New Year Goodness (hey, 2025)
well well well…hello there, friend (again).
Long time no see, huh?
I’ve been wanting to restart this blog for months now. Years, really. I’ve always loved writing and sharing it, even if no one reads it. I’ve been a big journaler/note taker/lover of words my entire life, so I guess the trend comes honestly.
SO HEY THERE. WELCOME BACK. MISSED YA.
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I guess that all leads perfectly into what I wanted to write about this month (oh yeah, these will be posted monthly if things go according to plan), which is New Year Goodness. ahhhh. What a breath of fresh air, ya know? Even though I know its just another day marked with a new number, and time is relative or whatever, I’m a big fan of a fresh start. An excuse to just take a deep breath and move forward.
Now, I’m not a big fan of resolutions. I think they are an unnecessary pressure to put on yourself at the beginning of the year and honestly, the culture of everyone “failing” their resolutions sets you up so poorly from the start. Like, why select something you want to improve while also having that failure-pressure looming over your head? Seems silly. So I say BOO ON THAT and I’ve become a big fan of choosing a Word of the Year. If you’ve known me for a while, you know I’ve been doing this for a few years, and I absolutely love it. I suppose it’s in the same vein as resolutions, but less specific so there’s a bit less pressure. More of…a theme to live your year by, I guess.
(from Pirates of the Carribean)
2024 Recap
My 2024 word was FORWARD, and I’d chosen it for several different reasons. I’d spent the majority of the end of 2023 being unhappy in a lot of my life - I didn’t love my job, I didn’t feel financially stable, my best friends had just moved halfway across the globe, and was just overall unsatisfied with where I was at that point of my life. So “FORWARD” really embodied that change I was aching for. I’d rested with those pieces of myself that felt heavy, and then I set them down and moved, well, forward.
And wow, it happened.
I became more comfortable in my own skin. I spent my time in ways that made me happy around people that I loved. I made new friends. I made an effort to grow in my job (and then girlbossed too close to the sun), and then got a new job that had me moving 11 hours away from my hometown. I ended up somewhere with my little family and an opportunity to start fresh. It was all exactly what I had needed out of last year.
2025 Word of the Year
Now this year, my word is TENACITY.
When I was doing some research for my new word, this one jumped right off the screen at me. And, to be honest, I didn’t really know what it meant at first (apologies to my English teachers of years past). But I looked more into it, and the definition I found read -
“firmness of mind; being very determined or persistent; the quality or fact of continuing to exist”…
And wow, what a word.
It got me to thinking of all the change from 2024, and how it really shook me up a lot as a person. Like, in mostly good ways, but WOW I’m exhausted after a year like that. I’ve had to adjust to a lot of newness that I really hadn’t anticipated a year ago. So now, it feels like the universe is saying, “Hey girl, let’s rest a bit. Dig in your heels and focus on building where you are. Make it strong. Make it yours.”
So I’m going to do that.
Build confidence and talent in my new job. Build consistency and stability with Joy & Coffee Co. Develop my relationships to become lovely and dependable and strong. Pay down debt to get into a comfortable spot financially. Make this era of my life one of joy & growth rather than one of anxiety & stress, ya know? A year of buckling down and showing up for myself.
So yeah, she packs a bit of a punch. But truly one that I think I need.
So What’s Next?
I don’t really know what this year will bring or where it will go, but I’m excited about it all. Well…most of it. Controlling the controllables and finding joy where I can.
My Big Girl Job™️ is taking up a lot of my time these days, but I do have a lot of fun plans I’m hoping to bring to Joy & Coffee Co this year. Still similar themes and things, but I’m hoping to really develop my art style into something that feels even more like me. I’m hoping to bring some fun new things to my shop (including commission work yay!), and share even more book content and happy things with you.
I hope you, my friend, find what you need in this new year too. I hope it is your best one yet.
I’m cheering you on.
Cheers to 2025. *clink*
xo,
Emma
This Month’s Picks:
READING: Blood & Steel series by Helen Scheuerer
WATCHING: The Great British Baking Show (finally), Shrinking
EATING: Elote Mexican-Style Street Corn Almonds
LISTENING: Ethel Cain, State Champs, Explosions in the Sky
DOING: puzzles!
