spent some time updating my holiday notes for myself. In the past I’ve scheduled an email to myself for mid-October with holiday notes from the previous year but now I’m keeping a Holiday Notes page in Google Docs. (Do you do something like this?) This year I noted the things that Trader Joe’s runs out of that I should grab as soon as I see them (gingerbread people cookies, dark chocolate mint stars, and the 12 days of beauty boxes) and I wrote that we have, have to finish planning Cedric’s birthday party by early December. The post-Christmas birthdays are tough, friends! I also wrote down a few holiday decor items that I want to buy ahead of next holiday season, like a new lit garland for our back doors.

Yesterday Chris and I started our annual summit planning where we make goals and plans for the year ahead. I love that we do this and we both feel so energized for the year afterwards.

I’ll look forward to sharing my 2024 goals soon, hopefully next week. I’m still thinking through them and my main focus lately has been preparing for my goals workshop on Sunday (!).

 

Big things happening in January:

+ The kids go back to school.

+ Host my first Your Year to Shine: A Goals Workshop. I’m really excited and the good kind of nervous.

+ Travel to Portland to visit my friend. Who visits Portland when it’s at its coldest and rainiest? This sun-and-heat-drenched gal!

+ Chris visits a friend in San Francisco for two nights.

 

January goals:

+ Complete our 2023 photo book. I just have to add photos through the holidays and I’ll be done.

+ Complete my 2024 goals and share them here.

+ Buy Valentine’s stuff. An email from my past self landed in my inbox this week reminding me to buy Valentine things early and decide now on any family activities. Thanks, past Kelsey! Also, I’ve had empty shoe boxes in my closet for months for school Valentine boxes so that I’m not caught off guard!

+ Choose photos for our front room gallery wall. A decor project I’ve wanted to do for so long and plan to complete (finally!) this month.

+ Start collecting older family photos for family gallery wall. Another decor project this year. I have some photos that I’d like to use and for others we need to ask Chris’s parents and my parents for copies of photos.

+ Declutter and organize our bedroom closet. Chris and I are both so eager to do this! I’m planning to “treat” myself to this next week after my goals workshop is over, and I’m not being sarcastic. This is something I’m honestly looking forward to LOL.

+ Complete my first workout push week. I’ll share more about this in my annual goals but on the last week of each month I plan to add an extra workout or two for a “push” week.

 

I hope you find good things in January, friends!

 

January 2023 | January 2022 | January 2021 | January 2020 | January 2019 | January 2018 | January 2017 | January 2016 | January 2015 | January 2014 | January 2013 | January 2012 | January 2011

13 responses to “Hello, January!”

  1. Jaida Avatar
    Jaida

    Happy New Year! I can’t wait to start the goals workshop too. I wanted to just commiserate and say that not only do bigger kids present different and more complicated parenting challenges, it also feels so isolating in that we are less able to share and find empathy within the parenting community due to privacy concerns. With 17, 14 and 10 year olds I feel like someone is always having a tough moment and I have found it hard to get my teen parenting feet under me. You’re not alone! Unrelated, I’m interested to chat to you a bit about your workout schedule and energy. I sleep very well and have been increasing fitness over the last few years but I find that it is impossible to add a workout to my week without feeling totally sapped. Just curious if you experience that and if you have tweaked nutrition to help?

    Reply
    1. Kelsey Avatar
      Kelsey

      Thank you, Jaida. I loved your comment when I first saw it and it’s taken me a while to get around to responding! What you say about feeling isolated is so true. And maybe also kids challenges are so individual too so that’s hard. Like when everyone has toddlers we all related to them not wanting to put on shoes, etc. but as kids are older they have almost a portfolio of challenges that has to do with personalities, interests, how they learn and socialize, ETC. I am going to keep that in mind, and just appreciate the commiseration and encouragement!

