As I mentioned in Monday’s post our birth began way off plan, but we were making the best of it. When we left off I had just gotten an epidural and was waiting for it to kick in, hoping to get a much needed rest.
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Hustle for happiness
The best laid plans.
This was the refrain Paul and I kept coming back to as we navigated the moments leading up to the birth of our son. The events of the day were already shaping us as parents and putting into practice what we knew would be required on this journey – an understanding that we can plan and prepare, but ultimately, this new adventure would require us to be flexible.
It occurred to me as I was re-imaging this space that when I started this blog I never really took the time to introduce myself.
So hello! I’m Belinda, but you can call me Bee (most people do). I’m breaking this down into three things you should know about me and some fun facts – so keep reading to find out what I’m passionate about, inspired by and the things that I crave.
3 things you should know about me
Well it has certainly been a minute hasn’t it? It’s been a whirlwind of life around here too, which caused this space to take a bit of a backseat. 2018 was a year of learning and growing for me, both figuratively and literally – because I spent the majority of the year growing a human!
Photo by Jordan Whitfield
I know I promised this post last Wednesday, but after an unfortunate incident with spotty internet and losing half of this post twice, I decided to take a beat and step away. Sometimes we have to save ourselves from ourselves!
Have you spent the better part of this month sitting in front of a blank page waiting for inspiration to fill you up with all the ways you’re going to make 2018 the year you finally [travel more] [lose weight] [do yoga] [meditate] [eat clean]? Already feeling overwhelmed because it seems like you’re scrolling through an endless feed of people who appear to be #killingit already? Goal setting can feel stressful. I totally get it. Especially when you’re surrounded by so many people who are showing a perfectly curated list of their goals while rockin’ yoga pants and green juice, while you’re sitting in dirty sweat pants next to a pizza (aka how I spent January 1st, 2018).
When you’re struggling to think through your goals at this time of year I recommend doing two things.
Happy New Year friends!!!
After a hectic December I took some real time off, involving one too many hours of Netflix, multiple face masks, manicures and daily sweat sessions – a pretty perfect way to finish out 2017 and get a head start on 2018. Like many of you, I also used this time to reflect on the year that that was, while thinking about what I’d like to get out of the next 52 weeks making up 2018. There’s something pretty wonderful about a fresh calendar isn’t there?
But I also want to confess something… are you ready?
I don’t believe in New Year’s resolutions 😱
Horrified? Shocked? Well hear me out…
Looking back on the 365 days that made up 2017 it’s pretty clear that it was a monumental one for Paul and I, full of challenges and changes, but it was an equally great year. We had made some lofty plans and went full steam ahead, from travel and professional goals to fitness and finances, while embracing last minute opportunities and recalibrating our goals along the way.
Ringing in a new decade with the best people around.
Ahhhh 30. It’s amazing how much impact a simple, two-digit number can have.
This number has become an inflection point for so many – often viewed as the time when your “real life” begins, or should start to at least. In my experience, turning 30 is rarely met with ambiguity; it’s either dreaded or celebrated, but it is marked as a milestone in either case.
At the end of July, after months of teasing about my impending status as an “old lady”, I finally turned 30.
Photo by Kristian Olsen on Unsplash
Four years ago I lined up at the starting line of what I was sure would be my best half-marathon to date. I had carbo-loaded the night before, had water with me and the experience of completing two of these before, one of them on the same course. Armed with a goal and my Garmin, I set out to crush that run.
About 10km in my stomach started to turn. Nothing to be concerned about, I’d drink some water, hit a gel if I kept feeling weak and handle it – running is mostly mental anyways and my split times were on track. Paul was pacing me, as he ran his first marathon so I when I started to feel really off around 15km he pep-talked the heck out of me. As we waved goodbye at 19km I told him I would be there at the finish line to celebrate his first marathon and he told me to just keep pushing through, I was almost at the end.
But I didn’t make it.