2017 holds mixed emotions for me! I had huge goals for big projects and then life sort of took over—from a miscarriage early in the year, to a pretty rough pregnancy since September— despite my best intentions, I had to let life happen.

This past year I have learned more about living than any other year and it has been a beautiful adventure of both joy and pain that I would never replace for anything!

I must say, I am a huge fan of goal setting, of always striving to do better and of fresh starts.  I love the early morning hours, because they bring a fresh start to a new day.  

The New Year also brings a blank slate and I personally can’t wait for 2018!

When it comes to goals, I think it is so important to remember that life happens, and even our best laid plans can often change beyond our control.  We can let our goals and aspirations drive us in a positive way or allow them to consume us and quickly turn into a negative situation.  I am thankful for goals and dreams, but also humbled by what life brings and strive to keep both in balance.

This past year, my husband and I moved to southern Spain (with the US Navy) and have enjoyed every minute, soaking in this beautiful country and culture.  We were able to do a bit of traveling and loved exploring the beauty of Ireland, France and Iceland.  A miscarriage rocked me pretty hard, both physically and emotionally, but also lead me to re-branding to Flourish, a change I am so grateful for and one I can’t wait to build in this upcoming year.  

We are looking forward to welcoming our little miracle baby in late Spring and despite a very miserable first half of my pregnancy, I am thankful that God has this little life in his hands and for an incredible team of both Spanish and American doctors taking good care of me.

I learned so much this past year, that in 2018 I have decided not to make resolutions or determine to change much, but rather continue living out these lessons I have learned!

It is truly an honor to be apart of your daily lives!  I can’t thank each of you enough for taking the time to send me encouraging words or offering a prayer and I look forward to a fabulous 2018!

Lessons learned in 2017 to Carry Into the New Year

When you don’t know a way out, trust is the way

After having a miscarriage in February (something I am planning on talking about in detail soon), my husband told me words I will never forget.  “Caroline, God has a plan.”  In the moment those are words you don’t want to hear, but since that moment, I have seen clearly that plan and most often I have had to blindly trust in that plan.  I saw so much beauty come out of a difficult season and saw my mentality on life really change for the better.  

Since September, being pregnant with little Baby Roo, each day has honestly been miserable.  I have barely smiled or laughed in months and fear has consumed me.  Each day, I have had to learn to trust a little bit more, even when that is the last choice I want to make.  

Healthy is NOT just about food

For so many years, I thought that being healthy was about what we put in our mouths and what we chose to avoid.  This past year, my diet got much more “flexible” but my health improved in leaps and bounds.  

I put a big emphasis on what beauty and skincare products my husband and I were using, but we also chose to invest in clean home products like organic sheets, towels and cleaning products.  

Non-toxic living along with stress-elimination changed my health in HUGE ways and I am so thankful to be able to share a bit of that journey with you and will continue to share so much more in 2018!

Stress is the biggest enemy

Living in Spain has taught me so much about life, but the biggest lesson I have learned in 2017, is that stress is simply the worst.  Stress impacts relationships, contentment, health and so much more.  

This past year I learned how to put systems in place in my life and business to stress-less and live more and the funny part is that I clocked less working hours but made more money and more impact than any other year.  Intentionally choosing who and what to spend your time on has made a big difference in my life and especially my health.  

I said no to many opportunities, events, money and activities that were not apart of where I saw my business and my family life moving towards.  Saying no is so hard, but it opened me up to say YES to so many better opportunities!