welcome 2016

We celebrated the New Year here at my parent's house. 
Our party involved a glow-in-the-dark dinner,
laughing until we cried (several times,)
two kinds of cookies (coconut lime macadamia and oatmeal chocolate chip,) fruit, veggies, chips, and lime slush drink,
reading a time capsule from 20 years ago (my favorite game used to be Guess Who,)
Ellie laying on the couch with potato chips and netflix the.entire.night,
and only a sprinkling of meltdowns from the kids after we passed 9 pm.

We had a crazy year last year. 
And "fun mom," and "happy mom" were kinda absent,
much more than I wanted them to be.

Three weeks ago, on a Friday afternoon in our rental condo, I sat down and played Connect Four with the kids while Christian napped.
That day was the first time in about five months that I actually enjoyed being a mom again.
Nicholas took pictures.

People move, life changes, there are seasons of hard for everyone, I get it. I'm perfectly aware that my year was not exceptional in any way, and so many of us have things so much harder. But last year was really really challenging for me. 

I hadn't selected a One Little Word last year, knowing that I was going to have a new baby and not wanting to put myself up for feeling frustrated or overwhelmed. Looking back at the year, I can say that my OLW was "Survive." 
It was all about the cereal for dinner, another round of Octonauts on Netflix, simple-as-possible holidays, and just getting by.
And it was okay. We are okay. We are happy and healthy and together. Better than before, really.

Now it's time to start fresh. 

for 2016, my One Little Word is Play.

I want to play. I want to spend more time delaying the chores while I crawl on the floor with the kids. 
I want to run in the backyard, ride bikes, dig in the dirt and build forts.
I want to imagine and pretend. I want to make a mess while we bake cookies. I want to paint and color and scribble.
I want to dance in the kitchen and fall on the floor giggling.
I want to play with my kids before they get so old that they stop asking me to play with them.

inspirewetrust.com

But there's more. 
I haven't been taking care of myself. I haven't done things that I love to do in a very long time. I haven't been refilling my bucket, and it's time for me to stop running on empty.
I want to read good books. Play the piano. Organize activities with friends. Explore new places. Find new favorites around our new home. Exercise just because it feels good. Do yoga. And write. I want to write, blog, record. 
These things make me happy, and me doing them makes my family happier.

So, here's to 2016. Let's make it fun.