What I've Been Up To

Hiding. Ha just kidding. Kind of. You may have noticed you haven't seen any posts from me recently, or any activity on social media in general. I was staying active with my new Facebook page during my 12 Days of Posts Giveaway, but after that I went on a little hiatus. I spent some time during the holidays just relaxing and refocusing, spending time with family, resting (naps!), and just letting life happen.Holiday RecapHere's the brief version of what I've been up to, brief because I failed to recap the holidays in detail right after they actually happened, and now 2017 is on its way. We had a few celebrations at work, including the All-Staff Holiday Luncheon (made possible by working at a small university) and our department lunch at Anju Above, a local farm-to-table restaurant that's SO good. Campus was and still is very quiet with the students gone, but we had a whole week off and our office closes early until next week.Over Christmas weekend, my boyfriend's brother came to visit and brought two puppies along with him. It was nice to have the company and the puppy snuggles! They both came with me to my family's dinner on Christmas Eve, and we all had some good laughs playing games - like tears-running-down-your-face-because-you're-laughing-so-hard kind of laughs (let's never forget the question "if you had a dating website, what would it be called?" - mynameisGary.com. Oh and cat posters, videos, modeling...okay you had to be there). On Christmas Day, I went to my mom's in the morning to open presents, and later we met up with my aunt to exchange gifts before going to my cousins' house. Oh my gosh, they went all out with the crazy games and gift exchange lol. They're so creative!After Christmas weekend was over and my boyfriend's brother left, the week was pretty relaxing and chill. I dealt with some car problems (still dealing with them, ugh), but overall it was awesome to just wake up without an alarm and have free days. On Wednesday, we celebrated Christmas with my boyfriend's side of the family, and that was really fun to catch up with them and have everyone together. In terms of New Years Eve, we debated our plans pretty much all week and went back and forth on several ideas. We really liked the idea of just showing up to the airport and catching a spontaneous, cheap flight somewhere for the weekend. But when we started looking at the reality of it (I know, ruins the spontaneity), it didn't seam that feasible, or cheap. We still want to do that someday! In the end, we still had our spontaneous New Years Eve for sure. I was going to tell you about it, but I think I just had an idea for a new post. :)Life RecapI will also admit that I've been lacking some motivation and accountability since finishing my blogger mentorship program with my friend Blair from Blair Blogs. She was such an amazing support and really kept me on track to meet my goals. She taught me so much about taking baby steps and creating monthly/weekly goals. She was full of resources, knowledge, experience, and always kind words, and I'm really missing our mentor chats!However, the holidays are over and it's time to hold myself accountable for reaching my goals. It's time to pick up right where I left off and start working towards my dreams for this little blog and wedding business of mine.Full disclosure: There may still be times where I don't post for a week or two, and that's just going to have to be okay. One thing that originally held me back from starting this blog was the feeling that I had to post consistently and often, or else it would just be a failure - an all or nothing attitude no doubt. But I realized that if I just give myself a little grace, I can make this blog successful while still maintaining balance in my life. This is my space when I need and want it, but I can also take space or time away when I need or want it too.That being said, I'm so thankful for people's support and positive responses to my writing. I'm thankful if even just one person finds encouragement from my posts or feels they can relate to them. For those reasons, I know I need to continue. I need to make time for writing because it's not a chore, it's honestly something I love doing. With all the other things going on in life, it can sometimes feel like a chore, but I shouldn't let it get dumped into that category. I also love weddings SO much. And with everyone and their mother (okay, maybe their sister) getting engaged over the holidays, I have plenty to keep me busy! It's time to continue making strides with both the blogging and wedding sides of my business, even if they're baby strides. There is good news I haven't told you yet - I got to work with my first client and address her invitations with hand lettering! Eek!Sorry if this post was slightly lame and boring for you - just needed to catch up, document, and give myself the pep talks. You know? Hopefully you get a little pep in your step after reading this too.Happy New Year!Sara