Journeys

Wow, here we are, 2017. Yikes, this past year has certainly been a ride! I can NOT believe I haven't written since March. You probably thought you'd heard the last of me, but no, you won't be rid of me that easily. When I started this blog I was in the midst of utter despair. I needed an outlet to vent my feelings of frustration over, well, life, hence Kids, Careers, and Crappy Economy was launched. If you've managed to follow along all this time then you know the struggles my husband and I had with our careers and parenthood in a time of deep economic depression. Depression? WTF? The Depression was during my grandmother's time not mine! It was a cruel twist of fate and circumstance that lead us through too many years of angst and worry. That's where my writing came in. I would feel so hopeless that life and the way I wanted it was going to forever elude us. Writing was one of the many ways I coped or at least tried to cope with a succession of what felt like failures on our part as individuals, parents, entrepreneurs. Fast forward to the present( because no good ever comes from ruminating on the past)and there is peace or some semblance of it anyway. I have climbed my version of Everest and I am at the pinnacle looking down on a whole new journey because life doesn't stop when you've achieved one goal; there is always another on the horizon waiting to be conquered. Finally achieving financial peace and I don't mean wealth and material goods. I mean old fashioned paying all the bills and realizing you can still go get $3 tacos and a margarita because life is good and you finally feel calm because the only thing you ever wanted was to not worry about stability. Not having a store rent and utilities to pay anymore has greatly added to my financial freedom. Crunching numbers and realizing I can not only make it on my terms, but go farther than I thought possible doing what I do without the safety net of a storefront has opened so many new doors. So many new adventures, relationships, achievements this past year. Just looking back, even at the hardships because the hardships only pushed me to be better, learn more, try new ways, etc. Without the challenge, how does one learn? So I look back at 2016 and I think, it wasn't a bad year, it wasn't a good year, but it was most definitely a challenging year. Doors opened and doors closed. One major door closing was the passing of my mother-in-law. The sheer suddenness of it took us all by surprise. Honestly, I thought she was going to torture me for the next 10 years. Joking, only joking. I miss that woman something fierce. Small yet mighty with a heart big enough for her family and then some. The bravest strongest woman I knew. Gone. I have no one to call or fight with every morning. So many greats lost this past year. It's funny because I had no intention of writing a 2016 recap. I'm still not sure where I'm going with this post. I sat down to write because I was feeling particularly frustrated with my 8 year old and his homework and his absolute need to procrastinate over everything just to torture this mama. My husband and I try to raise our child the way we were raised. We are trying to teach him the important things like independence, respect, kindness, communication, logic, rules, ACCOUNTABILITY.  This is a household where we use the word no. Trying to make an 8 year old boy learn and understand how to think for himself and take initiative is positively maddening. I'm not talking big issues either, I'm talking about starting with the little things like brushing teeth and getting in the shower on his own or getting dressed for school or remembering spelling words. Knowing to do these things without us asking is all I dream about. I could go on and on about this subject, but then dear readers, I fear your attention may wander and you will click the back button only to send my words whirling through cyberspace. So, I am going to shut it down gently. 2016 is over. We are in a new year. It is a strange year with even stranger things looming on the horizon. I will not let that uncertainty deter me from my journey. I will continue to work hard and try to be a good role model for my child and love these 2 men with all that I have and all that I am. That is really all I wanted to say. Happy new year World. Peace.