PROUD

Jay & I took Emery for her first little hike today.

As we pushed through the trail, with Austyn skipping up ahead with her Auntie... I was reminded yet again how incredibly important it is to love EVERY step of the J O U R N E Y. ✨

Even as you’re trudging uphill, through the woods, you’ve gotta find a way to enjoy it just as much ((or MORE)) as you’ll love getting to the top. Let me explain. 🤗

In my late teens & early twenties... I was a major workaholic. #confession I entered the business world at 19 year old & worked HARD toward my career goals. My big ambitions, commitment & hard work ethic meant looonnnng DAYS, business trips, & horrible commutes.

But, it also meant... endless promotions, countless bonuses & all sorts of business opportunities.

By the time I was 25 years old, my husband and I had surpassed our income goals, we owned my dream house, & could afford all the nice cars. We had plenty of vacation time & could have even afforded quite a bit of unpaid time off, but did we use it?! NOPE. Too. Busy.

We worked so hard that we didn’t even THINK about taking a vacation for almost four years.

To make matters worse, at the height of our biz careers... my hubby was diagnosed with cancer & that’s when it hit me - Like a 2x4 to the face!!

I had SCREWED UP.

I hadn’t taken the TIME to appreciate the journey along the way. I had been SO HEAD DOWN & focused on my goals, I had MISSED OUT on what really MATTERED.

I wasn’t doing what I loved... I wasn’t passionate about my work.... I just brought home a hefty paycheck. And, in every way that counts, I PAID the PRICE of having a career like that. In the form of: R E G R E T.

Thankfully, Nick would be blessed with two and a half more years on this planet & we were able to *almost* make up for the time that we’d lost, but...

Do me a favor will you? Learn from my mistakes, before it’s too late...

• Don’t tell yourself you’ll be happy & take time to enjoy life once you — achieve a certain position, once you have your dream body, or once you make “X” amount of money. Instead, find a way to enjoy EVERY STEP it takes to get there.

• Find something you’re passionate about and do more of it! I don’t care if you don’t know how to make money at it, do it anyway, if it brings you joy! If you don’t know what you’re passionate about, get off your bum and try all the new things until you figure it out!

• Remember that EACH & EVERY day is a gift. Stop putting off the vacation or spending time with your kids or getting it right with your spouse until “later.” Our future is NEVER promised.

REMEMBER, my friends... it’s not so much about reaching the final destination. >> It’s about the person you become along the way.

Make sure you end up P R O U D. 💕