Link Love: Major Life Decisions

Man, 2016 is having a laugh with me. When we started this year the word I picked to help guide me was “proactive” (click here to read why). I wanted to take charge of my destiny and to stop the feelings of being out of control and directionless. I wanted to make informed decision, not decisions in the heat of the moment. I sat down and planned out the year and set myself the tasks and goals that I believed would help take me where I wanted to go. I knew it was going to be a big year, but I felt good about it. Dare I say it, I felt hopeful.

HUBBY and I always, always, make decisions together. It’s the way we work. It shows respect for the other person and it means we’re always walking together not apart. We sat down at the end of last year and made 2 massive decisions together. One, I would write a book and two, he would change jobs. These two decisions have laid the rest of our plans to sunder. It’s been nearly comical to see how much we’ve had to weather in the past 6 months and how far off course we are from those plans we made back at the end of 2015.

I don’t know whether it was naivety on my part or pure folly on both of our parts but we were not prepared for what those decisions would unleash. January was just horrible for me. I like to think that after 6 years of IVF I’m made of pretty strong stuff, but having to juggle solo parenting, working for someone else, running my own business, writing a book, our health and just life in general wrecked me and I’ve been trying to claw it back ever since. I’m not coping. I’m just not. I hate saying it because it seems so uncool these days to admit to not being able to do it all. But screw it. This is life and in life sometimes you can do things with ease and sometimes you need to dig deep to get through it.

I’ve just had a month off the day job and it’s been great. I’m no where near where I was hoping to be because, in what is becoming characteristic of this year, all the plans I had were thrown for a six by HUBBY’s new job. It’s ok. We’ve been rolling with the punches, but I’m back at the brink and we’ve come to realise that not having any support system here in Canberra (in the form of family) means that we need to stick together. So, another big decision has been made and while I wish I could tell you more at this stage I’m just waiting to see how big a decision it’s going to be. I’m nervous about what the future will bring. I feel like the decision we’re making looks nuts on paper, but feels right for what we need to survive as a family.

We’re betting big on our family and there’s no way to know if it’ll pay off until we’re on our death beds. The only thing I do know is that we’re in it together and I can’t ask for more than that. 2016 may be the year that shows us exactly what we’re made of and sets us up for some bigger things in 2017. That little flame of hopefulness hasn’t been extinguished and I’ve learned that at my core I’m an optimist and that’s been such a big lesson for me and it’s something I’ve learned to love. Hope springs eternal!

I hope you have an amazing day and a fabulous week!

FUN THINGS TO CLICK ON

Melissa from Happy Quilting is hosting the Summer Solstice Quilt-along and I have to say I’m loving the look of this quilt. Click here for more information.
Looking for a quick quilt to make using jelly rolls, then check out this Easy Strip Quilt that’s being shared over on Quilt Story. Click here to get the free pattern.
I saw Gemma from Pretty Bobbins using a laser level to trim her quilt and then before I knew it I’d found this tutorial from Sew BitterSweet Designs on how to do this exact thing. Click here for tutorial.
I’ve been doing a little hand stitching in my “down” time and this tutorial from Red Brolly has me excited to try something new. Click here for tutorial.
Loving these reversible bags for kids. It would be really simple to upsize these and make one for yourself. Click here for the tutorial.

COMMUNITY CORK BOARD

The lovely and fabulous Kerry Goulder of Kid Giddy has some exciting news about an upcoming teaching event. If you’ve ever wanted to master the art of doll making and you’re able to get to the Missouri Star Quilt Co Retreat then you’re in luck. Find out more by clicking here.
The lovely ladies at Make Modern Magazine are running an amazing competition that just requires you to make a Mini Mini Quilt (that’s a quilt that measures no greater than 6″ square). There’s over $1,000 in prizes on offer and the competition closes June 20. Find out more by clicking here.
Patty at Elm Creek Quilts is kicking off the “Repeat” Quilt-along on 1 June where you can learn how to make a really fun word based quilt. You can find out more information by clicking here.

SPONSOR MESSAGES

If you’re like me and you like to dabble in more than just sewing and quilting creative work then check out these free downloadable papers from Sizzix. Great to use in any graphics work you might be doing (like blog banners)! Click here to get your free papers.
Fat Quarter Shop have released their new monthly subscription service: Sew Sampler. It looks amazing and I love that unlike other subscriptions this one comes with all the information you need to make a quilt. Each month contains a quilt block recipe card that you can use to make a full 12 block quilt. Genius! You can find out more by clicking here.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase those items through my links I will earn a very small commission. You will not pay more when buying a product through my link, in fact in some cases I can offer you a better price via an affiliate link. I will not recommend something that I do not use myself. These commissions help me keep being able to provide you with great content for free. Thank you, in advance for your support!