Life Update - Baby, House and Business Things
As 2019 comes to a
close and we FAST approach 2020, I thought it timely to give ya'll a little
life update. My hope in doing this is
that 'seeing' behind the scenes will help you to understand and connect with me
on a deeper level.
2019 has been
wild! My husband and I went on a 7 month
long road trip around the U.S. and Canada, started building our forever home,
began trying to grow our family, and made some pretty big work and business
changes. All I know as this year comes
to an end is that I already can't wait for what's ahead in 2020...you guys are
gonna be super excited for all of the good stuff coming out of the Chasing
Freedom Headquarters next year!
So here's the
low-down...
Our physical situation
We began building
our house while we were on our road trip and it's now about 1 month (being
optimistic here!) away from being finished!
When we got back, we obviously needed somewhere to live, and bless my
amazing parents...we moved in with them!
The farm their home is on in Georgetown, Kentucky, also happens to be
where we are building our home...a few football fields (distance-wise) away
from each other. My whole family also
lives in this town. Being close to
family is SO important and we are beyond pumped to move in!
My parents' house is
my childhood home (and childhood bedroom), but I haven't lived here in 8.5
years, so it's been a BIG transition.
And there's another just around the corner when we try to find our feet
in our new home! Also, Derick has never
moved away from his home long-term...so there's a lot for us to navigate right
now!
We do have a really
great family dynamic working with everyone helping each other out. We are super, super grateful to have the
opportunity to live with my parents at this time and to physically watch our
house get finished. However, I would
consider Derick and I very much still 'newly married', at least in terms of how
it feels...so, as you might understand, not having our own space has been a
little challenging at times.
I also thought we'd
struggle with not being around for the beginning of the house-building process,
but that was actually a breeze. My dad
is contracting out our house, so he's been a massive help! I never really felt stressed about any of it
while we were on the road. But now that
we're home (we've been back about 6 weeks), I can't imagine not being
here...the closer we get to the house being finished, the more crazy it all
feels! We are literally picking things
up for the contractors, daily! Just
little things like lights, door knobs, smoke detectors...all the finishing
touches you don't really think so much about in the beginning.
Honestly, up until
this last week and a bit, this house building thing has been such a good
experience! I only just had my first
meltdown because it was all feeling so stressful and last-minute. It only just started to affect our work - you
know, with having to drop everything and go get something for the contractors
right away! Obviously that's hard to do
when you're running a business and you know I'm all about rhythm and when that
get's thrown out, it just feels like a bit of a scramble. BUT...we're back on track mentally and we are
ON THE HOME STRETCH!
I will just add that
letting you know EXACTLY when the house will be done is near impossible. We are guessing (and hoping) for within the
next month, but we also just have to be okay with it if it's more like Christmas
time. We are just letting the
contractors do good work and remaining thankful for being able to live with my
parents in the meantime.
Work, work, work, work
Derick started his
new job in Lexington, Kentucky, which is about 25 minutes away from our home(s)
- he started the week after we got back from our big trip. This last month and a bit has been all about
learning how to navigate the new job, hours and challenges for him. It really strained our marriage in the
beginning, but things are starting to smooth out and we've spent a lot of time
praying about it. Right now, we're in a
pretty darn good spot with both of our jobs and where we're at with the house
which feels so nice! I've been able to
delegate some house things a little bit better to him now that his work
schedule has found some routine.
Oh, and you might
have already heard (but I'm still excited about it, so I'm gonna ride this a
little longer) that I opened an office space in town. Chasing
Freedom Headquarters is where I get things done daily now. I did this for a
number of reasons including that I love to record podcasts and videos etc. and
I think it's really important to work from a professional space dedicated to
providing value to people...podcasts, calls and videos from coffee shops just
doesn't quite cut it anymore. The other
big reason for this is that I have a severe case of 'mother mindset' right
now...
I'm SO stinkin'
excited and ready to be a mom one day that all my thoughts for my business
right now are like, "does this serve the future family?" One thing that I really wanted to make sure
of was to protect my family from my work
personality. You know what I mean,
right!? I can be a workaholic and I can
let work take the throne of my heart pretty easily. I don't want my kids growing up remembering
Mom always working in the house. I feel
like it's a much healthier environment for us all if I get up, leave the house
and 'go' to work so that
Trying to conceive (TTC)
Speaking of
motherhood, Derick and I are in the season of trying to conceive. I shared about this over on Instagram not too
long ago about some of the changes I've made to my health and things I'm trying
to focus on here and there. The reason I
decided to open up about this journey is because I felt a little bit alone, but
I also knew if I felt that way, then there would be so many other women who
were in the same boat. Through sharing,
I've been able to experience some incredible conversations with women who are
also walking through this and I'm learning SO much.
