Today marks the start of February, which means—according to my internal calendar—the year is basically over. (Kidding. Mostly.) But truly, January flew by. Between snow days galore, steady progress on our home renovation, and an aggressive approach to checking things off our winter bucket list, the month went fast in the best way.
Our Winter Bucket List:
Snow Tubing at Cannonsburg
Enlightened at Meijer Gardens
Skiing at Caberfea Peaks
Sledding at Mulick Park
Build a Snow Fort
Ice Skating at Griff’s Ice House
Make a Snowman (or Snow Babies)
Get Starbucks :)
Home renovations continued this month with some exciting milestones, including a roof on the new garage and nearly complete interior framing—highlighted by the spiral staircase, which looks so cool. While living in the house during construction isn’t ideal, one major upside is getting to witness the daily progress. It’s been fun coming home from work and doing a quick walkthrough to see what’s new. I’m just about finished selecting interior design finishes and have officially moved on to furniture shopping. We’re still aiming for a May completion, which means—for the first time ever—we’re wishing winter would hurry up!
Miss Natalie is thriving this winter and recently came home beaming about her strong math score on the MAP test. This season, she joined both the GRCS Ski Team and the 5th grade girls basketball team. So far, ski team seems much more up her alley, but the basketball season is still young! She’s also involved in 5th grade orchestra and choir, and in January they performed at their winter concert. Natalie plays the violin and was front and center on stage.
True to form, Nat remains our social butterfly. Her teachers often share that she’s a friend to everyone, which makes us incredibly proud. She recently learned how to play the card game Spoons at a friend’s house and proudly told me that during the frigid indoor-recess days, she and her friend Piper got their entire class hooked on the game.
Thomas is also playing basketball this season, with an undefeated record so far. Like his sister, math is a real strength for him, and he crushed his MAP test this month. Tommy loves winter and wears his ski suit every chance he gets. On any given day, you can find him outside with his buddies building snow forts—or indulging in his latest obsession: performing card tricks for anyone who’ll watch.
This past weekend, Thomas joined his friends on Lake Michigan to celebrate the 9th birthday of his friend Harrison, pictured below. We also had a special guest at one of his basketball games this month—his teacher, Miss Greenfield. We love her!
Both kids—and Jeff and I, too—really enjoyed listening to Lexie Limitless speak at an event last month. Lexie is the youngest person to have traveled to every country in the world, and during her presentation she shared stories of both successes and failures—some funny, some not. The kids soaked it all up and eagerly asked questions at the end. Lexie answered everything from “What’s your favorite ice cream flavor?” to “Do you still drive an electric vehicle?” (The answers: pistachio and no.) The EV question tied back to her partnership with Ford, where—after breaking her world record—she traveled the world in an electric Ford Explorer. There was also a photo booth at the event, which the kids thoroughly enjoyed.
Work life has been in full swing for both Jeff and me this year. The team at DJ’s has been working extra hard with all the heavy snowfall, and Jeff has already logged plenty of miles—both on the road and in the air. At Mercantile Bank, it’s business as usual as we dive headfirst into another quarter. Most recently, Jeff joined me on the east side of the state to attend the Detroit Auto Show with a few of our Mercantile customers. It was our first time at the show, and we were blown away by the scale of it all—especially the three different activations where you could ride in vehicles through actual indoor courses. Pretty cool!
In other work-life news, I’m thrilled to have joined a new professional forum group with the wonderful women pictured below, which officially kicked off in January with our first meeting. We gather once a month, following the YPO forum meeting format, and also make time to connect socially. I’m honored to be part of this group and excited to share 2026 together.
We rang in the New Year in a very casual—but memorable—way, just the four of us in our wonderfully messy home. The kids had big plans to stay up until midnight, but those dreams were dashed when sleepy eyes took over around the 10 p.m. mark. Once they were tucked in snugly, Jeff and I welcomed the new year with a plastic glass of champagne and a smooth, prompt retirement to bed at 12:01 a.m.
New Year Resolutions
New Year’s resolutions are a tradition of mine, and we’re already one month into practicing my three chosen intentions for the year:
Accept & Ask for Help
I am a recovering independent woman, which means I’ve historically had a hard time asking for—and accepting—help. It often makes me feel guilty or uncomfortable. This is the year I’m working to replace those feelings with gratitude. As a working mom, one of my biggest challenges is juggling work and home responsibilities, and things like a last-minute snow day can quickly turn a well-planned day upside down. This is where my community truly shines. There are three women who consistently come to my rescue in moments like these: Emily Van Vels, Bailey Dykstra, and Lindy Feyen. These ladies are my heroes. From the bottom of my heart—thank you.
Journal My Gratitude
Speaking of gratitude, this year I’m committing to writing down one thing I’m thankful for each day. It’s simple, but powerful—and so far, I’m really enjoying it. I keep a notebook on my nightstand, which makes it easy to do before bed. A few recent entries include our newly installed sauna on the back patio (currently my favorite “room” in the house, as it’s the only place to find a little privacy these days), and the fierce, faithful group of women who make up our GRCS community.
Toss My Phone in a Lake
Not literally—but you get the idea. I’m plugged in from sunup to sundown. My phone alarm starts my day, and plugging it in ends my day. It’s my most valuable tool for running an efficient life: emails, calendars, calls and texts, grocery orders, wellness tracking, Amazon, podcasts, audiobooks, lists, weather, banking—and for Pete’s sake, I even start my car with it. It’s amazing…and also incredibly distracting. So in 2026, I’m committing to being on my phone less between 5:30 and 8:30 p.m.—the sacred window when Jeff and I are home with the kids together. Helpful tips and accountability welcome.
With plenty of skiing on the horizon and family time in full swing, here’s to a month of fun, gratitude, and a little does of home reno chaos!