Dogs & Diapers: A New Year We closed out 2017 with pizza, sparkling grape juice, a baby, 2 dogs, and Anderson Cooper. The next morning was a chilly 12*, that’s pretty cold for Tennessee. Allie & I decided to take Olin and the dogs on a walk around the Hampton Watershed trail system that parallels Doe River. Freeze/Thaw is very much in effect right now, so we threw the fat tires on Olin’s Burley when we arrived at the trailhead. Taco and Dobby were stoked to get out & get off their leashes for a few hours. The best part of where we live is how dog friendly the trails are. Not only are most people that use the trails “dog people” but it’s nice to not have to worry about the dogs running up on a mama grizz or cow moose...well, except for the one time Allie & Taco came across a black bear. I won’t make it out that this walk in the woods was some big, epic adventure, because it wasn’t anything of that sort. It was however a good time to reflect on the year 2017, the changes in our life, the good & the bad: Get off Instagram & Snapchat. After spending far too much time scrolling, staring, and subconsciously comparing our life to others, and the arguments that would soon follow, I hit the permanently delete button on my Instagram. Goodbye @TetonWookie, 250 carefully selected photos, and 2000 followers. But damn did it feel good. Not right away of course, but it sunk in 2 weeks later when I no longer had to check my phone for likes every 5 minutes, “like-bombing” #hashtags relevant to my profile/photos, or second guess a photo I shared because it wasn’t getting the traffic expected. Try it. Even if you don’t permanently delete your account, delete it temporarily for a month and see what happens. Same thing with Snapchat. It feels good to not have to document every semi interesting part of your day. It feels even better to not compare what you are doing to what your friends, icons, or some hot models are doing, in real time. Join a Gym: Because I can’t get outside enough and I’m getting fat. Love your job: I spent the last 13 months at a place where I dreaded 7:30 am Monday mornings and counted down the hours until 12:30 Friday. My heart wasn’t in it. And after a while, it’s hard to fake it. Allie, Olin, and I went to visit my family in Michigan for the holidays, and that is when I really realized it. On January 2nd, I was informed that my employer felt the same. I was gone and it felt good, real good. Even though I did not have another position lined up. An indescribable feeling of pressure and anxiety had been lifted off of me. It’s a different stress now, but it feels better, like I am the one in control. And it feels good. (Side note, looking for new position, here’s a link to my resume & LinkedIn :)) Having a child
Olin is the best thing that has ever happened in my life. The little adventure girl neither of us knew we wanted or needed. Her favorite place to be is outside. Summer or Winter. Now that 2018 is here we’re open to whatever opportunity comes knocking at our door. We have agreed to move out of our house on February 1st. Allie is done with school the first week of May. Then who knows what...
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