What do you do purely for your own enjoyment?

Hello, friends and strangers!

Things have changed a little since I was really rippin' and roarin' on Hey Eleanor. Allow me to elaborate.

1. I was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, and started taking medication, which has changed everything!

2. I had another baby. His name is Clark!

3. We finished the attic on our 120-year-old home and now feel like we live in a magazine. (I keep meaning to do a full post on the reno, but it's never clean enough to take good photos... I think I'll just do it anyhow. I mean, I couldn't even remove the pregnancy pillow from my bed in the photo below).

4. Namakan, the company I started with my bestie, has filed for a patent (!) on our magnetic faux fur ruff. It attaches to any hood or collar. PS get 20% off your order with code HEY20!

5. I now drive a minivan and I'm not even mad about it.

Hi! As you can plainly see, my life has changed a lot since I started Hey Eleanor! in 2013.

The entire premise of the project was to create a daily writing practice. I did that by facing my fears (which used to consist of things like skydiving and doing stand-up comedy), then writing about it.

Today, my fears are different.  I'm freaked about my kid choking on a Lego, and abandoning my career goals because said kids are exhausting. And my writing practice... well, let's just say outside of my client work, it hasn't been happening at all. 

I think it's 100 percent okay to put your career on pause while figuring out kids/life/whatever.

I used to send a weekly Hey Eleanor! Challenge, where I'd prompt readers to step outside of their comfort zone. I'm going to try doing that again... but monthly, like a normal person with a life.

So, if you want in on this very occasional newsletter, sign up here or in the bright pink box in the footer. Can't miss it.

This month's Hey Eleanor! Challenge:

Do something daily that is purely for my own enjoyment.

I'm on a group text with my college friends. One of them recently posed the question, "What was the last thing you did purely for your own enjoyment... not because you were supposed to, or should, but because you just wanted to."

I really had to think about that one! In my 20s, my whole life was basically for my own happiness. These days, I feel like almost everything I do is for work, my kids, or just to survive. Working out doesn't really even fit in here, because even though I like it, it also feels a bit like a chore.

Here's a few things I've been doing more regularly:

• Reading at bedtime
• Knitting (I know knitting is "cool," but writing that did come with a tinge of I feel old.)
• Getting my nails done
• Walking my dog
• Watching Queer Eye

Each of these activities takes less than an hour, and makes me feel a little more like an actual person. That's something I need a reminder of these days, and maybe you do to!

What's something you do (or wish you did) purely for your own enjoyment? Share in the comments!

That's all I got for this month. Hope you are well and finding ways to make every day a little bit adventurous.

xo
Molly