Nurture

Nurture

(verb)

• care for and protect (someone or something) while they are growing.

(noun)

• the action or process of nurturing someone or something.

Over the past couple of years, I've set a word of the year as an overall intention, rather than more specific goals - because let's be honest: new year's resolutions generally don't work, and I often end up with multiple goals for all different areas of my life, and then I either end up burnt out and stressed from trying to do it all, or bummed out with myself when I fall short. So having more of a blanket intention of how I want to live the year has been working well for me!

The idea behind a word of the year is to keep that intention in the back of your mind, and your whole year kind of becomes coloured through that lense (so it's important to pick a good one!). Then you don't just throw that word of the year away on December 31st - you take it with you, and kind of stack the next word on!

So my word of the year for 2021 was GRACE, and as I mentioned in this blog, it helped me live that year with so much more grace than usual, especially in my relationships with, and expectations of others around me. Then for 2022 I stacked on the word EMBRACE - which helped me to embrace the whole journey of being pregnant, even though it wasn't necessarily the path I would have chosen for my life at that time. I also gave myself grace, and learnt to let go, as well as embrace! I think having the mindset of embracing everything that came my way in 2022 really helped my mindset about birth and navigating life with a newborn - it was all new and completely unexplored territory for me, so I just embraced it! And as a result I've really loved this new chapter of my life; by choosing to embrace it instead of merely accepting it, or even resenting it, I believe is what's brought so much joy to my journey. I'm not just "lucky" I made choices and had intentions and done the mental work; and that's what keeps me calm and happy even when I have a crying baby, or I'm overstimulated, or plain tired out. It's a conscious redirection of thought - and that is the true power in having a great word for the year!

Now I'm adding in NURTURE! Of course, I'm still going to give myself grace, and embrace all the ups and downs of motherhood - but 2023 is going to be all about nurturing. Myself, my baby, and my new family unit.

The definition of nurture is to care for someone while they're growing; and that includes me! I'm constantly growing and evolving as a human, and I think it's important to continue to nurture myself through this new phase of life. My health is still a massive priority for me, especially since I'm exclusively breastfeeding, and plan to continue that throughout the whole year - it won't be possible for me to nurture my baby if I'm not consciously looking after my own health. Movement is becoming increasingly important to me as my postpartum body is coming back to me, and I want to mend and support my muscles the best way I can. On top of that, I have a couple young horses to work with which is another reason to get out of the house and pass on the love of horses to my daughter; and pony time is always good for me mental health! Food is such a big thing at the moment also, as I'm "eating for two," and I definitely notice a difference in the days I don't eat as well or as much. I never thought I'd be that mum that just grabs some toast for breakfast, but when you wake up starving from night feeds, and you're juggling all the morning jobs like doing the dogs, sorting out the cloth nappies, and feeding the baby... It's all too easy to just grab something quick to curb the hunger and think you'll eat properly soon. Then all of a sudden it's 12pm and you're starving again! So for me this year, making a conscious effort to eat well and often, move my body with intention, and do things that make me smile and get me out of the house, like working with my horses, is how I plan to nurture myself!

And if I'm nurturing myself well, then the rest will flow from there. Looking after my own physical health will allow me to nurture Willow through exclusively breastfeeding - but nurturing my mental health will allow me to have more energy and show up as a present mum too. Being able to nurture my daughter in a way that feels good for both of us is a really high value of mine, so having it as my focus for the year is a great way to live intentionally to my values!

Add in the new family unit that we've become as a family of 3, the dynamic is so different to us as a couple! So we all need a little nurturing there as we navigate new feelings and boundaries in a new chapter of life. Being able to still prioritise quality time as a couple, while also growing our businesses and personal hobbies... All while staying healthy and happy and bringing up our daughter to be emotionally healthy; yeah, I think we could all do with some nurturing!