      For the exercise, that is a good question! I do think that as my exercise has increased I’ve been more and more mindful of how I fuel and re-fuel my body. It’s handy being married to a nutrition professor! I learned from Chris to eat a protein-full meal soon after I exercise and as I work out more I need more carbs as well.

      Reply
  2. Elisabeth Avatar
    Elisabeth

    I need to start my 2023 photobook. Usually I start in December, but this year I’ve done…nothing. Oops. My goal is to have it ordered by the end of February I think. One year I ordered it December 31st (to take advantage of a great deal). Won’t be happening this year!

    Routine is one of my favourite things ever. As much as I love my kids, I love them more when we have routine and structure which can be very hard to find over a holiday break. Glad things are settling down now that you’re settling into January grooves.

    Reply
    1. Kelsey Avatar
      Kelsey

      I hope you are able to hit your February photo book goal! It’s so satisfying to finish those projects. Gosh I love routine as well. I have always known I’m an invtrovert but in more recent years I have been wondering if I need even more time than most people to fully recharge. I am also happiest when I have the bulk of the day to myself to work quietly and then I feel very ready to be energetic Mom when the kids are home. (Or at least I need that much time at the ages my kids are now! Three can be especially demanding!)

      Reply
  3. Grateful Kae Avatar
    Grateful Kae

    I have photo work on my list too! Specifically, I have a multi-photo frame in our basement rec room which has been hanging, empty (well, it has those random black and white photos of some other family in them 😅) for at least 2 years now! I just need to select and print 6-8 family photos to put in there. Shouldn’t be that hard!! I wrote down “Don’t over complicate it- just pick some!” 🙂

    Reply
    1. Kelsey Avatar
      Kelsey

      Ack I so get that!! I also buy art or prints I love…and then they just sit in their shipping packaging. For me a big hurdle is not only choosing a frame but also spending the money, especially when I need a bigger or custom frame (so $$$). I agree that it’s so hard to choose prints as well! But yes just get some in there and you will be so happy. And if you ever want to change the prints you can!

      Reply
    2. Grateful Kae Avatar
      Grateful Kae

      I have this grand idea also for another set of five 8×10 frames that are on our rec room wall: I want to go back and get a few favorite prints made from all of our past family vacations. Then I want to display 5 and keep the rest in a folder, and on the 1st of every month, swap them out for new ones. I have SO many amazing family photos from our trips, but I never display them! So I thought rotating them each month would be a really fun way to see them on that wall (which is right at the bottom of the stairs, and I work in the basement, so I’d see them many times a day). But, shockingly, I’ve not done this yet either. Haha.

      Reply
  4. Sue Avatar
    Sue

    Why is it so hard to make the time to get things on the walls? I totally agree!!

    Thanks to you, I have two EliseJoy sticker charts taped to my wall. They are bringing me lots of motivation and joy as I work toward my goals- thank you!!

    Reply
    1. Kelsey Avatar
      Kelsey

      Oh my goodness, so hard!

      Oh I love that! Happy tracking and habit-ing!

      Reply
  5. Sarah Avatar
    Sarah

    VALENTINES! YES! THANK YOU.

    Reply
    1. Kelsey Avatar
      Kelsey

      You think you have allll this time when the kids go back to school. And then it is literally February 13th.

      Reply
  6. Martha Janick Avatar
    Martha Janick

    I worked at a framing shop for a bit and the prices are insane. One thing I do now is purchase an affordable frame or find one at the thrift store then buy a custom mat on Etsy. You can also take an old frame (like from the thrift store) and purchase new glass for it. These give more of a custom look but without the price of a custom frame.

    Reply
    1. Kelsey Avatar
      Kelsey

      These are such great tips, and from a pro! Thank you! I often get frames at Ikea where the prices are great but the sizes can be non-standard sometimes for art prints made in the US. But then I would go get a custom sized frame at a craft store and it was pretty affordable. I am going to keep your great tips in mind!

      Reply

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