Life Lately 12/20/2023

Hello friends! Today, I’m sharing life lately behind the blog. In fact, I’m looking back at life lately in 2023 today. Let’s just say it’s been a year! While actually the last two years have been a bit rough, there has certainly been some really great things to be thankful for too!

My husband reminds me to not always make these posts about everything that has gone wrong lately – Lol. And while I want this space to be fun and encouraging, I want to be “real” with what I share too. We tend to compare our lives to other people’s online. However, most all of us post mostly good things which can leave each of us individually feeling like our own lives don’t look so great sometimes or measure up to expectations. So, I am going to reflect on some of the things 2023 has brought, both good and bad.

Unfortunately, I’ve been sick a lot this year, and I’m sure it’s obvious since I’ve not posted nearly as much as I would like. It really started last year when I got covid. That really knocked me down more than I realized. I know from talking to other friends who had it that I’m not the only one. And really, none of this should be surprising with how serious it was in the be beginning.

Plus, as most of you know, I’ve had lots of eye issues too. What’s crazy is my husband started having trouble with similar symptoms this fall which is so strange! I did another short term round of medicine that has cleared mine up for now. It’s something I used at the beginning of the year, but it only worked temporarily. So, we’ll see?

While these things have been annoying and illness has been difficult at times, I truly don’t take for granted how fortunate I am to be pretty healthy in general. I did celebrate a wonderful milestone this year. I’ve been breast cancer free for nine years now! While I certainly never wanted to go through that in the first place, God worked through it in a wonderful way. It lead to eventually starting this blog and writing devotionals.

Another thing I’m grateful for is my family seems to be happy and healthy. Both my sons are doing well. It’s been fun watching them grow and flourish as young adults. My oldest son has been working successfully in his career for some time now. My youngest son has just been admitted to several physical therapy school programs and is now trying to decide where to go. Also, I’m proud of my husband who got a promotion at work this year.

I have been on a couple of fun trips this year too. One was trout fishing which we got to go on with several family members, and the other trip was to the beautiful Hocking Hills area of Ohio.

Also, I’m very grateful, despite being out of commission some this year, I’ve been able to keep Dressed in Faith going. And I appreciate each of you who read and follow along. Some of you have stuck with me since the very beginning. So, thank you all so much!

This will be my last post for 2023. In fact, I plan to take a step back after the holidays for a few weeks and just do a reset. I feel I need to focus more, especially after this year, on my health and getting back to more healthy habits. While I certainly can’t control whether I get sick or not in the new year, I do want to go back to exercising more consistently and getting on a better sleep schedule. I tend to be a night owl and really need to work on having a consistent bedtime routine.

Blog content needs to be planned for the new year too. If there is anything you want to see me cover here on the blog next year, be sure to let me know.

And when I start blogging again next year, you will notice some changes around here. Dressed in Faith is getting a big makeover for 2024 which I’m really excited about! There have been a lot of updates to the program I use to write my blog posts and run my blog. As technology moves forward, I need to move forward so that Dressed in Faith runs smoothly and efficiently. So, I believe an update is much needed.

If you happen to check back after the first of the year, you might see an under construction sign for a little bit while it’s being redone. However, I’m hopeful the whole process will go as quickly as possible and without too many problems. Your patience with this process would be much appreciated!

As always, if you subscribe to the blog, I will let you know when I’m back with a new blog post. And if you are reading today and not subscribed to the blog, I would love for you to do so! It’s the best way to stay updated with my posts. Just drop your email in the form right below this post to be added to the list.

I want to wish each of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!