Happy January, everyone! I hope your holidays were full of joy!

The start of a new year can often feel full of hope, the promise of a clean slate. But it can also add feelings of pressure and disappointment. The idea that who you are now isn’t good enough, that “new year, new you” mentality.

While I love to lean into the feeling of a fresh start, the older I get the less important it is to set resolutions and try to be “more”.

This year I have decided to focus on JOY. I didn’t plan on doing a word of the year but as I was starting a new gratitude journal I realized joy was a recurring theme in what I wrote. Here is a little snippet

“Really lean into the things that bring me happiness and help others find joy as well.”

I recently saw a post on Instagram that said “start devouring my nicest things, and save no small pleasure for an unspecified future.” In other words wear the beautiful outfit, use the pretty dishes, breakout the fancy shoes. Just enjoy it all, even on the simplest of days.

So that’s what I want to do this year. Focus on the things that bring me joy like wearing the clothes I love even if I’m just staying at home. Setting a pretty table for a simple weeknight dinner. Finally hanging the photos and mementos that make me smile.

If you like to set resolutions and goals then absolutely go for it! If you like to do a “word of the year”, do it! And if you don’t want to set any type of marker for the new year, skip it! Just make sure that whatever you do you are doing it for YOU and not because it feels like you have to.

Even if you aren’t setting resolutions or a word of the year, I hope you too will find a bit more joy this year!

xx Taylor

PS: One thing that brings me joy is creating content for the blog so I hope to be sharing more this year! I took a little pill on Instagram and motherhood/daily life & home decor were the most popular topic requests. If you’d like to see anything specific on the blog please share!