Happy New Year! 2016 brought us some beautiful moments and broke our hearts. Here are my 3 reasons to love 2017:

Peace, Love and Hope.

Peace, it seems big and unachievable. In this house we are aware of all the terrible conflicts that are happening world wide. I don't shelter my kids from the reality that just is. I don't bog them down with details but we discuss the good, the bad and the ugly and when it all seems too sad, scary and negative to bear we remind each other that peace starts here. We encourage our kids to talk out their conflicts with each other and their friends. We look for different ways to solve problems and we praise patience, forgiveness and acceptance. In 2017 as always, peace starts in our home and it moves out into the world.

Love is shown with hugs and kisses but love is shown in smiles, soup and snow blowing too. We happen to have wonderful neighbours who we have taken the time to get to know. I say this because in this day and age it's pretty easy to stay disengaged from the people that surround us. We could easily drive into our own garages and drive away without ever seeing or speaking to our neighbours. We have had to be intentional as well as open to getting know them. In turn we have a group of special, reliable friends that enrich our lives with good fun and a helping hand when we need it. We eat together as neighbours on occasion and in turn deliver meals to folks we know aren't in good health. Our driveway is often plowed of snow before we get up in the morning - now that's practical love! It's love that didn't have to happen. We could have let this opportunity pass but I am so thankful we didn't. 

Hope, is what keeps us looking forward instead of drowning in what is happening right now. Hope can be found in the everyday things. For example, I hope that  2017 is the year that my 12 year old takes pride in keeping his room clean! In my opinion, our own goals and attitudes have a role to play here - like supporting my son in taking action and responsibility.  Or a bigger example is mapping out a plan to achieve a new goal and taking steps to toward it. Hope is thinking bigger than reality, looking into the future and envisioning things are different and perhaps better. It may require some creative imagining but big things can happen when we hope. 

So as we begin anew this year, I wish you and yours more peace, love and hope than you can imagine in 2017! 

All the Best!

Heather