Saturday

The days are once again ticking by quickly.  I have just started holidays.  I worked up until Christmas Eve and went straight back to work after the Christmas shutdown period.  David starts his new teaching position next week and I took this week off so we could go camping. Then I am home while he is settling in and we are all getting used to "our new world".  I am also home while Nicholas and Audrey settle into their first week of a new year at school.  I will then be reverting to my true part time hours at work of three days per week.

In thinking about the new year I intentionally thought that I would not make resolutions as I did not want the pressure of great expectations for what I would achieve this year.  However, in another blog I read I read about "lessons learnt from last year".  I thought this sounded like a good thing to do.  To look at things you don't want to see repeated in the new year.  New Beginnings.

One of the things that seemed a positive thing for me came via this quote: "I will not let anyone walk through my mind with their dirty shoes" (Ghandi).  I want to have more control over the words I let nest in my head....

I am also going to walk more (when I can) and take a yoga class.  I have noticed that I am thinking more about the choices I make and whether they are good for my wellbeing.

I have approval to work from home on Fridays.  This, including the fact I will only be in the office on Monday/Tuesday make me happy. I am hoping it tips the balance of work/home in the right direction.  I look forward to being around the school for the kids, being on top of where they are at in their lives.  I have really felt I let that slip over the past year and that we were just existing, rather than living.  But I really do feel that I have the strength to pick up what I dropped.  And I look forward to doing it.

So, thinking of how last year seemed to fly by, with me running on empty and finding life a bit of an uphill battle, I am remembering the things that make me happy.  My family.  And simple things.  Reading to my kids~

[Speaking of which I had a lovely piece of facebook correspondence from my favourite Australian Children's book illustrator:

"My 7 (on Thursday) year old daughter has grown up with your illustrations (how lucky I am to have her to buy the books for) and when we were at a bookshop on Sunday she kept spotting more and recognising your work. We can never have enough!"

That's lovely to hear! Thank you! I'm so glad my books have found such a dedicated audience."] 

But just simple things like coffee and talking with David. I am yearning for that simplicity.  I know it so often is the "latest thing" (and people can spend a remarkable amount of money on being "simple"!!) but I really am happy when I am sitting with a coffee and looking at a magazine or (rarely these days) reading a book. I want to blog more about the joy I get from simplicity this year.

So, with David starting a new job, I am looking forward to this, the first year of the rest of our lives, and making it a good year for our family.

We had a three day camp this week.  That deserves a post of its own.  :)