It's been a really
challenging time, but God is teaching me a lot in this season and mine and
Derick's faith is definitely growing.
He's teaching me so much about my tears and disappointment at another
negative pregnancy test. He's teaching
me that in the midst of my fears and doubts and sadness that I can still
worship...and worship doesn't have to be happy.
I wrote a whole blog
post about this trying time (see what I did there!?) - check it out here.
The BIZ stuff
So, 2020 is gonna be
a mega-exciting year. I've been working
on something that's going to be launching at the end 2019/start of 2020. Actually,
I'm actually on Monday the 21st October I'm going to be releasing the
first little tidbit of what's going down to my Insider Freedom
List. If you're struggling with body
image, consistency or you're feeling isolated in your pursuit to be more
spiritually healthy...make sure you're on this list because what is coming in
2020 is going to serve you SO well.
What's coming has
been such a process...I couldn't put it together without a ton of experience
first. It was really important to me not
rush it. And now that I can finally see it
come to fruition, I'm just like, oh, man, LIVES ARE GONNA BE CHANGED! Freedom
is gonna be found and transformation of the heart is gonna happen. And THAT is
what we're about! To really give this project all the energy is deserves,
I did also stop taking 1:1 health clients.
And while this stuff
is what's top of mind and first cab off the rank, I do have some dream projects
that I'm still working on navigating...I guess you could say I'm in the process
of untangling a bunch of ideas. Ideas
about helping people build online businesses.
Oh, YEAH! What I'm thinking is
that for people who don't know what they want to do when they go to college or
get out of college, or they're in a career that just doesn't light them up in
any way, shape or form, if they're confused or uninspired, but they want to use
their gifts and pursue their passion and live a life of purpose in the online
space...then what I'm working toward is for them. Maybe it's for YOU!? Watch this space.
Podcast plans
I've put together a
new system for my podcasts with the goal to provide even MORE value on Chasing
Freedom Show. Moving forward, I'm
working to get some really incredible people that are chasing freedom in their
life onto this show. Look forward to
more variety, more women sharing their testimony of how God is moving in their
life. These women are gonna inspire you,
build you up, and encourage you...don't miss these! Make sure you're subscribed!
What the end of 2019 has in store
Here's kind of my
plan...enjoy it. Sound good to you? Yeah, let's all aim for that! I really do love fall, especially right now.
I have my window cracked in my office.
It's so crisp and fresh and oh, I just love it. While I can, my goal is to get outside as
much as possible until it gets really cold.
I've been implementing a lot of walking in between my work hours - it
really helps a lot with my energy and back pain!
I'm going to this
business boutique event soon too. Christy Wright puts it on...it's a Christian
business conference. Oh, I'm so excited!
I'm going with one of my amazing clients! There will be some awesome speakers there
like Bob Goff and Dave Ramsey and a whole slew of other incredible people. It's gonna be such a great opportunity to
expand what I know and learn from some of the best. Isn't just so cool that there's even such a
thing as a Christian business conference!?
I think it's absolutely amazing that people who put their faith first in
life are coming together and saying it's okay to be a businesswoman, too. I
feel like sometimes we need that permission. I know when I started my business,
I did!
Also, there's that
thing I mentioned earlier...you know, the HOUSE! I can't wait to move in and get it all
decorated. I must admit, I've been
wanting to buy a lot of things for it, but I know we need to wait until we're
in to see what we actually need and really make sure we fill it with the right
things. I don't want to just fill it as fast as possible. I'm actually viewing every big or little
piece as an investment. This is our
long-term home...not to sound morbid, but we plan to die in this house, ya
know. So if it means spending a little
bit more money or time, then by all means we'll save up if we have to, and we
will wait.
And then there's
Christmas, of course. I love this time
of year, but I am sad that my little sis won't be with us. Her beautiful, selfless soul is going to be
serving in Columbia...if this speaks to you, you can donate to her mission here.
Oh, yea, and then
the launch of the new Chasing Freedom project.
I seriously LOVE being able to set women free from body image
stuff. Honestly, the idea of women
seeing food or going into social events and not feeling stressed out at all and
instead feeling empowered and making decisions that make them feel alive,
moving their body out of love and celebration and not punishment...I just want
to continue to help women step into this kind of lifestyle because it is
LASTING and it WILL make the rest of your life so much more enjoyable.
So, yeah! An epically exciting fall and winter
ahead! A lot of transition going down
with the Chasing Freedom business and with our family. And don't miss out on any further updates -
make sure you've joined my Insider Freedom List - when you do, you immediately receive a
Nourish Bowl Recipe Ebook, Morning Routine Ebook and a 4-week Bible Study for
FREE! You're also the first to get the
low down on everything new happening in the Chasing Freedom world...don't miss
out!
Xo,
Tan
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