I have a not-so-secret secret.  This isn’t my first blog.  I started one in college a dozen-ish years ago, and I went through cycles of posting a whole lot of lists, or a whole lot of recipes, or a whole lot of scrapbook pages and cards.  In all of that time, I graduated from college, failed rather spectacularly at a career in financial planning, had two really good relationships followed by two even worse breakups, a couple of soul-sucking jobs that just paid the bills, an amazing group of friends at a company that I finally loved and which ultimately went out of business, an out-of-state move that started with a sense of adventure and ended with a sense of isolation, and a lot of hours in the car wondering where I go from here.  I spent the last few years in my bubble, feeling like I didn’t really have much to say to the world.  I was just working all the time anyway…what was there to talk about?  Nobody wants to hear my work stories (okay, you might want to hear a FEW of them…I’ve got some doozies).  I felt stuck.  In a rut.  Defined by my job and not much else.

In the last year and a half, I transferred locations and moved back to Illinois, bought a condo, and decided to get serious about my essential oil side gig.  I also realized that moving back to my support network wasn’t quite the golden ticket I was hoping for.  Don’t get me wrong…I love being back around friends and family…but it turns out the larger problem is that I just haven’t invested much time in myself in the last few years.

But self-awareness is half the battle, right?  I know I’m good at my job, but that’s not all I’m good at.  So I’m working on it.  I’m (VERY slowly) working on renovating my condo, I’m taking classes and learning new things, and I’m ‘creating’ again.  I’m trying to take my lunch breaks at work, and I’m trying to leave work on time (it’s harder than it sounds).  I’m working on being more intentional with my time, so I can spend more of it with friends and family.  I’m fighting the knee-jerk “I can do it myself.  I don’t need help.” reaction that comes with my fiercely independent streak.  And I’m really making a concerted effort to reduce my stress…or at least to deal with it in healthier ways.

So this is going to be my little journey.  My new blog with my new outlook and my new plans.  A story about my dogs, and my oils, and my fixer upper…my craft supplies and my big ideas…my sarcasm and my eclectic taste in music and my camera.  I hope you enjoy it.  🙂