year end round up

2018 is over! Hallelujah!

Maybe I’m a little late in saying it but, it’s true, I’m grateful we made it to the other side. Sometimes it felt like we were just a ball of dough being kneaded and knocked around but a well-worked dough produces something elastic and workable and I think that’s where we’re finding ourselves now.

What did I learn over the last year? I don’t know about you but I learned a lot. A LOT.

After much hard work, I finally got my spousal visa in France with trips back to Canada, x-rays, civic formation classes and all. Getting all this sorted also meant getting medical coverage in the knick of time before Orion was born (it was a close one!) and this step created the domino effect of being able to finally work again! So just two months before he was born I signed up as an entrepreneur and took the required courses trying to learn all things about taxation, paperwork and the not-so-fun side of running a business in another country and even started taking on a few clients. Talk about a crazy beginning to parenthood!

I’m realizing now almost nine months after he was born that those first few months really are a nice way to ease in as they sleep so many hours of the day so you can get your head around taking care of a newborn but it sure sent my daily rhythms into a mess. It feels only now like I’m coming out of the fog and I’ve found that taking him outside every day is not just good for him, but it’s been even better for me. I’m logging kilometres as I do walking meditations and he’s clocking one outside nap a day for the most part. It’s a win/win.

Having daily walks also seems to be instrumental in helping me get my own self sorted. When you’re at home doing dishes, laundry, cooking or out doing errands, it’s hard to remember to think about your own ambitions and plans and one thing I can say for sure is that I need to keep creating. I need to fill up my creative fuel tank and then let it spill over. Having started a business right before giving birth meant a lot of little projects I’d wanted to take on that I ended up having to put aside to make sure I could stay on top of the workload and still fit in all the appointments with the midwife and doctors. I’m finally able to get back to the things that excite me. Currently, I’m really looking forward to mixing up some lime wash paint for some of the bedrooms. Probably just a feature wall each but it’s a technique that’s got me jazzed and I think it might produce some great results and I think they’ll be great in photographs.

The last year has taught me I need to invest in myself, not just the other family members. I have to take on projects, get my hands dirty and enjoy the process. One great fringe benefit of having a kid is the constant reminder that learning is nothing but a process of getting back up again when your first attempt doesn’t work. To take things from a different angle, to try again and put yourself out there. Success is inevitable with enough courage to keep getting back up. 

Also, when I look back at least year, even if it was not always the easiest, I can see that I put a few dreams out there and watched them come together. I need to remind myself of that for this year. Dream bigger, expect bigger and then go for it. 

And when you’re feeling stuck just move. Get up, put your shoes on and go somewhere. Maybe it’s just a walk around the block or maybe it’s in the car to a town an hour away just to discover. The small efforts pay off. 

So here’s to 2019. May it be a year filled with good and exciting opportunities for us, but also for you. I’ve got a small list on my phone of rainy day activities to fill my creative spirit when I need a boost and I’m really looking forward to seeing what’s ahead. I’d love to hear about one thing you learned from last year or that you’re looking forward to this year. And I give you two photos from one of our “get out of the house” adventures to the town of Sens in Burgundy.