2019 Year in Review

Published on January 8, 2020

I wanted to share my year in review and plans and goals for this next year with you in this post.

The holidays have come and gone, and every year around this time, I become reflective and hopeful. For obvious reasons, I reflect upon the year (and in this case, the decade) that just ended, assessing what worked and what didn’t. But I also become ridiculously hopeful for what the upcoming year has in store. At the bare minimum, the new year is a fresh start. For a perfectionist like me, who can’t help but dwell on the mistakes I’ve made and the things that didn’t go as planned, the inherent hope a clean slate holds is invaluable.

My hopes are set higher than just the bare minimum. I’m cautiously optimistic that this could be one of the best years ever…and not because things just fall into place. If it meets or exceeds my expectations, it will be because I put the hard work in and sought God above everything else in my life. Proverbs 12:11 tells us that “Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense.” While I certainly do NOT need any more bread (ahem), those pesky worthless pursuits seem to keep tripping me up (so.much.distraction.). So, I have resolved to focus my attention on those things that will help me achieve the bigger goals I’ve set for myself and my family and be vigilant about staving off distractions.

Resolutions For the Year

I believe in resolutions. Like, I firmly believe in them. I mean, look at the definition!

res·o·lu·tion

noun

I get why people don’t want to make resolutions as they are traditionally thought of. But personally, I want to make a firm decision not to waste my time scrolling Instagram, mindlessly consume calories, or drive distracted. And I want to make a firm decision to stick to a budget, read to my girls every night before bed, and feed my family nourishing meals. I don’t want to make a half-hearted attempt at those things…I want to be all in. That’s a resolution.

I also want to be all in with my house this year, but not in a “do all the things” kind of way. That was my mindset last year and it led to stress and frustration on so many levels.

I want to…

finish every project I’ve started since moving in so we can sit back and enjoy those projects.
hang family photos on the walls instead of only hanging beautiful artwork (I’m ashamed to say my girls don’t even know what their great-grandparents looked like!).
cultivate a calm, loving, fun, welcoming atmosphere through my design choices instead of always considering how it might translate to social media or the blog.
press in to this house, see things through, and welcome more life into it than ever before.

It will take focus, balance, boundaries, and grit, but I’m resolved in this pursuit.

Plans and Goals for 2020

Loft: This space is going to be so amazing once it’s completed, but it’s been on the short list since this time last year and still hasn’t gotten done…not even much progress has been made.
Make a decision for the dry bar “hole” and get it done. I wanted this ridiculous little dry bar gone so badly that I just ripped it out without a real plan for what we would put there. We have a plan though, and I can’t wait to share it.
Complete the built-ins and window seat in Noelle’s room. When my uncle was here over Thanksgiving, he was itching for a project, so we had him get Noelle’s built-ins and window seat started. I just need to take it to the finish line with trim work, paint, and all the pretty things.
Finish a temporary makeover of the kitchen. Ugh. I’m really going to need some cheerleaders on this one because I struggle with temporary fixes. I got started by painting the cabinets and replacing all the old hinges. Also, my sister and I impulsively ripped out all of the uppers, but that’s where it has been for months now. We decided not to go through a big box store for the complete renovation because we just didn’t want to incur any debt for this project. I’m happy about that because I want to DIY as much of this as I can.
Paint the floors…finally! This isn’t really a project left unfinished, but I do have unfinished business with my floors. My first attempt at painting them was a fail, but I’ve got new materials and a game plan. I’m determined to have beautiful harlequin floors by my birthday (February 23). Stay tuned for that!

Looking Ahead

That should take me through the spring, which if I’m being totally honest, bums me out. No new projects for the rest of the school year. I love starting new things. It’s finishing them that is so hard for me.

However, renovating the girls’ bathroom right after we moved in (due to to a leak) was such a gift because every time I walk into that beautiful space I’m reminded of how wonderful it is to actually take a project across the finish line. So, I’m committed to finishing that checklist before even considering any other projects. I hope you’ll come along for the journey and hold me accountable.

Last year I was all over the place, and it showed in my blog and Instagram feed. I’m turning over a new leaf this year though. Despite my less-than-stellar 2019, you still showed up, read my posts, liked and commented, and supported me. For that, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

2019 Top Blog Posts

I thought it would be fun to show you what your 5 favorite blog posts were. Some of them surprised me, but the #1 favorite post encouraged me so much and has helped me understand what you want to see more of in 2020.

#5 – Building a Frame for Artwork

#4 – 5 Steps to Finding Your Style

#3 – Shared Office Reveal

#2 – Christmas Home Tour

#1 – Girls’ Bathroom Reveal

What Plans and Goals Are Next

If all goes well and all current projects are finished by the beginning of summer, then I’ll probably begin to think about these next spaces in our home…

Adding windows in the front living room, master bedroom, and Noelle’s room.
Powder bath renovation (I’ve had this one planned since before we moved in).
Master bathroom temporary makeover.
Hannah’s window seat and wall treatment.
Framing out all windows.
Fireplace floor-to-ceiling build out.
Hardwoods throughout our home (this is a BIG dream and probably won’t happen in 2020).

Wildflower Home is a one-woman show put on by a stay-at-home mom who is trying to balance alllllllll the things: marriage, law enforcement family life, raising tween and teenage daughters, keeping house, owning pets, helping to run our family’s nonprofit, and working towards a healthier version of myself (aka – losing a bunch of weight). One might think I’m crazy for even trying to keep up with a blog, but I fell in love with the process, and though I consider walking away from it about 100 times every week, I always come back to my love of all things creative and beautiful, and I come back to YOU. You are a huge part of why I do this and what keeps me going. So just know that every time you are inspired, leave a comment, or interact with me in some way on here, it means more to me than I can express.

This next year is going to be a good one!

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Published on January 8, 2020