Let’s start out by saying, we’re not big on resolutions. We’re realistic and understand that most of the time, we forget them by the third week of January.  I will say though, that this year feels different. I think that’s because we set some goals for ourselves last April that we’re still following through on. Coincidentally, that’s the month we stopped traveling.

From 2016 to 2019 we traveled more than we ever thought we would travel in a lifetime. While it was some of the best times we’ve had in our 15 year relationship, it was also a little hard to stay focused. We were throwing ourselves into other cities, cultures, time zones, etc. and then dipping back into Phoenix unpacking, repacking, and leaving again. We loved it all, and maybe we’ll do it all again one day, but just before we had Oliver, we promised ourselves that we would reignite our love for the desert. Yes, we understood that having a newborn was going to change our lifestyle quite a bit anyway, but it was something else within us that craved the simplicity of being home and slowing down.

So with that, we have our mantra for 2020: Slow down and look around. We’re all used to going at full speed these days. With the world at our fingertips, it’s almost too easy to accelerate, but we’ve been slowing down for 9 months now and love the way it’s been feeling. We feel like our home hasn’t reflected us the way it does now, since probably 2015. Again, that’s no coincidence.

So I guess, we can say that our resolution is to keep things slow, continue to love where we live, and appreciate all the little moments that, in the past, probably would’ve been the in-between-trips moments. We’re now making those our priority. Cooking at home, going on hikes, taking tea-to-go for a walk in our neighborhood, talking in bed, reading more… these are our goals. More of those moments, please. Everything else will fall into place.

We feel so grateful to start another year of blogging. We have so much we want to say this year about where we are as a family and in our lives. It’s a year we feel will be filled with milestones, as Oliver has so many “firsts”. Thank you all for continuing to follow along with us. We have big plans for 2020 and can’t wait to share them with you. Happy New Year!