I’ve been absent for a while over here, but there’s no time like this very moment, December 31^st 2024, to talk about what has been and what is to come.

And while I absolutely know the former, I have no idea of the latter, only what my intentions and plans are for 2025.

It’s been a year of survival and surviving. Of getting through and getting on with things. And even though it wasn’t as hard as the first year of welcoming baby boy into our lives, it has definitely come with its challenges.

You lose yourself so much as a parent, no time more so than those first few years of life. But at the same time, you find yourself. You find yourself and discover who you are, again and again and again, sometimes in the ugliest of ways, other times in the most enlightening of ways.

I’ve realised in recent days that both times during the young baby/toddler journey, I’ve started a new creative pursuit. There must be something about those sleepless nights and demanding days that force you to think outwards, of things you can do to save yourself, things to occupy your mind beyond the countless nappies and contact naps and tantrums.

With baby girl, it was this blog. This blog was born before she turned a year old. And with baby boy, well it’s been a non-writing pursuit, but still a creative one, my clothing label MA Bay.

I’m grateful for the lessons of the past, because it’s made me the strong person I am today. And I know there are so many more challenges to come – I’m in this unique position, with an 11-year-old girl who is embarking on her last year of primary school next year, while also navigating the toddler stage as baby boy is turning 2, the stage that will be full of toilet training, social skills, and developing coping strategies as he learns that he can’t get his way all the time.

I always say that this ‘New Year, New Me’ thing is a bit of bullshit – if you want to start afresh you don’t need to wait for a new anything, just start! But this year I’m actually feeling inspired by the prospect of a new year, but of course in true SmikG fashion, I’m not really starting next year, I’m already putting things in place so that I can say I started, or I planned for change late in 2024, so I’m ready to go once the clock ticks over. 😉

And I guess that’s my advice to you: Don’t wait for anything to start something new for yourself, to turn over a new positive leaf and strive for a better life. But if you find inspiration in a new year, a new month, a new season, well then use it. Use it as fuel, but you need to find the inner strength and drive, and cultivate habits that will help you to reach your goals and keep moving forwards even when you experience setbacks and failure, which you undoubtedly will – they are the roadblocks to success after all.

Some positives I am taking from 2024:

I am getting more sleep (yay!✊)

Life is getting more flexible with baby boy.

I am finding more time for me.

I started and finished reading a book this year! YAY! (I have started others but still a way to go).

I have even found time to watch a few movies/docos, God help me I never thought this day would come.

I started a side biz – a very worthy mention, it’s still in its infancy, but I did it nonetheless.

I have health, writing, financial and life goals in my mind, and I’m not really sure about which approach I’m going to take to achieve them, but like I’ve learnt in the last two years, I’m going to go about it day by day, not get down about setbacks, remind myself that fear is boring and pointless (thank you Elizabeth Gilbert) and try to envision my life the way I want it so that I can follow suit with action.

So here’s to life: planning and failing and hoping and preparing and striving for something greater. What else is life if not an experimental canvas to have fun? If I can live my passion, why not?

Let’s do this.

Happy New Year 2025 all.