Friday, January 4, 2019

2019 Word of the Year

Happy New Year, friends!!

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas break with the people you love most.  We did a bit of traveling to be with our families and have really soaked in the Christmas fun.  Both Kevin and Olive had two weeks off from school and it was AMAZING to get to spend so much time together after a busy Fall semester.  I've missed you guys and am eager to get back to my regularly schedule blogging routine.  I'll be back next week to do some fun Christmas break recaps.

Today I'm excited to share with you my 2019 word of the year.

This is my 7th year in a row to pick a word of the year.  I love this tradition so much.  I first started it back in 2013 when I had some major life milestones happening.  I had just decided to quit my teaching job and be a full time stay at home mom to a tiny baby Olive.  My how things have changed since 2013.  I am still loving being home with my littles and can't believe how fast the years are flying by.

Now on to my word.  LISTEN.


Here's a quick little recap of all of my words of the year + my reasoning for selecting them.

2013: Change
2014: Thrive
2015: Enjoy
2016: Invite
2017: Care
2018: Grow

I settled on LISTEN pretty easily for 2019.

Here's my game plan for the new year.

LISTEN to my kids.
Of course, I listen to my kids every day, but I'd like to really be present and listen.  Look them in the eye when they talk.  Listen to Olive read (one of her goals for the new year is to learn to read more words and books on her own).  Get on the floor and play with them.  Play board games.  Watch movies together and discuss books together.

LISTEN to God.
We are prayerfully entering the new year with some question marks over several things in our family.  We are dedicated to waiting on the Lord for answers and guidance because we don't know how things will all play out.  I'm hopeful that I'll hear some answers and encouragement if I make sure to take the time to listen.  We are working hard to build a community of people around us at our church so I also want to listen to advice, encouragement and support from our people. 

LISTEN to my body.
Take care of myself.  Make those annual exams that I've been putting off.  Establish care with new doctors and get into a good routine of taking care of my health.  I have made lots of progress in this area with healthier eating, drinking water and going to the dentist for my regular check ups.  So now I want to focus on the other things I've been putting off.  I'd also like to listen to my body and make sure to get fresh air and exercise every day.

LISTEN to my husband.
Kevin loves to chat.  He's the chatty one in our relationship.  I tend to be quieter, to the point and more task oriented.  So in the coming year I want to be better and giving him opportunities to talk.  Asking him good questions and really listening to his answers.

LISTEN to my friends.
You all know that we've moved a lot.  Five homes in about five years.  I've spent a large chunk of that time trying to make new friends.  I'm SO THANKFUL for the friends I've made.  This year I want to focus on listening to my friends.  Taking the time to hang out with them, make plans, make phone calls, text regularly, send cards and really hear what they have to say.

LISTEN to my loves.
I have lots of hobbies and lots of things I love to do.  This year I want to make time for the things I love.  I'm guilty of scrolling social media instead of getting up to do things when I have some spare moments in my day.  I don't mind some of this, but I'd love to fill the fringe hours in my day with things that make me smile and feel encouraged.  Social media isn't always the best avenue for that.


Have you chosen a word of the year for 2019???

If not, I want to encourage you to do so.  It's not too late.  I think you'll really love picking a word to guide yourself and give you a vision for the coming year.  It's one of my favorite ways to kick off the new year.


It's time to link up with my favorite blogging buddies for High Five for Friday.  Join us with up to 3 different blog posts and be sure to look around to find some new blog friends.

Becky @  By BMG Blog
Della @ Della Devoted
Tif @ Bright on a Budget
Whitney P @ Come Home for Comfort


8 comments:

  1. Whitney!! I LOVE your word and how thoughtful you have been in thinking about how you want to “listen” more this year! SO GOOD. I have a couple words that have been swirling around in my head...not sure if I will narrow them down to one or have a “couple” words for the year! Happy Friday and I hope you have a great weekend before school and work starts up again on Monday!💗

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  2. Oh I love your word this year! Happy Friday!!

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  3. Love everything here! Praying that God will really bless your efforts with your word. My word is ATTITUDE. Probably no explanation needed, ha ha ;-)

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  4. I love how consistent you've been over the years with choosing a word of the year. Listen sounds like a wonderful theme for 2019. Happy New Year!

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  5. I love your word! Listening is definitely one thing I think we could all work on. Good luck for 2019!

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  6. Oh friend! Listen is such a great word for the year. We could all focus on that a bit more. Wishing you the best in 2019.

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I LOVE hearing from you!! Thanks for taking the time to leave sweet comments; I enjoy reading every one of them.