Ep 65 | Holes in My Preps – Thoughts From The Loo
Wow…2023 already! I cannot believe how quickly time is flying by.
2022 was definitely something. It was the first full year we were together as a family in a while, and we definitely enjoyed the time together.
As a family, we chose the word GROW to focus on. Let me tell you…we definitely grew together. Bug was born in mid August, and he has been such a joy and a wonderful addition to our family. We also grew together. Squatch and I have been making sure we both get one-on-one time with each of the boys (even though Bug monopolizes most of my time at the moment), and Little Man is definitely showing the positive results of our efforts.
My personal word for 2022 was PREPARE. I prepared to have a baby…And I have to say that my preps were definitely spot on, especially with all the last minute hospital trips I had in the week leading up to Bug’s big arrival. I also did a lot of preparation in our home. I prepared a large pantry, and ensured we had a freezer full of meat. Some of that meat was turned into sloppy joes, taco meat, and shredded chicken before Bug arrived, and having those half pound frozen bags of ready to eat food made such a difference when Squatch went back to work. I would just pull the bag out, let it thaw on the counter over the afternoon, and then I would toss it in the toaster oven for a few minutes while I was getting Little Man’s dinner ready. Squatch took several bags with him to work for his dinners (poor guy REALLY doesn’t like sloppy joes now; not that he truly enjoyed them to begin with).
As 2022 came to a close, I started reflecting on the year and where I felt like I was lacking. I wanted to make sure I chose a good word for myself; a word that would challenge me. Squatch and I wanted a challenging word for the family, too, and that word took some time to agree on. But, for myself, I chose:
Yup…I chose CONFIDENCE as my 2023 word of the year. Confidence, you ask? Yup. Confidence in myself. Confidence in speaking up for myself and my opinions. Confidence in my ability to get Backwoods Consulting up and running. Confidence in my parenting decisions. Confidence…everywhere, really. Let me tell you…it is a whole lot easier to project confidence, and act confident, than to really be confident in what you do. I also did a lot of dealing with Imposter Syndrome in 2022. Confidence in myself will greatly help with that, and remind me that I do have a voice, and I have something to share with the world.
For our family word, Squatch and I decided on INTENTIONAL. We want to be more intentional with how we spend our time. I found us falling into a rhythm of me sitting on the couch with Bug, nursing him, holding him while he slept, and Squatch joining me, with Little Man running around the room, and the tv on. We weren’t getting stuff done around the house. Yes, I have a very good excuse for not running around 24/7 getting all the projects finished, because I have a very needy 4.5 month old. But while we were spending time together, it sure wasn’t quality time, we just all happened to be in the same room at the same time. So, for 2023, Squatch and I have listed out the Little Red House projects we have and put them on the calendar to be done. We are being intentional with our one-on-one time with Little Man, and making memories (baking with me in the kitchen, shoveling and playing in the snow with Squatch). We have scheduled time throughout each week for me to be able to hide in the office and get work done. Now, we are not scheduling every second of every single day; that’s just insane my friends. But we have a basic weekly schedule, and a monthly meal plan. Those two things alone have made the first 9 days of 2023 much easier to handle, because we are not making decisions the night before or day of as to what we will be doing.
I hope you have had a great start to 2023, and that it is everything you want it to be. It’s tough out there, I know, but all I can say is, stay true to your path.
Thoughts From The Loo 
Got some thoughts for The Loo?