Well, maybe not quite, but we’re on a path that feels pretty good as we kick off 2023.

In new developments, last week Hailey got braces! You may be asking yourself… how? Isn’t she a toddler? I feel the same way, yet here she is, 11 fabulous years old and with a mouthful of braces. She honestly handled the whole thing like a champ. Three days of soft foods (lots of applesauce, protein smoothies, soup, and scrambled eggs) and a couple does of ibuprofen and she was good to go.

Our weekend was relaxed and we enjoyed it so much. Friday we made shepherd’s pie and played Monopoly Deal. On Saturday David coached both Hailey and Kaitlyn to basketball victories. Gosh I love watching them play basketball; it’s so exciting! I end the games with shaking hands like the crazy cheering sports mom that I am.

We went on a long walk, peeked into an open house in the neighborhood because we are nosy neighbors like that, and grabbed dinner at a local Mexican spot.

On Sunday we went to church! It was a goal of ours last year that we never really made happen and instead stuck to watching church online on Sunday mornings. It felt good to be back in a building, in a community, and the kids loved it.

While I’m not doing dry January, I have been wanting to cut back on drinks. I had two glasses of red wine on Friday, but that’s been it since New Year’s Eve. I know “less alcohol” is a vague goal, but I do better with moderating than abstaining. I don’t have any plan to cut out all adult beverages, but want to break the habit of pouring one just because it’s a certain day/time/social situation. Often times a splash of cranberry and sparkling water in a pretty glass works just fine.

Today we get back to homeschooling. I’m trying out a new rhythm with a little more morning independence for the kids. I’ll report back with how it’s going after a few days. We’re jumping into a new unit, chemistry, that Kaitlyn has been really looking forward to. I hope to do it justice.

To help me ensure that I am present and focused on the kids during homeschooling time, I’m sticking with the “pick three” mentality. Each morning I pick three things that I want to accomplish in the day. If I do more, great, but I get a solid feeling of accomplishment when I knock off just the three things I prioritized.

The practice has helped me realize I overestimate what I can do in a day, but underestimate what I can get done in a week when I focus on just three tasks each day. It doesn’t usually include things I do daily like blog, exercise, or make dinner, but on some days it does. It’s all about setting your day up for success. My top three for today:

1. a successful homeschool day
2. baking a new honey wheat sourdough sandwich bread recipe
3. list 2 items on FB marketplace.

Time to get moving, but first (because you didn’t expect me to get through today without saying this, did you?)… GO DAWGS!!! It might be an afternoon coffee kind of day.

What are your top three for the day?