Good Night

Each night after Josh reads her a story and kisses her good night, Madilyn lies tucked under her fuzzy pink blanket and cuddled up with any number of stuffed animals, and I snuggle beside her for our nightly bedtime routine. We first sing "You are My Sunshine," often together, although sometimes she just listens sleepily while I sing to her. After the song, I ask what her most favorite and least favorite parts of the day were. And she always begins by saying she has two most favorite parts, and one is "this part right now."

While considering plans, goals, and resolutions for the upcoming year, I noticed that most of my aspirations center on things that I want to do every day. This led me to examine the various elements that form my daily routine and then to make list of twelve things I want to do, and give focused attention to doing well, each day of 2012. Some are new daily practices I want to develop, some are things I already do every day and want to do better, and some are current good habits I simply want to be sure to continue. None of the items are particularly year-specific; none carry deadlines; none even have a point of completion or a definitive ending. All are intentions that I hope to embrace life-long, and dedicating the effort to purposefully making and keeping them routine will be beneficial this year and each one to follow.

Happy New Year!