For the Rest of Winter

Two FREE gifts, plus my word of year for 2025

I have had quite the bumpy return to work this week, but from dms I’ve received on Instagram, so have many of you. Technology is hard to get used to again when our brains have been in analog mode, hmm?

I wasn’t sure how I would navigate my days with the kids home during Christmas break, and it turned out I did no writing. No, my kids started break with a bang and woke up at 4 am, then 3 am the next day, then 4 am for the rest of the week of Christmas. The second week of break was consumed with setting some strong boundaries around our mornings and enforcing them. I was just as exhausted as when they were little, and it left me feeling discouraged.

Then, this past weekend, they were supposed to head to my parents’ so Garth and I could spend a couple days alone for our anniversary, and my dad caught a cold so we kept the kids home. That meant instead of spending my Friday alone, prepping my work for this next week, I was scrambling to find ways to fill our time so we weren’t sitting around at home totally bummed out and taking it out on each other. By Sunday, I felt all too ready for them to go back to school (something I never imagined I would say!). Turns out we all thrive when I have my time alone to work during the day. The kids are excellent students in school, my fourth grader is ascending to a swath of leadership roles already, and we’re all appreciating our time together more as well. Sending them to school has been more of a blessing to us than I would have dreamed.

Download My Winter Guide

Now that the sparkle of the holiday season is over, it’s time for us to get through the rest of winter. The rest of winter.

Photo by Sixteen Miles Out on Unsplash

If I suggest stick season can (and should) be restful, does that help you relax your shoulders and release your jaw? It does for me.

I’m ready to put away my Christmas decorations and leave up just the winter decor, the extra plush throw blankets, the extra mugs. Join me? Pull on an extra pair of socks, a warm sweater, and your favorite oversized throw, get cozy with a warm cuppa, and read my winter guide.

From a former winter-hater to winter-reveler, I’ve written up my secrets to help me get through this isolating season while coping with seasonal affective disorder (SAD). It took a shocking amount of work to get this out into the world, but I wanted to make sure this was free and accessible to anyone who needs it

As a bonus, my friend Bethany Whitworth at New Bangs Design offered to partner with me to create a shopping list for you. I jumped at the opportunity to collaborate. She has curated a shopping list of winter drinks, books, and decor to help you find what you need for this season. These are all suggestions, but our hope is that it jogs your creative thinking to help you shop.

If you have any upcoming home design projects on your calendar, please reach out to Bethany for a design consultation. She has a great eye and is also keen to keep budget in mind. I’m always blown away by how well she listens and executes someone’s vision that suits their unique tastes. Trust her with your home projects and know you’re in good hands. Head to her Instagram page “New Bangs Design” to connect with her.

My Word of the Year

Last year, my word of the year was “nurture.” I thought keeping that word on the forefront of my mind would help me nurture my family, myself, and my community. But it turned out to be a reminder of how I am nurtured, what nurtures me, and what doesn’t serve me, my family, or my community so that I could let go. We ended up moving. We ended up leaning in harder to show up for people when life got hard. Really, it just felt like a year of saying yes to more of what’s good for us.

The word kind of followed me too. In June, I got to attend the Cultivate retreat with The Way Back to Ourselves. Then in July our family camp theme was also Cultivate. It was a year of looking around at the Lord’s goodness, which was a reminder we needed through our grief-filled fall.

The things we cultivate also nurture us. It’s worth the time, energy, and effort. The yeses and the nos. The rest and the efforts.

Photo by Artem Labunsky on Unsplash

This year, my word is harmony. TBD how that’s significant this year. I have my mind on creation, balance, concordance, cooperation, peace. I don’t use my word for the year as a goal to obtain so much as a meditation to return to. We’ll see what I learn from it by year end.

Normally I also have a Bible passage for the year, but none have felt quite right yet. Any suggestions?

Thanks for being here, Beloved. And don’t forget to go get your free downloads!