I was talking a colleague today about being reactive vs proactive. I tend to be proactive and organized and intentional about my life.

And that’s at the crux of the word ‘yes’ for me. Diving in, choosing to take this head on, designing the life I want.

Being proactive is awesome when you know what you want.

Then there are times or areas when I don’t. Where I am a bit lost or don’t have super strong opinions. And saying yes is also about receiving things. Taking what comes and reacting with openness and possibility instead of judgement and fear.

The unexpected always surprises you. And what you do with that surprise is totally up to you, too. So much of life is about how we receive it.

I want to get much better at receiving it with grace and enthusiasm.

Yes to receiving it with possibility, optimism and unbridled joy.

#yearofyes #karenikayearofyes

Big boy has managed to rack up a lot of accomplishments in his short life and tends to have many academic accolades here in our house. So he gets celebrated often.

Little boy is still too little for many of these opportunities but this week he’s had his first big accomplishment and we wanted to make sure to celebrate it.

It’s not about the size of the accomplishment here in our house, it’s about looking for a reason to celebrate each other. As a type-A person, I find it very easy to move from accomplishment to next goal without acknowledging or pausing for too long.

And I want to make sure I don’t do that for my kids. It’s important to celebrate accomplishments, risk taking, stretching out comfort zones, and sometimes just making it through a tough day.

Big fan of celebrating over here. Big fan of remembering that there’s something to celebrate each week, each day. Taking a moment to acknowledge that and finding a way to cheer each other is so joyful.

I am not a fan of competing with others. I don’t subscribe to the ideology that there’s only so many slices of pie to go around. I think we each get our own pie. So today we celebrated little boy making his own pie a little bit bigger.

Yes to celebrating each other in big ways and small ways. Yes to cheering each other on.

#yearofyes #karenikayearofyes

I woke up this morning and went to the bathroom to brush my teeth. As I opened my drawer for the toothpaste, I decided enough was enough and I should clean the drawer.

Seven hours later, I had cleaned all of the bathroom drawers and all of my bedroom ones. I did not eat anything or do anything else. Little boy kindly brought me two teas during that time. I listened to “Klara and the Sun” and just worked.

It was absolutely not the plan for today but I am so glad I did it. It had been over ten years since I cleaned everything this thoroughly. I feel like my drawers can breathe again.

Amazing the amount of stuff you can accumulate in that time. I will say it also made me think about all the ideas, stories, thoughts and beliefs I’ve accumulated during this time too. I bet they could use some revisiting and sorting and shedding too.

Yes to impromptu cleanups!

#yearofyes #karenikayearofyes

Last summer, as part of adding some fun into my days I subscribed to two monthly boxes.

One of them was a collection of snacks which was fun for a while but ended up not being as tasty for me so we stopped it a few months ago.

The other one was @ipsy which is a makeup sampler set. You get 5 items each month for $12. You can take a survey first so it’s more catered to your skin/hair etc.

I don’t wear makeup often and know nothing about skin care or how to put make up on to be honest. But I’ve still loved getting this little surprise in the mail each month. Because of what I prioritized I have received a lot of moisturizers and great brushes which I had none of. And now I’m slowly building a small stash of lipstick, blush and other things. Looking at this makes me happy which is a lot to say cause I usually hate waste and things that I don’t use but this doesn’t look like waste to me it just looks like possibility which is super fun.

I’ve also just started following them and I love everything this company is about so that’s just a complete added bonus that I hadn’t anticipated.

now I just have to start watching some videos and learn how to use all these products. I love the fact that it’s all small samples so I can use them and then decide if I like them and go all in. This is not an ad. I just put all my stash together today and realized how happy this little thing is still making me.

So here’s to small happinesses today. Finding ways to add a little bit of color and joy to these bleakish days.

Yes to adventures and fun with make up and skin care!

#yearofyes #karenikayearofyes

My husband and I woke up at 5:45 to take our chances at the climbing gym this morning. I had a last minute meeting scheduled on top of our pre-scheduled time so we figured we’ll try our chances at walk-in. We got dressed and drove to the gym and it turned out all the walk-in spots were gone.

So we decided we would try to go to a coffee shop near our house and see if we can have some breakfast. It was really cold so sitting outside wasn’t going to be an option. But when we got there, there were only three people inside so we were able to order food and sit inside to eat it.

First time since last March.

It felt amazing. I think because it felt just a tiny bit normal even though we were wearing masks in between chews and sips. Even though there was almost no one else inside. Even though we could only sit for a short little while to reduce risk. It still felt the closest to normal since last year.

Yes to tiny glimpses of normalcy. Yes to delicious avocado toast. And yes to coffee!

#yearofyes #karenikayearofyes

Since we’ve started working from home, my workplace has been doing small and big gestures to try to make working from home smoother.

Last week, they sent me an email saying that they noticed my computer was really old and asking if I would like a new one. I was delighted and went ahead and ordered the newer computer which came on Friday.

I then spent most of the day feverishly trying to setup my new computer to be like my old one. I moved over all the files, installed the apps I use, re-set the screensaver and background, fixed up my dock so it looks the way I want.

Since it’s been a few years, some of my apps wouldn’t work. And the many, many stickers I had on my cover would no longer come off. I spent hours trying to solve both of these problems.

But I could not.

Frustrated, I put it all aside and didn’t touch it all weekend. And now I am sitting here and thinking that maybe there’s a lesson here for me. Maybe this is a moment in time where I get to take a step back and start over and let some of what I’ve been carrying go.

Even if it’s an app I’ve come to rely on or a sticker I love, maybe it’s healthy to just let things go occasionally and start over. With new routines and new favorites and a fresh outlook.

A new start.

Maybe I don’t have to carry it all to my next phase. Maybe this creates the space to figure out what I want to pick up next. And maybe this is the universe nudging me to let go.

Yes to letting it go and yes to letting it be.

#yearofyes #karenikayearofyes