Intentional

At the start of 2017, I'd heard some people mention that they pick a theme or a word for the year. I think it's sort of a way to set the tone for what you believe will happen in your life throughout the year. Something about that has stuck with me the last few months, and more and more I keep coming back to the word that seems to have chosen me.

Intentional.

A quick Google search brings up the actual definition (according to the Oxford dictionary) as "done on purpose; deliberate."

Sounds like a good choice when thinking about how I want my year to go. Back when I was in school, we'd write many papers, most of which had a thesis. The entire paper would be based on supporting that thesis and arguing for it. I sort of view this in the same way. I choose "Intentional" for the year, and use my time, energy and actions to back that up. At the end of the year, I should be able to look back and see how those things pointed toward my thesis.

Now, more than ever, I have to be deliberate with my time. We have a house, two young kids, jobs, side businesses, not to mention anything that goes above and beyond the everyday norm. Needless to say, there isn't much spare time. And the more I think about it, the more I realize silly things take up my time. Checking emails constantly, afraid I won't see one come in right away. Scrolling, liking, worrying; sometimes about arguments I read online that don't even involve me. So, one intentional decision I made recently, was to delete the Facebook app from my phone. You'd be shocked (or maybe you wouldn't be), how many times I've caught myself aimlessly swiping to the last page on my phone, heading to open the app - which isn't there anymore. I love staying connected. I may even get it back someday. But for now I decided I'm only going to keep Instagram. It's a different kind of community. One that's full of the things I am drawn to, still includes family and friends, and let's get real, I'm not ready to go cold turkey and cut out all social media! I'm hoping to spend some of my newly freed up time playing with my kids. Prepping healthy food. Doing watercolors. Reading. Writing. Taking more photos. Or maybe just relaxing, having removed a piece that sometimes causes legit stress. Because honestly, the news headlines as of late cause my blood pressure to rise enough as is.

It's fun to actually write this down. Even more fun to share it with someone. It excites me to think about how the second half of 2017 might be different than the first half (other then getting to go to Maui!!!). If you've done something similar in the past (or are doing currently) I would love to hear your insight! It's fun to share and learn another person's perspective.