Happy 2025 Again!
This year our family came up with three New Year's Resolutions.
I was very surprised that they came up organically without me prompting anyone to make them.
Here's how we plan to live in 2025:
1. Choose joy and contentment
As we read through many people's end of the year posts, Mark and I were both surprised at just how many people reported having a tough, horrible, or forgettable year. As we talked about our own lives, we mentioned just how long it's been since we felt like we've had a "hard year."
Is our life perfect? Have our years been perfect? Absolutely not! In 2020, I faced major health issues and life changing surgery for our family, we lost Mark's dad in 2021 which has forever altered our family, we've lost family and friends, we have had bad days, financial woes, etc.
So what is the difference?
We choose contentment. For years, we've had a sign in our kitchen that says "The secret to having it all is knowing that what you have is enough." I look at that reminder many times a day.
We choose joy. My friend Lauren once shared the quote, and I don't know the original author or speaker so forgive me on that but it changed everything for me. "Joy is not in my circumstances, it is in knowing the Lord." Ooof. I have and know the love of Jesus - what else do I need?
2. Live by our 2024 Family Quote Again: "The happiest people do the most for others." Booker T. Washington.
Owen had this quote in a school book and chose it as his "wall verse." It hangs on our living room wall next to the Golden Rule. It was such a bold way to decide to live 2024 and it changed so much for us and our attitudes about service. It enriched our year so very much to choose daily to do for others - we all learned and grew so much that we decided to keep on living for Jesus and others.
3. Decluttering 2,025 Items in 2025
Are you surprised? Honestly you cannot be more surprised than I was when my family ASKED for this!
We decluttered 2,024 Items in 2024 and I answered your questions afterwards. I was inspired by my friend Justina at The Well Planned Mama and she offered her printable to me. The kids absolutely loved coloring in her coloring sheet and we had the best time getting rid of items. We finished in the fall and it was so freeing!
I have mentioned several times on here that even after our coloring sheet was done I kept seeing items show up in the donation box, we kept taking items to the free table at co-op, we kept passing on clothes in our family clothing trade circle, etc. I have also told people I feel like we really changed the culture of stuff in our home.
So...imagine my surprise when the kids each mentioned independently that I needed to get our 2025 sheet ready. Then, Mark asked when we were starting! Wow! So on Janaury 1 we began counting again. It's clearly been needed as we've already parted with 30+ items from our kitchen that I thought had been so carefully edited last year.
I am genuinely curious how this project will feel this year. Last year, as we began the year, my home felt too full and I was so overwhelmed by it. But now it feels so well managed! We have so much blank space! We all have clothes that fit, items we love, items we use, and a space that I am proud of! This year instead of the project being about me, it seems to be about them.
Here's to 2025 and chasing dreams, reaching them, and dreaming again!
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