New year, new you! Or so the saying goes. The start of a new year truly is a great time to start fresh.
Your ArmyWife life is no different. Even if things are going great now, it never hurts to take a look back and find places to update or try something new.
It’s time to refresh your Army Wife life
Use this handy list to get started on your own life audit and start new in the new year.
1. Wardrobe
No one should be telling you what you should and should not wear. Dress for your comfort level and style, girl! But your closet probably has a few skeletons in it: old clothes that need to go.
Plan a time to go through your wardrobe. Weed out clothes that you never wear, don’t fit or are old, faded and damaged in any way. Ditto for your shoes. You’ll feel fresh and new with a whittled down closet that fits you just right.
2. Paperwork
We all have it: the huge tub of papers for your life. Chances are good that you really don’t need all of them. Schedule a day or even a few hours to really analyze every document.
Save the essentials and organize them into labeled folder or binders. This will make it so much easier to find that must-have-it-right-now document, especially during tax season.
3. Decor
Moving so often, military spouses feel the need to keep all the things. Girl, you don’t need to keep those things from three houses ago on the off-chance that they might maybe work for you again.
Go room by room (or box by box) through your things. Really look at your house and decide what things you love looking at and which things stress you out or are a pain to PCS with. Donate or sell decor that is in good condition. Trash the stuff that’s broken or beyond repair. Then redecorate your home with what’s left.
As a bonus, you won’t feel too guilty about grabbing something you truly love for your home. You just cleared some space!
4. Friends
This one will be touchy and should definitely be handled with care. But sometimes you just need to hit refresh on a friendship. We’ve all been there: a friend is dragging you down or you feel weird about the relationship. It could be a negativity thing, or a bragging all the time thing or a really any reason thing.
No matter what, if you don’t feel great about yourself when you hang out with a “friend,” it could be time to do some hard thinking.
5. Social Media
It’s common knowledge that a lot of military spouse connections are forged online. There are tons of friends who have either never met or who have moved to a Facebook-only relationship due to distance.
Start with your friends list or followers. Who is truly important to you? It could be in any way: true friends, good professional connection, acquaintance or pre-military life buddy. You decide who makes the cut.
Next, search for yourself in your groups and communities. This should bring up posts or comments you’ve made. Take a peek at them. What is there tone? Are they helpful or harsh? If you cringe a little bit rereading them, it could be time to rethink how you present yourself online in the new year. Afterall, military spouse friendships can make or break online and it’s a very small community.
6. Habits
If you’ve gotten into a routine rut this past year, it’s time to break out of it! Think about all the things you do regularly and weigh them based on overall value and the joy they give you against the stress. Then try to narrow your must-do things down to ones that truly make you happy.
You probably won’t be able to totally skip hitting the commissary or the BX, but you might be able to add a recipe delivery service to the rotation. And while those toilets won’t clean themselves, you could find a way to outsource that task to your age-appropriate children.
If a hobby or a regular group meeting isn’t working for you anymore, skip it and try something different.
After all, when you are happy your overall outlook on life can change, too!
How are you starting fresh in the new year? Share your tips in the comments!
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Meg Flanagan
Meg is a military spouse, teacher, writer, and mom of two MilKids. She is an education blog and coaching/advocacy service focused on military families. Meg's mission is to help families understand and navigate the K-12 world. She provides timely posts, timeless advice, and personal assistance to families with school-aged children. You can find Meg online at megflanagan.com and @MegFlanaganEducation
Meg is a military spouse, teacher, writer, and mom of two MilKids. She is an education blog and coaching/advocacy service focused on military families. Meg's mission is to help families understand and navigate the K-12 world. She provides timely posts, timeless advice, and personal assistance to families with school-aged children.
You can find Meg online at megflanagan.com and @MegFlanaganEducation