With the new year comes all the New Year's Resolutions for a variety of things. It seems like every year I find my New Year's resolution going strong for about 2-3 weeks then slowing dying. This year I have pledged to do a couple things different starting with no New Year's resolutions! This year instead of New Year's resolutions we are celebrating memories. So in the vast array of Blogs, Pinterest pins, shared projects, and emails I started searching for ways to celebrate memories. One of my very favorite was one that I found on the DIY Cozy Home Blog. Below are these lovely luminaries that she had created out of pictures printed on vellum. Check out this link for all the instructions on this project.
I over the next week we will be creating these as we decorate our house for Valentines with pictures from our wedding, the birth of our kids, vacations, special moments, graduations, and so much more. Best of all we are celebrating memories and when all our family gathers for a Valentine's dinner we will be able to use these to share those great memories.
The other way we have decided to celebrate the New Year besides resolutions is by dreams (Goals). On the 31st right before midnight everyone put 10 dreams (goals) in our Family Dream Catcher (an old mason jar with a lid that I printed a label for) and sealed it. We also wrote these dreams on a piece of paper that was folded and put in our sock drawer. On New Year's Eve 2014 we will be opening our Dream Catcher Jar and remembering the dreams for the new year and finding out how many we actually made come true. I have to say I was amazed at the thought and careful thinking that went into our list, but in the end it is a great way to teach your kids how to set goals and work to achieve them.
The last thing I personally vowed to do in the coming year was to share my thoughts, fears, love, accomplishments, and failures with our family and friends. So many times people do not share about themselves, but about the kids, husband, things that make them mad, or things they are doing, but we leave out true feelings.This is one things I have struggled with all my life, so this year there will be different. Starting today. Sometimes as a mom we seem to get caught up in the kids, work, husband, activities, and the daily chores of those God gifted rolls we have been given that we tend to forget who we are. Ever since one of my biggest dreams died a hard and painful death in 2013 I have been trying to find the means to cope and move on past what was lost and what is to come, instead of what I wanted to happen. Don't get me wrong The Copper Cottage is everything I love and is growing and making my new dreams come true, but there is steal a morning for the old dream. One of the things that I realized is that to achieve the old dream I had to be someone besides me. I had to act a certain way, do things a certain way, make decisions based on everyone's approvals and not on my own instincts and morals, and most of all set everything I love on a shelf to collect dust while I chased a dream of impossibilities. As I reflect on the past year I found that I never want to travel that road again, I fear the day that I lose me to satisfy everyone else, I fear losing my family to follow a want, and I most of all hate that I failed myself. I also realised that my failure taught our children not to be afraid of chasing dreams and don't be scared of failing so much that they are only dreams, that when things fall apart you find out who your real friends and true family (not always blood) are, but most of all you find the courage to dream something else and start over. So for 2014 my dream is to build The Copper Cottage into the family business that my husband and I dreamed it to be where all of our kids can find a place in when they are ready. To find peace with the past and forgive those that hurt me, but most of all find joy and peace for me!
