My quest to live a simple more joyful life.

My little family has been through some difficult times recently. I have been feeling like this is a great time to start fresh and create something beautiful from this experience. I’m excited to share with you the journey I’m embarking on as I make the transition into a simple more joyful life! Everyone has their own path and stories to tell and it’s never too late to begin writing a new story. It’s time to get creative and discover something amazing within ourselves that we may have hidden away for years; so why not embrace the possibilities lying ahead of us? Join me in my quest for a newfound appreciation of life, one filled with adventure, beauty, and happiness!

Some recent background

2022 ended with a bang (not in a good way) for my little family. Our beautiful daughter was diagnosed with MS on Christmas Eve. While we were coming to terms with what this meant for her, my mother in law suddenly passed away leaving my father in law in need of constant care. We also lost both of our furbabies within 2 months of each other. To top it all off I have also been dealing with the effects of menopause.

The months that have passed have been exhausting both emotionally and physically. I have also come to appreciate how we never really know what is around the corner. This is something difficult for a huge planner to come to terms with!!! I want to take my life by the horns and have decided to dedicate the next 12 months to learning new skills to help me live the best life I can for as many years as I have left (God willing there will be many more). I’m asking you to come along for the ride.

Some relevant history

Something not all of you will know about me is that I had a mental and physical breakdown around 14 years ago following the death of my mum and some other painful experiences surrounding that. I tried to bury it all under a kitchen renovation and other “busy” things to no avail. In the end I had to quit my job and embarked on a journey to discover what life truly meant for me. At the time it was excruciatingly difficult. I found no joy in my life and yet I knew that I was extremely blessed. Seeking help from my GP was the best decision I made – but also the hardest – I was the strong one who coped with everything – so this was extremely uncomfortable for me.

My GP was fantastic and diagnosed me with Extreme Anxiety Disorder and put me on a low dose of medication. She did not think I would cope with any type of therapy the way I was and thought the medication would help me regroup and refocus – she was right. My doctor also gave me a referral to a psychologist.

I met with my psychologist a few weeks later and I immediately gelled with her and never looked back. I put in an extraordinary amount of work and will always be so proud of myself for that. Looking back at that time now I realise what a blessing it was. My life looked and felt completely different after that. I have practised what I learnt and checked in with myself regularly over the years. I don’t mean to make this sound easy because it was NOT!. It was hard on not only me but Tony has well. Watching me go through such emotional turmoil was very difficult for him.

Onward and Upward

So fast forward to about 2 years ago and I started to feel that all was not well. I had put on weight, my body was in constant pain and I was generally feeling unwell all the time. It turns out menopause was kicking my butt. The tools I had learnt were not working as well this time and I was struggling to make the changes I needed to. Then everything really piled on with Em’s illness and my mother in laws passing. I knew I didn’t want to continue down the path I was going. So here I am and I hope the things I share will help you all in some small or large ways.

What will this look like for me

Undoubtedly this journey will need to be flexible as I learn and grow. However, the main areas I want to focus on are:-

• Living with Gratitude
• Cooking – this has been a passion of mine for many years
• Changing to a healthier lifestyle that incorporates more exercise as well as relaxation
• Organisation/Decluttering. In this respect I have no desire to be a minimalist, I love being surrounded by beautiful things that make me happy. I just want to be intentional about what I keep and buy.
• Personal Growth through learning – Starting a shop for my blog, meditation, yoga, journelling
• Beauty in my surroundings and myself – a parred back wardrobe and makeup routine as well as time to enjoy life
• Connections and relationships
• Including more travel into our year
• Finding Joy in the simple things

What will I be sharing with you

I will continue to share what I have been – including recipes, renovations and celebrations but in to the mix I will add some health/lifestyle related posts. For example I want to learn meditation so I will share any benefits I have gained from that experience. I would like to learn an easy age appropriate makeup regime and set up a power morning routine. This next stage of my life has the potential to be the greatest of all and I want to bring you along for the experience and am open to any questions (or advice) you have. Will you join me on my quest to live a simple more joyful life?

Life’s cycle of ups and downs can help to make us appreciate who we are and what we have in our life. Acknowledging the changes needed for a new life is an important step towards improving our overall health and wellbeing. Reflection on how this experience fits into the greater cycle of life can give us valuable perspective. Ultimately, no matter what joys or sorrows we face in life, it is worthwhile to seek a life that makes you feel fulfilled and happy. Have you ever considered making big life changes? I would love to hear about them, what motivated the changes? What changes did you make?

If you want to learn a bit of background about me.