I had a post all queued up to publish on the first day of the year. It did go live\u2014but a few days later, I realized the goals I\u2019d written about no longer fit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My number one priority was to get the ball rolling on building on our land in North Carolina. Instead, we ran into additional roadblocks, mostly tied to the HOA, and ultimately decided to take a different path. Since we already had our funds in place, rather than pushing forward with a new build, we shifted gears and started looking for an existing home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019m a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. Maybe we weren\u2019t meant to build on that land. Maybe the universe was nudging us toward something we could have sooner rather than later. Either way, things moved quickly: we spent one day viewing homes, found one that felt perfect, and closed on it before the end of the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So here I am, rewriting this post, and taking a fresh look at what my goals for 2026 will be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I like to set a few quests for myself every year. Nothing super dramatic or life-changing on paper, just a mix of goals that feel doable and a few that stretch me a little. I\u2019ve learned that if I aim for \u201crealistic but meaningful,\u201d I\u2019m much more likely to actually follow through.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My goals for 2025 were pretty simple:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nothing fancy, just\u2026 take better care of myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Looking back, I\u2019m actually really proud of how far we\u2019ve come. We\u2019re eating so much better than we used to, more real food, fewer \u201cwhatever\u2019s in the freezer\u201d nights. By focusing on what we\u2019re putting on our plates, we\u2019ve accidentally<\/em> lost weight along the way, which is a nice bonus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n My chiropractor visits also helped a lot. When I was going regularly, I noticed a real difference in my back and neck pain. Somewhere along the way, though, I fell off the appointment wagon, and my body has definitely noticed. So while I can honestly say I made progress in 2025, I also know I need to get back on track with those visits, because the pain is still very much an ongoing thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I also had a bit of a health scare early in the year. Nothing I want to dramatically dwell on, but it was enough to make me stop and really think about what I\u2019m doing to my body. As a result, I\u2019ve had to cut down on fatty foods, which is probably something I needed to do anyway. It\u2019s funny how sometimes our bodies hit the \u201chard reset\u201d button for us when we\u2019ve been ignoring the gentle warnings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The best part, though, is that we\u2019ve started to build actual habits<\/em>. We\u2019re cooking more, moving more, and even though the \u201cexercise more\u201d part still needs work, the foundation is there. It doesn\u2019t feel like a temporary \u201cdiet\u201d or a phase, it feels like the new normal, and that\u2019s huge for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now that I\u2019m thinking about my goals for 2026, I don\u2019t really feel the need to set brand-new \u201cbe healthy\u201d resolutions. Not because I\u2019m done with that journey, but because we\u2019ve already started it and we\u2019re still going. Health is now the background rhythm rather than a big shiny headline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Last year, I also made it a goal to pick up some new creative skills, and that brought me so much joy. I want to keep building on that momentum in 2026. So this year\u2019s goals are less about reinventing myself and more about continuing to grow in ways that feel aligned with who I am and what I want our life to look like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here\u2019s what I\u2019m focusing on:<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is the big one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We have a second home now, one that we hope will eventually become our retirement home. It came fully furnished and beautifully remodeled, and it checked so many of the boxes we\u2019d been looking for. Even so, we want to put our own stamp on it and truly make it feel like ours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Most of the plans we have are cosmetic, but there are a few changes we\u2019d like to make to help the space feel even cozier than it already is. Some updates will take priority over others, and I\u2019ll share more details about what we\u2019re changing and why in a future post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I am constantly seeing ads and stumbling across websites with beautiful, creative supplies and tools. Gothic paper craft sets, unique art materials, fun gadgets for crafting, you name it. And what do I do? I bookmark them. I save the links. I tell myself, \u201cOh, someday I\u2019ll totally get that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And then\u2026 I don\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So in 2026, I want to change that pattern. My second goal is to actively invest<\/em> in my creativity instead of just window shopping.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m setting a simple rule for myself: once a month, I will choose one site or one product and actually order something<\/strong>, a new tool, supply, kit, or resource that sparks inspiration. It doesn\u2019t have to be big or expensive. It just needs to be something that says, \u201cYou\u2019re allowed to take your creativity seriously. It\u2019s not frivolous. It matters.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Whether it\u2019s that cool gothic paper craft set, new materials for my art projects, or something totally unexpected that gives me a creative nudge, I want to open more packages that feel like possibilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This isn\u2019t about hoarding supplies; it\u2019s about giving myself permission to play, learn, and grow as a creative person. My creativity is part of who I am, and I want my actions and my shopping cart to reflect that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This might be the most important goal of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Next year is going to be full. Between health maintenance, big life changes like the new house, creative projects, and the normal ups and downs of life, there are going to be plenty of opportunities for stress to sneak in and set off old triggers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So my third goal is this: I will try to be kinder to myself.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n That means:<\/p>\n\n\n\n I want to remember that it\u2019s okay to be a work-in-progress. It\u2019s okay to have days where I\u2019m not productive or positive or \u201con top of it.\u201d I\u2019m human. The goal is not to avoid stress completely (as if that\u2019s even possible) but to meet it with more compassion and less self-criticism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As I step into 2026, I\u2019m carrying forward the healthier habits we built, the creative spark that\u2019s been growing, and a deep desire to treat myself with more kindness. I don\u2019t know exactly how everything will unfold, but I do know this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m giving myself permission to dream big, to create freely, and to rest when I need it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And that feels like a pretty good place to start.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I had a post all queued up to publish on the first day of the year. It did go live\u2014but a few days later, I realized the goals I\u2019d written about no longer fit. My number one priority was to get the ball rolling on building on our land in North Carolina. Instead, we ran […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4463,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[195],"tags":[210,207,23,3,4,26,11,12,13,29,30,15,31,16,33,81,18,148],"class_list":["post-4435","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mental-health","tag-resilience","tag-positive-affirmation","tag-self-care","tag-happiness","tag-happy","tag-sadness","tag-positive","tag-positivity","tag-motivation","tag-blessings","tag-appreciation","tag-self-love","tag-patience","tag-positive-thinking","tag-friends","tag-cozy","tag-depression","tag-happy-bunny-tales"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/happybunnytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4435","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/happybunnytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/happybunnytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/happybunnytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/happybunnytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4435"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/happybunnytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4435\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4464,"href":"https:\/\/happybunnytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4435\/revisions\/4464"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/happybunnytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4463"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/happybunnytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4435"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/happybunnytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4435"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/happybunnytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4435"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Looking Ahead to 2026: New Season, New Goals<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Goal 1: Put Our Stamp on Our New NC Home<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Goal 2: Invest in My Creativity (On Purpose)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nGoal 3: Be Kinder to Myself<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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