Change Your Life 2024 - March
Another month down and we’re already kicking off March! I can’t believe it. I shared a little update on how things went with my February habits last week. I’m coming into March wanting to feel better mentally. 2024 has been a hard year so far with my miscarriage, grief from the loss of my mom 15 years ago, and stress of this time of the year being when the pandemic started four years ago. I’ve been having a lot of intrusive thoughts and anxiety every day.
Daily Habits
I shared on Instagram a few things I prioritize that help me take care of myself and help me feel better. They certainly don’t make everything better, but these things all help. I feel much more grounded and like myself when prioritizing these things. I’ll be continuing to prioritize these as daily habits.
Counseling
I’ve finally found a counselor and have my first session this week! This is something I have put off for a long time because I didn’t know how to make the time and I didn’t know how much it would cost. I’m dedicating time during the workday while the kids can be in childcare. I plan to go weekly, at least for a little while.
As for the cost, I specifically looked for a counselor who takes my insurance. I asked her how payments work during our consultation and she said that usually, insurance charges the cost of an officer co-pay, which was a huge relief! Sessions without insurance are around $150. I called my insurance company to see how much it would cost to choose this counselor specifically and learned that the sessions are 100% covered! This is turning out to be one of those things that I’ve put off for so long and is now easier than I anticipated.
Getting Out of the House
I’ve been down lately about the lack of community surrounding us. All my good friends live out of state and since I work from home now, I don’t interact with my colleagues like I used to. Pre-pandemic and pre-kids I went to Happy Hours with colleagues, I was part of the local Junior League, and I traveled a lot for work. It felt like I was always doing something. Nowadays, my days are filled with taking care of two little kids, which I love. But I also need time with other people and outside of my house.
I’ve been working on putting together ways for us to get out of the house and around other people for March. It hasn’t been difficult to figure out, it just takes time. Now that the weather is warming up, people are out and about and want to socialize more too so that makes it easier. A few places I’ve checked for free community events are our HOA calendar and the local library calendar. Our local library does weekly events for kids of all ages and I’ve heard it’s a great way to meet other moms, so I’m going to try to go. The timing is a bit challenging as the scheduled times are during my son’s nap times, but we’ll give it a try!
Decluttering
The spring cleaning bug has hit our house and I could not be more excited. My husband and I have been saying that we want to declutter and essentialize what we have in our house for ages. Something seemed to click this past weekend because we just got to it. We tackled a lot of little things that have been bothering us but will have a big impact, like cleaning out the bar area from all the random stuff that has accumulated under there for the past 6 years. I took all the toys that had been strung about our living room and got my daughter’s room organized. There’s more for us to declutter in the garage, the backyard, three other closets throughout the house, etc. but it feels nice to have started!
Trying out new recipes
I’ve been very into trying out new recipes lately, specifically French recipes. I found a French baker and cook named Manon Lagreve on Instagram and I’m blown away by how simple and delicious French cooking can be. I’ve enjoyed trying out French recipes, but I’m not limiting myself just to French cuisine either. I’ve made it part of our weekends by making it an activity that my daughter and I can do together, and it’s been so fun! Maybe one day I’ll let her crack eggs, but I’m too afraid of salmonella for that right now.
How are your goals and resolutions for 2024 going?
Loved reading this, Kate! I also got bit by the spring cleaning bug this weekend - we cleaned out a ton of stuff, donated barely-used kids things and even re-organized our guest room to make a small play room area for our kids. I used to take a yoga class where the instructor always said - shape shift to state shift (eg: move your body and you'll feel better). I totally believe in this, AND, would add - space shift to state shift -- when my home is in order I feel my best! PS - we swear by our library and it's basically an extension of our home. When the weather gets warmer we will bring picnic lunches or order a pizza and eat outside - this is a great low-maintenance way to make a friend or cultivate a friendship - tell someone you're chatting with at the library that you're planning to have a picnic lunch and see if they want to join!
Great goals! I struggle with getting out the house but yesterday my husband took the kids to the park and I took myself to get a burger and pop in a bookstore. Baby steps in overcoming some anxiety I have. I'm also trying to declutter so hopefully we can support each other in those efforts!