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Marybeth Hancher

Marybeth Hancher

January 2021 Recap | 365 Photo Project

February 5, 2021

I’m not sure I could have asked for a better January.
Snow.
Books & Blankets.
Girls baking and playing all day.
All day.

The year has begun, and we’ve made it a point to seek and share the happiness this world needs and find the strength we once lost. Some changes have been made in our home— for one, our television is finally off more than it’s on. Believe it or not, that minor switch actually opened up an entirely different realm of possibility in our lives. Natasha almost immediately began speaking in significantly longer sentences with more clarity, and now expresses herself and her needs outside of the, ahem, stereotypical “terrible two” way we’ve all grown to accept. (A parents rite of passage? Maybe. But excuse me for not being willing to accept that and saying what we’ve all thought at some point in time: “Get your tush off the floor and tell me what you want!”) Turns out, less Daniel Tiger = more talking, less tantruming. Yes, that’s a word now.

And that’s just Tasha. Without the chatter of the TV, Nadia picked back up on the things she used to do often— drawing pictures and making up stories, in particular. She has created hundreds of adorable illustrations of her dancing ballerina characters, and on the daily, I’ve been gifted a beautiful portrait of myself. Where Nadia goes, Natasha does, too, so I also have many precious scribble drawings that have been given to me by way of pattering little toes racing across our hardwood floors with a big announcement and song: “Mama, a picture! A picture for you. Find you own way to saay, I love ‘ooou.” (Well, gosh, I suppose a little Daniel Tiger ain’t never hurt nobody.) I’m going to bind all of their artwork into a volume or three of books… because our refrigerator is officially out of real estate.

I never thought we had too much screen time going on in our home, but I started to realize that over the past year I had begun to rely on devices more than I had previously. Myself included. At the tail end of January, I decided that enough was enough with my social media use because:
1. I’m under no obligation to share every story I have and every photo I take.
2. I’m absolutely not cool with Zuckerburg and Co. of the social networks taking ownership of my devices, photos, etc. and would much rather put the bulk of them on the website I own vs. the one THEY own. (But I won’t dive into all my feels about that right now. You’re welcome.) 😉
3. Time with family & friends and doing the things I love without the distraction of a screen beckoning me to check, scroll, check, share will ALWAYS feel more fueling and life-giving.

And you know what? My productivity, creativity, energy, happiness, ALL the good things has skyrocketed over the past week or so, just by making that one little change to ditch distracting apps from my phone and not feel the need to “make sure I’m not missing anything.” (Yo, it’s 2021. If there’s something super important you need to know, people will figure out a way to get ahold of you outside of you having to search for the info on Facebook. Seriously.) Also, personalized check-ins and photo shares via text are more special because it shows the people you love that you’re thinking of them individually, not just linking them in with the group of acquaintances you met at a bar in your 20s and have, for whatever reason, kept on your “friends list” for a decade or more. But anyways…

I’ve given myself some grace because, let’s be real, 2020 was bogus. Now that I’m feeling better and more energetic (thanks to the ridiculous amount of Traditional Chinese Medicine herbs I take on the daily- ha!) and have begrudgingly adapted to life as we now know it, I have noticed that my lack of presence has directly affecting all of us. And I’m changing it. If I may toot my own horn for a minute, I’m actually a fairly decent mom that is more entertaining than anything PBS Kids could offer my girls. I’ve got my own set of characters I perform on the daily, and if they want a familiar one, I’ve nailed Super Grover and Ernie. (Or Bernie, as we jokingly call him here at the Hanchers.) So away with you, television. And phone. After one week without turning it on (and later realizing no one even asked for it!), I put on an episode of Daniel. Tasha clapped and Nadia joined her on the couch. They sang along and enjoyed it immensely— it’s cute how Nadia quit watching that show once she hit a certain age but then had no reservations about hopping back on the Daniel train (or Trolley, rather) after her sis came along. Still, after those 30 minutes were over, they were fine going back to drawing, building towers with blocks, dancing ballet, and, well, coloring on walls & scattering puzzle pieces all over the house. Some things never change. 😉

As for Dana and I, we high fived to our health and joined a gym. I’ll repeat that. We WILLINGLY joined a gym. And here’s the real kicker: I 100% LOVE IT. I’ve bought into the convenience factor of the home workout programs for years, but the problem is, they’re only convenient if you don’t have a toddler standing in front of you when you’re trying to do roundhouse kicks. I don’t know if you’ve ever done an ab workout with a jumping body on your belly, but it’s not as much fun as it sounds. And don’t get me started on planking with cats who suddenly decide they need to lay down underneath you at that very moment your arms begin to shake. So, yeah, that gym, huh? Throwing in a good sweat and some heavy lifting is exactly what the doctor ordered for me. (Or acupuncturist, if we’re being exact.) It’s been such a gift to me, and what’s a gift to me somehow translates to being a gift for all of us… because happy moms, right?

We’ve built snowmen, read library books, hit up Starbucks at the bookstore and made hot cocoa and muffins at home. There’s been a lot of ballet dancing in the Great Room and Billie Eilish dancing in the kitchen. And this photo project I’m doing?

Loving it.

Here’s to January. May we continue the year strong with love and laughter just the way we started it.

