2024 In Review
It’s December 31, 2024, and with that I’m thinking of the last year in review. Here are the big rocks:
My dad passed away.
We knew this was likely to happen, but it still rocked the boat. On October 7 my dad died from lung cancer. In the start of 2024 we knew in talks with doctors that he had lung cancer, he didn’t want treatment, and he had about 6 months to live. We made the most of the time he had left on earth, spent a lot of time together, got to have a beach trip that ended early due to his illness and a hurricane, and savored the little moments like breakfast together. Walking with someone through cancer knowing it will result in death is a rollercoaster. The good days are sweet, the bad days are terrible, and you’re left wondering how much longer they will be with you.
Three weeks before my dad died, they told us they thought it was the end. The one moment that stands out to me in that time when I was helping put my dad to bed one night. He was sitting on the side of his bed, and I was giving him water and helping him be situated. I told him I was headed home and I told him I loved him and gave him a big hug. He held onto me for over a minute, telling me he loved me, and I could feel all his gratitude for me coming out in that hug. I’ll never forget that moment, and at that point, I knew he also knew it was near the end. Despite the hardness of your father dying, we saw God provide so much during this time. My dad didn’t suffer a lot, in fact, he became unconscious at about 7PM on Sunday night and died by 10AM the next morning, we had prayed for this. My dad had helped us plan everything out before he died, and so it was peaceful after his death. We all felt an intense amount of peace following his death, and were grateful he was with Jesus and his suffering was gone.
I miss my dad… going into the holidays it was weird, and a hole was left in our family. But I am so grateful for the years I had with my dad and the legacy he left. I am learning to move forward and remembering the ways he lived.
We started homeschooling.
In the fall of 2024 we started homeschooling. After reading about my dad dying, you may be thinking wow maybe not the best time for that… ha! I felt that way at times… but I also know that the Lord led me to this place. He knew all I needed this year.
Homeschooling has been a huge blessing so far. The mornings in our house is much less stressful and especially during my dad’s death approaching and then his death, to be able to focus on my kids and rest was such a gift. We didn’t have to wake up early and get ready for school. We got to take our times in the mornings and I had a much lighter mental load not worrying about teacher emails, class parties, and packing lunches! After the fall slowed down, we started to find more of our rhythm. My kids started to know what to expect and how this was working. I saw all of our stress levels decrease, and I felt calmer.
I could see why the Lord allowed it for this year, and I’m grateful for his guidance on when the best time was to start this journey! I’m excited to see what 2025 has in store for us all.
Health twists and turns.
Maybe it’s being 37 now (LOL I typed 27 initially…), or the stress of this year, but I felt the most unrest with my health that I have ever. The good thing being I started to dig into it more and am on the path to figuring it out. I’m keeping this a little vague and not because I want to be mysterious but because I am in a waiting period after having a lot of labs drawn and a stool test taken. The tests will be taking a deep dive into a lot of markers and looking very closely at my gut health. I would guess that I have leaky gut, and my gut needs work, and maybe some early perimenopause symptoms… but this is all from my googling! I’m looking forward to understanding my health better in 2025 and figuring out how to best navigate my aging body to continue creating a healthier body for the rest of my life. After seeing a lot of people I know struggle with cancer and other health issues this year, I am not messing around with my health. I fully believe the phrase: Pay now or pay later — and I don’t want to pay later.
I also made the switch from an organized workout class to figuring it out a bit more on my own. This will consist of walks with a weighted vest (I use this one) and progressive overload workouts using the Madeline Moves app to start. I’ve honestly put working out (besides walks) on the back burner and I’m ready to bring it back forward in 2025!
Figuring out budgeting.
I’ve tried for what seems like a million years to do the budgeting thing or even just to track our expenses, but often didn’t keep up with it or lost track and would not follow through for many months. Well since the beginning of August, I’ve found a system that works for me and my brain! Part of what prompted me to do this was seeing credit card bills and having no idea what the money was being spent on. I felt the Lord prompting me to take money more seriously and the first step for me was figuring out where it was all going. Much like the quote: what is not tracked can’t be measured, or something like that… I wanted to at least know where our money was going, then figuring from there I can start noticing where the areas of overspending are happening.
I started by using a pay period template from Debt Free Mom which cost $8 and I watched her videos that came with it. I used to try to do a monthly budget but working off of when my husband get’s paid makes much more sense to me and it seems to work better for my brain. I customized her template and then set up everydollar to match the template exactly. I use everydollar every few days to categorize charges, then at the end of a pay period I update the spreadsheet with the totals. This has created a great awareness for me and given me such insight into our overspending areas.
My plan for 2025 is to now start working on the areas of overspending to bring those down and then to start setting up more savings for things we know are coming (Christmas, sports fees, birthdays). We are already doing a good job with saving for other things, but it seems the things mentioned above are not so much accounted for and can cause a big jump in our spending. I’m hoping 2025 is better with this area!
Other things:
- I read 34 books according to GoodReads.
- We found a new church we all feel good about.
- I started posting more on my instagram, The Purposeful Mother and am hoping to do more in 2025.
- I’m continuing to do my community bible study every Wednesday, which I love!
Thanks for reading, and I’m glad I could think through this as I reflected on 2025!
Seeking joy,
Julie
