In my last post, I shared some of the known notable things coming up in 2025 for my family and me. I also shared that my word of the year is power. Today I'm sharing my goals for the year, which I break up across a few areas of my life. I call these constellation areas in my workshops and they are: personal care and growth, health, relationships (including marriage, parenting, family, and friendship), fun and creativity, work, and home and finances. Although each of these areas overlap and interact, I feel grounded across my life when I consider how... Read more →

You can also now follow my RISING*SHINING posts and podcast episodes on Substack! This year I used my own Your Year to Shine workbook to reflect on where I am in life, what I need more and less of, and what my goals will be for the year. How cool is that?! I also used the intention page of the workbook to brainstorm and come up with my word for the year. It was gratifying and exciting to use a tool I created. I have so much to think and write about for a new year. This year I'm going... Read more →

Every year I marvel at how fast a year goes but how much it holds. Before I look ahead to 2025 I'm reflecting on 2024, all that it held, and what I learned. I hope you're finding some time to reflect on that past year, and to set some intentions for the new year. If you'd like to reflect and set intentions with guidance in an encouraging workshop setting, Your Year to Shine is still open for registration. All the workshop content is available now and we'll have our first workshop meeting on Sunday, January 5. And now to reflect... Read more →

We sailed past the year's half-way point in early July. At the time, I was too immersed in summer and preparing for my new workshop to reflect on my 2024 goals. But I don't want to miss the chance to check in. At the year's halfway point (or thereabouts) I can see where I'm making progress, and where I'm not. For goals I'm not making progress on I can decide if I'll commit to making them happen, perhaps with a different approach than I've tried before, or if it's time to let something go. So, let's check in! Here's an... Read more →

More than halfway through January and I think I'm finally feeling the rhythm of the new year. We seem to be making progress on the parenting hard stuff I mentioned and will keep at it. Chris and I have been revisiting and tweaking some family routines like screen time, manners at the dinner table, and chores which has me feeling like we're righting a listing ship. And I'm finding everyday routines again for my work as well as laundry, dinner, and tidying which all felt quite out of sorts over the holidays. It feels like a good tidying of sorts... Read more →

Team Wharton on the last day of 2023! At the end of 2022 I wrote myself a quick email to be delivered at the end of the year. It arrived in my inbox yesterday. I wrote briefly about "what's great right now" and "what's hard right now" and hoped for my future self that the hard stuff would be less so by this time. And a few of the hard things do feel better! At this time last year we were carrying the disappointment of Chris not getting sabbatical which Chris has now processed and put behind him. I was... Read more →

July 2 was the half-way point of the year which got me thinking about checking in on my 2023 goals. Here's what I said I'd accomplish and how I'm doing if you'd like to see... Personal care & growth + Read 80 books. Rocking this one and loving it. I always feel happier when I'm reading good books. I'm in a great reading groove and have already finished 63 books this year. So I'll definitely surpass my goal and I bet will finish 100 books or more this year. Looking ahead: I like to always have an audiobook and a... Read more →

I had hoped to get our annual family photo by now but alas! So this one from New Year's Eve will have to suffice. On the first Monday of the year, when all three kids were back in school and daycare, Chris and I embarked on a house-wide power delcuttering. It was just what I needed to banish the slightly tired and blah feeling I was carrying into the new year. When we were done we had donated, sold, or gifted bags and bags of things we no longer needed, the kids' closets were tidy and had empty space to... Read more →

It's time to say goodbye to 2022. I'm in an end-of-year contemplative mood and am enjoying listening to podcast episodes and reading blog posts reflecting on the year. There are so many highlights and changes to celebrate from this past year. Some of the good changes brought challenges too, like relocating to a new city for a month and being out of our routines, living through a whole-home renovation, and keeping up with an ever-changing toddler and our big boys. Reflecting on the past year helps me to see and celebrate growth and accomplishments, big and small. This practice also... Read more →

Hey, 2022! Come on in. And please behave yourself; we've had some trouble with your predecessors. This blog started with a post about my goals for 2011 so writing this annual post always reminds me of sending my words out into the internet for the very first time. I'm so glad that I did. Keeping up the practice of reflecting, setting goals and intentions, and capturing my thoughts on life as it happens has helped me to live more intentionally, to find community with people who I would otherwise never be able to connect with, and has lead to other... Read more →