HELLO, 2022!

Hey there friends + happy New Year! 🎉

We got home this weekend after spending the first week of the year in the Tennessee mountains and let me just tell you, something about starting your year off on vacation just feels so refreshing for the soul. 10/10 highly recommend! This is the second time we have done this and I hope that we can continue this tradition because the uninterrupted family time, the time for intentional rest and fun was just what my heart needed to enter another year and close out the last. Especially a year like 2020/2021.

Anyways, I am so excited to be back here on the blog with a renewed sense of purpose and inspiration. I mentioned before that I have started and stopped blogging many times over the years but I always come back, using writing as a way to express my heart, share my thoughts and process “out loud” things I would grab a cup of coffee and share with you over brunch.

Gosh, it feels so surreal to share that in just 3 weeks my online boutique - Shop Rooted + Free will be launching. I can hardly even put into words what this means for me. First, it shows a lot of growth for me….I have always let fear speak louder to me than my dreams. I have always played it safe and done what I thought others would want/expect of me. For the first time in probably my whole life, I am pursuing something simply because I want to. Because this dream has laid on my heart and in my mind for so long and I finally have the courage to speak it out loud and go for it. And that, it feels really good. Scary for sure. But, really good. And, really exciting. Second, I pray that this shows others that they too can go after their dreams. It took a lot of internal work for me to get here and maybe that will be true of you too but friends, it is SO worth it to work through those strongholds that are holding you back so you can step into what God has for you.

I think it is safe to say that 2020/2021 was really hard on everyone. I know that 2020 completely wrecked me and 2021 unlayered all the mess that 2020 revealed in my own heart and mind. I don’t want to say that 2022 is going to be my year…have you seen that meme where everyone is crawling in quiet hoping it doesn’t realize we are here, LOL. I don’t quite feel like that (to either extreme) but I do feel hopeful that 2022 will be the year of healing, growth and continued dreaming for me. I pray that the year ahead would continue to show me who I am and the strength to focus on my dreams and passions while still serving and loving my family hard. I pray that I can continue to heal physically in my wellness journey and emotionally in my grief and realize that joy and excitement can be found even in the midst of really hard seasons.

So, cheers to 2022….may it be a year of healing, helping, dreaming and believing for you too!