January 1, 2016

January 1, 2016

Sweet '16. I've heard gratitude journals are important tools for a good life, so I will be incorporating gratitude in with other thoughts as I blog this year. My goal is to add entries daily, and take photos of my children and myself daily as a fun experiment to see what we all look like in 365 days.

I am Cynthia. The mother of 3, grandmother of 1. Twice divorced, I feel like the widow of my second husband and biological father of my second daughter, eventhough we were together only about 9 months and maintained a challenged but mostly good friendship until his death at age 41. Our daughter was nearly 8 years old. I have been licensed as a massage therapist since 1999 (inactive 2004 - 2007). I feel passionate about the work and know without doubt how important massage is as an alternative remedy for emotional or physical stress, and I suffer burn-out all too often. I think I'm only cut out emotionally to manage a handful of clients, which I have since 2007. I'm still searching for what I want to be when I grow up, and I usually enjoy the path I've chosen, despite or perhaps because of the challenges of my lifestyle.

I homeschool my two younger children - Claire is currently 11 and Izak is 5. Ok, we "unschool" which to me means my children learn from life every day, in ways that are natural to them. We practice numbers and letters, reading is enjoyed daily; math, history, and science isn't structured currently, but after a recent move, we all look forward to setting up some structured learning this year. My children are brilliant and mature. I have no doubt of their abilities to learn what they need to when they want or need to.

2015 sped to a close with unusual amounts of emotional stress for me. Human, I love and forgive myself for all of my short-comings. I am grateful for the ounce of hope I hold onto every day that I will accomplish all of my goals, even when inspiration seems to wax and wane.

I'm on a journey, as my children are, as everyone is. One of my strongest qualities according to a professional personality assessment is "positivity". Remembering this helps.