Setting Goals and Making Plans

Almost two months ago, I hit the reset button on my life. I left the town I'd been living in for almost three years, quit a job I'd been at for a year and moved two hours away to a town where I'd always wanted to live, but never quite got around to it. I'm staying in a travel trailer and living in a peaceful and quiet place... I call it my "Gypsy Trailer."

In the last two months, I've been doing a lot of self-work and trauma-healing. It's been very difficult emotionally and mentally, but the rewards have been many. I have discovered that I am a lot stronger than I thought I was, I'm getting my focus back and I'm not starting out each day with a massive amount of dread or anxiety.

Sure, my sleep schedule seems to have literally reversed itself and so I have my days and nights mixed up. BUT, I'm still making progress and with the two youngest kids not being in school (they are 2 and 3), our schedule isn't a massive issue right now. We'll slowly but surely get back on track, it's all about taking baby steps.

I'm working from home right now... selling things on eBay, writing for a couple of content websites as a freelancer, as well as working on a couple of my books, writing my blogs and also am looking for things to make and sell on Etsy or some other such site.

I'm setting reasonable, attainable goals with realistic timelines. I'm throwing out what hasn't worked before and approaching things with a more reasonable, logical mindset, with a new perspective. And I'm making plans that will work - all it takes is a little bit of courage, a dash of determination, a splash of openness and the realization that all you have to do is keep moving forward, even if it's taking baby steps.

One Year After the Tornado

Well, it's been a year since our world was turned upside down and life as we knew it ended. I can think of nothing in my life that has affected me or my family as drastically as the May 20th, 2013 tornado in Moore, Oklahoma. In a single instant, due to circumstances beyond our control and a natural disaster, our way of living was destroyed and our city was destroyed.

The outpouring of love, support and emergency efforts from not just our home state, but our country and even the world was amazing. It was awesome to see that there were so many people out there who cared about us and others who lost their homes and way of life. Those emergency support efforts were very much appreciated, not just by us, but by everyone affected by the tornado.

While my children and I didn't lose our home specifically, we lost almost everything inside, our vehicle was ruined, and the kids' school was demolished. My children lost classmates and friends, which has proven to be devastating. Due to the tornado making our home unlivable due to water damage and wind damage, we have relocated from Moore to Oklahoma City and then, finally, to Edmond, Oklahoma.

It has been a year of adjusting and healing. I know we're not completely there and I know we have a long way to go, but we are slowly finding our way and we are finding some semblance of normal again. We continue to keep all of the victims in our thoughts and prayers and we continue to hold hope for the full healing and recovery of Moore and those affected.

I feel like my kids and I were blessed and lucky beyond belief, and we have a chance to live our lives fully and with light and love. When you go through something traumatic and devastating, it's important to realize that you need to live life to the fullest and to take every chance you can to enjoy life.

Finding joy in the smallest things and choosing to make each moment count is the most important thing anyone can do. Going through something terrible and fearing for your life is one way to ensure that you don't waste your life. So, a year after May 20th, I am thrilled to be alive and I am so thankful to be given the chance to live life to it's fullest.