I’ve been feeling a bit disconnected lately and it’s got me in kind of a weird headspace. The kids have been sick for a week, which is stressful enough because they’ve missed a lot of school as a result. As I’m writing this, I can hear them both coughing in the living room and they’re supposed to returning to school in the morning.

It’s nothing more than a cold or sinus thing but I know I would be upset if my kids came home from school as we’re drowning in new COVID cases, telling me that there was a kid in their class coughing and hacking up a lung all day. I would be livid that this child was allowed to return to school.

Ohio is back up to over 10,000 new infections a day and hospitals are filling to capacity. I feel incredibly irresponsible trying to send my kids back while they’re still showing cold or sinus symptoms. I have to call both schools on Monday and figure out how to best handle this. Are negative COVID tests enough to make it a safe return? This is so frustrating and overwhelming.

I wish we could just put this whole nightmare behind us and move forward but unfortunately, it looks to be getting worse before it gets better. That’s really scary and I’m not sure what to do with that.

The kids are fine and in really good moods, which is a positive thing. We went for a 4.5 mile hike yesterday and for the most part, everyone did great. I know they’re fine and this is nothing to be concerned about other than the fact that COVID is complicating everything and forcing a different approach to things like this.

I’ve been refocusing on work this past week and I’m making some changes that will help me to reach my goals. I’ll talk about those goals in more detail another time but progress is progress.

By this Thursday, I will have done seven interviews in five days. That’s almost two months worth of content for the podcast. I’m really excited about this because I want to put a major focus on the podcast going forward. It’s a great source of income and that will only improve as I continue to grow. It also helps that I actually enjoy doing this stuff. I really like meeting and learning from all these new people and I’m working on ways to become more efficient in post. I’ve already been able to shave about an hour of work from each episode and that’s a pretty good start.

I’m starting a new series that will publish twice a month for right now. This new series that I’ve yet to name, will be with Dennis Procopio. You can check out our latest episode here. Dennis is a friend of mine and also a life coach for men. We are going to take on topics that men seem to struggle with. I want to be a part of helping guys be better versions of themselves and maybe even provide some insight for those people who rightfully find men to be confusing creatures. I think a great deal of positive can come from this. Right now we’re looking at two episodes a month and possibly more as we move forward. Good stuff.

One of my longterm goals is to cultivate a situation in which I do what I love, while building wealth in the background. It’s very possible and I’m making strides in that direction currently. I’m determined to succeed. As my kids get older, I can begin thinking about life after kids. My dream is to provide so that my kids have what they need, my partner wouldn’t have to work and we can travel the country, visiting and hiking all the National Parks. Talk about amazing memories and if life is all about the people we grow with, making memories and the experiences we have together, I think that would be a fulfilling life. As I said, I’m motivated to build solutions that lead to this being a possibility.

I started this post out stating I was feeling a bit disconnected. Maybe that wasn’t the right choice of words. I’m in a good place and my life is going in a positive direction. So much has changed recently. New schedules, and new responsibilities have disrupted the balance I had become accustomed to and comfortable with. When this happens, I can begin to experience anxiety. You know what though, that’s okay. It just means I need to better adapt and restrike that balance once again.

Life isn’t about perfection. It’s more about what we make out of the imperfect life we’ve been given.

Finding a better balance is one of my top priorities right now. I have too many good things going on in my life to allow a disruption in balance to throw me for a loop. The old me would definitely be struggling but the me that exists today is taking a deep breath, remaining confident, and getting back to work.

I hope you all have a great week. Please remember to check out my latest podcast episode here. It would be super helpful if you shared it as well and that only takes a few seconds. ☺

I wanted to end this post by sharing some of the pictures from our hiking trip this weekend. I really had fun with the boys and we made some great memories, at least in my view.

Also, before I forget, we made two attempts at this hiking trip this weekend. The first time was derailed by this little thing.

I was driving 70 mph down the interstate and saw this little kitten on the side of the freeway. She was scared and wandering into the road. I was able to stop about 3/4 of a mile down the road, so I pulled over. I ran back and she still hadn’t been hit by traffic. I scooped her up and ran back to the car. I do understand that by doing this, especially with the kids in the car, has all but guaranteed we are adopting a kitten. I’m not totally sold on the idea yet and do not want another cat. Having said that, it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world and I feel good that I was in the right place at the right time. She’s maybe six weeks old but in good health. Looks like someone dumped her on the side of the road. Very sad.

Anyway, she was rescued on our first attempt to go hiking. We ended up turning around and going home. We made it the following day though. ☺