(Click to scroll through the photos or to view in a larger size.)

in 365 Photo Project

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with love
Marybeth

INFJ + Type 4, Joy-Seeker, Jesus-Follower, & Advocate for Autism. Read more in my bio! Thanks so much for joining me here!
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And right before my eyes, my bitty baby girl grew And right before my eyes, my bitty baby girl grew big. Best decade of my life. ❤Happy birthday, my precious Nadia Noelle. Ten looks oh so good on you! (And thanks for dealing with my tears today. Mama's are like that sometimes. 😉)
I've found my secret to enjoying social media... D I've found my secret to enjoying social media... Don't use it often and don't take it too seriously. 😉 I've learned in the past couple weeks that I like not sharing everything. But I've also learned that there are things I DO like to share. Nothing too personal-- that's for family, close friends, and my journals. But the stupid stuff... like how in the last week I tried to do a brow lamination and didn't realize the formula had a tint that would react with the brow tint I already use. I had orange eyebrows, yo. 🤣 These are the things I like to share. And also the mushy stuff I can't help but say about the people I love. I'm finding the harmony of online and offline living. I obviously like one better than the other. This month I've read more, created more, written more. I've slept better, have been more focused and productive, and have connected in more personal ways with people I love and need. It's good stuff.At the same time, I know I can't exactly connect 1 on 1 with everyone all of the time, which is where social media can come in handy. So hello. It's about to get real stupid and mushy up in here. I'll save the "good" photos and more lengthy words for my blog (or maybe even just for my family albums since it's our personal story). I always say that. Maybe I'll do it this time. 😉Now, off to spend the rest of my day with my girls. One of which will only be in single digits for hours... Yes, Nadia turns 10 tomorrow. TEN. Pray for me. I don't want to be crying all day.Also, happy 71st birthday to my mama today! I can't wait to call her after she's done with her lunch date with my daddy. She's always so funny on her birthday-- acts like it's no big deal and says she has yet to ever feel any different. Bless that strong and beautiful BFF who birthed and raised me. May she stay forever young. 😉❤✌
Why hello there! I realize I went missing for a we Why hello there! I realize I went missing for a week, but here I am sneaking in with a couple photos and thoughts before I tiptoe back out again for a while. 😉So, I'm still doing my 365 Photo Project and loving it so so much! But I'll be honest, what I'm loving the most right now is that I spent this time having the BEST time with my family without feeling the urge to post every one of our photos on social networks to tell all about it. I love living quietly here behind the scenes, reading all the books to my kiddos, making all the snow people and snow angels, playing games and the piano, organizing my home, and writing words that are just for me. I have been wanting to part ways with social media for a long time now, because it just is feeling so unhealthy to me (not to mention the terms of service are just creepy AF) but I keep sticking around because I do really love sharing life with so many of you. But it's time I do what feels right and true... for myself and for my family. I'll poke my head in every so often because I do know I'll want to check and see how you are all doing! And I'll share a picture or two while I'm here. But the bulk of my posting will be on my blog and my "socializing" will be more personal than what I've resorted to for years now-- I don't like that we all have gotten used to combining acquaintances (or strangers even!) with family and best friends, sharing the same things with everyone as if there isn't a hierarchy or inner circle that deserves to be granted the privilege of those beautiful little moments that keep us feeling special and important and close to their hearts. I don't like that I've been a lazy sister and let mine *find* pictures of their nieces online instead of reaching out to say, "You have to see this!" I don't like being on my phone or iPad scrolling for what feels like days while my kids probably stare at me wondering where their mom went. Which is why this week without IG or FB was awesome. I got SO much done. I was way happier, much more present and creative.So while this isn't a goodbye, it is a catch ya on the flippity flip. (Michael Scott 🤣) I'll be back, but check in on my blog, ok? ❤ marybethhancher.com
027/365 I feel like I'm years behind on reading Th 027/365I feel like I'm years behind on reading The Books. Slowly but surely, I'm catching up. ❤
026/365 Snow day. Thank God. Tasha had me awake th 026/365Snow day. Thank God. Tasha had me awake that entire night for reasons I still don't understand. All I know is when the school alarm went off after my 2 hour nighttime nap, I was thankful to see a cancellation alert. 😅
025/365 I've learned with my daughters, this has g 025/365I've learned with my daughters, this has gotta be THEIR idea.... and there's gotta be chocolate involved. 🤣Tasha has been using the potty this past week, and she's as proud of herself as I am of her. She skipped out of the bathroom the other day and met up with Dana in the kitchen. "Dada! Dada! I poop in potty!" Nadia and I gave her our biggest round of applause, Dana gave his most enthusiastic "Good job, Tashie!!!" and chocolates were passed all around.At the risk of sharing too much about my own poop-in-potty experience as a child (lol)- When I was a toddler, my bathroom had wallpaper with blue flowers on it. As I was learning (and feeling discouraged) my mom did what she always did... made up voices and characters that would entertain and encourage me.The little blue flowers would say, in their quiet airy voices, "You can do it! You can do it, Marybeth!" They'd sometimes talk amongst themselves and make me laugh, and when I did finally "do it," they'd cheer. That's how I learned to use the potty. I'd give so much just to have a square of that old blue wallpaper blooming with my friendly flowers.And as I do with nearly every other part of my own motherhood journey, I took that page from mama's book. And I admit that I got a little teary eyed as the little tangerines on my wall said their own, You can do it! You can do its to a daughter of my own. Life is funny like that.❤
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