A week in!  Anyone else feel like a rock star?  Or just amazed that the first week of 2018 is coming to a close.  I am a mixed bag of both 🙂

This week for me was a little crazy…  I accepted a position (YAY!!!) that takes me out of my office at home a little more and into the world of marketing which I LOVE LOVE LOVE – yet it is new and I am adjusting to the change in my availability while still hanging on to the commitments I have with non profits, friends, and other projects.  I need to borrow from my good friend Amy her word, BALANCE.

I read a little (thank you Jill Anderson!) and I listened to a little audio… I have reviews to write (Huzzah!), W9s to fill out, invoices to send, power point to design, and this recap of the week.

SO Experience….

January 1:  COLD The 10k in ST Paul at 20 below zero.  6.2 miles.

January 2:  Love and Friendship…  a beautiful gift in the mail, my friends had their little boy

January 3:  BOOKS.  The donations at the library are overflowing.  A few of us hauled books from the library to the sale spot set for spring.  More book donations than I have ever seen at one time!

January 4:  Purpose.  I started my first day in an office in town.  I was a little nervous, I have worked mainly out of my home office since July 2014.  It went well.  The others were super nice, I felt good, and I felt I had purpose, which surprised me in good ways.

January 5:  Heartbreak.  Bailey, who has been around for 20+ years was put down (horrible words). He was getting to be too much to handle – above assisted living care.. he needed someone all the time to carry him outside and in, he was blind and deaf and the HARD decision had to be made.  UGH.

January 6:  Creativity.  I attended two jewelry making classes today – one for a necklace and one for a bracelet centered around our words of the year.  I have never been to a jewelry making class before so this was new, exciting, fun, and took my mind off of (for a little while) the sorrow over Bailey.

As for today, the 7th… I do not know yet.  The day is young…  I am planning to stay at home for the most part and prepping some things to take pressure off my week…  and it will be a week!  Tomorrow Friends meeting, take down decorations at library, Author, Books Burgers and Brews in the evening, Tuesday office and lunch with friends, Wednesday gym, book hauling, a couple of meet ups for work, Thursday office, 2nd Thursday Happy Hour For A Cause in the evening, somewhere in the middle maybe some shopping for vacation next week, Friday gym, office.. somewhere in the week I should consider tanning as well….

Welcome to 2018.  How was the first week for you?

Good morning from Minnesota.  *Yawns.  Stretches.*

I am starting to feel that my word for the year “Experience” has a bad rap.

When looking up inspirational messages for my word, I am finding that often experience is connected negatively.  Exhibit A:

Really Oscar Wilde? REALLY?

I was actually surprised as I dug more into the word.  My 2016 word COURAGE was so inspirational and strong.  My 2017 word SHINE followed suit and everywhere you looked positive things were said in regards to SHINE.

So what is up with Experience?

I don’t see it this way.

Experience is not something you get when something bad happens.  Well – it sure can be, but that is not what the word is to me.  I was thinking way more positively. EXPERIENCE is moving forward and EXPERIENCING what this world/life has to offer.  Doing something new, EXPERIENCING an event, a taste, a challenge, an accomplishment.  It is getting up, getting out, and moving in a positive direction.

I plan to run my 1st half marathon in July of this year.  That is an experience I am excited for.  I am signed up to do RAGBRAI, a 7 day bike ride across Iowa.  THAT is an experience.

I am not saying my year will be all sunshine and lollipops.  Of all people, I know better than that.  I also know that some experiences would be ones I would have rather passed on if given the choice.  There may be painful experiences ahead – but guess what?  The year of Courage and Shine also had their moments.

Thank you Emily.  I have always liked you.

When I looked at the lists of words that are suggested for your One Word of the year, Experience does not even make the list.  I kind of like that.  I have always been an outside the box kind of girl and I kind of like the thought of turning Experiences reputation and the way we think of it around.

Challenge accepted.

If I can keep up with my own ambitions (ha ha … always a challenge) I will share with you here the experiences of each day… come what may –

It will be an EXPERIENCE.

January 1st…  ran a 10k in 20- zero weather in St Paul Minnesota…  Experience was:  COLD, Invigorating, Inspirational… great way to start the New Year

January 2nd:  Started a new position with a company I so enjoy working with.  My friends had their baby, a little earlier than expected – but he is beautiful and he is a fighter.  I received a lovely gift in the mail… a Gryffindor scarf (HOW have I not already had one of these?)  And a beautiful copy of The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice.  Something I have never read, but would like to.

Experience was:  Excitement, Joy, and a little sadness too mixed in as milestones and holidays tend to do that to me.

How are you?  If you chose a word this year, how is it working for you these first few days?  How are you implementing it in your life?