+ Yay! It’s a new month which means a new monthly habit and a recap of last month’s. These monthly experiments help me build healthy habits, break unhealthy ones or just learn more about myself so I can figure out what’s really essential!

Happy New Year! What a crazy one it's been. We’re so excited to start 2017.

Are you into resolutions? Last year I wrote about some Resolution Alternatives. We do a number of these… we spent some of yesterday discussing our Priorities and doing a Trimester Review. And last week, we came up with our one-word theme for 2017: “soul”. I’m not sure what that means yet but will hopefully let you know. ;p

Although we're feeling excited, we’re also tired and a little run down. I don’t think it was the holidays or advent that did it, but maybe the extra commitments and the increased workload. We’re all introverts (yep, even Peanut) and it’s about time to practice more of what we preach. It’s time to slow down and commit to less.

When I slow down a bit, I'm a more patient wife, a more playful mother, and a more creative creative! Ha. I know the benefits of breathing room and how great I feel when I intentionally create space in my life. I gain perspective, focus, and even possibility! So for the month of January, we’re going to Slow the F Down by:

+ Continuing to practice our weekly Sabbath on Friday nights and Saturdays.

+ Leaving every weekend completely open for rest, relaxation, and fun. We have two existing commitments but that’s it!

+ Postponing weeknight classes and get-togethers until after the end of the month.

+ Practicing mindful socializing during the weekdays with one class a week and a social hang or two.

+ Hiring some childcare help over a couple of weekends so we can single-task to finish a few projects.

And in this space, we’re going to do nothing! Well, we’re going to hang out at home, go on day hikes, watch some football, and go to bed early as the early sunsets make us wont to do. We’re going to replenish our energy, play with Peanut, and focus on our goals for 2017.

+ My favorite January Habit so far was No Spending. If you’d like to reset with a simple challenge, try it out!
++ To our lovely friends: we love you and want to see you and hopefully will do so in February :D

Reflections on our December Habit: Advent:
I love our experience advent calendar. And I’m loving repeating experiments at the same time each year. This one made me smile and was fun to talk about at holiday parties. The goal was to do a festive little something every day to help celebrate and be present with the season. We had a wonderful Chrismukkah this year!

Advent helped us focus on the joy and fun of the season and not the stress. As expected, we didn’t exactly accomplish one item a day. We skipped a few when we felt too busy but also did more than a couple on weekends for a total of 30! Our completed list was pretty different from last year’s. Having the baby with us meant we went to fewer restaurants and bars and watched fewer movies. Instead, we had more outings and did some kiddo stuff. What a lovely end to a special year for us. <3 Cheers to 2017!

Did any of you try an experience advent calendar? What'd you do?!