New Years Resolutions

Good afternoon prim friends.

I hope your new year is off to a great start!

Many of us make resolutions when each new year begins...but how many do we really keep?  Is it lack of motivation?  Lack of interest? Lack of self-confidence that is holding us back?  

I've done a lot of soul searching since November....about crafting, God, and myself.  I have come to realize that although I have made a good business from my creating, it is becoming more and more of a deterrent to the other things I wish to accomplish in my life.  

Creating take a lot of time...I mean a LOT of time.  Any of you crafters know that...and I don't need to tell you...but for those who don't craft to earn money, you may not realize how hard we work.  It takes long hours of sitting and standing...sewing and sewing...and stuffing...and painting.  Over the past few years I have done way too much of that sitting and standing to create things for other people...but what I really wish to do is create for myself...create a healthier life, more fit body, and a deeper appreciation for God and all my blessings.  When I'm crafting away on orders, other things don't get done...the laundry piles up, the house needs cleaning, the husband gets left-overs...because there simply isn't enough time to do it all.

So, this year, I have decided that this is THE year I will indeed DO IT!

I have always prided myself on being 'tough'...plowing through the chores that need to be done, inside and outside.  I've pushed myself in many other ways, but not as far as my body and mind go.

For this year, I want, no...I WILL...be more fit, lose those 15 extra pounds, and pray more.  I'll power through those runs, walks and exercise routines, as well as set aside a specific time each day to give back to God.   If I had an order to work on, I would just do it no matter what...so that is how I am approaching the things I want and need for myself this year.

This year I will exercise at least every other day...so far I've made it 5 out of 6 days this week.  This year I will eat healthier.  This year I will pull out my UFO collection and get busy...that includes the 6 quilts I have in progress...and another quilt for Joey, who is already 18 months.  I will make those curtains I've been wishing I had time to do.  I will redo our bedroom.  I will do things for me and my family, instead of creating for others.

Oh, don't get me wrong, I will continue to create and sell, but it will be on a more limited scale...no orders...just create and sell when I feel like it.  The pressures of keeping my shop full, competing with others and making it worth my time to create are all things that have taken their toll.  There is networking, facebook business page, Etsy teams, Ebay, Etsy shops...it all takes time, and I've simply got to make a change, for my own good.

I want more time to spend with the grandkiddos...they are growing so fast.  I want more time to make some wool applique projects for my home.  I want more time to make quilts to cover my loved ones on a cold winter night.  I want time to visit my aunt in the nursing home...before it is too late; and to spend more time with my parents and helping them.  I need to move closer to God and further from the silliness of social media.  I need to get more involved in church and less involved in the latest holiday and what I will create/sell for it...it sometimes feels so empty to make and sell, make and sell...for yet another holiday...there must be more to life...more adventures to be had, more exciting things to do.

I hope you, too, will take this new year to concentrate more on the things that really matter..your family, friends, God and yes, you.

Blessings!

Peter, Allison & Joey...we will be welcoming another grand-daughter in May - yippee!