Lesser-known fact about me: I love New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. 

Growing up, my family had a tradition where we’d gather together at the start of a new year to set individual goals. We’d start by reading our lists of personal goals from the past year, sharing how well we did at working on them and discussing how we’d grown and changed. Then, after we’d finished reflecting, we’d pull out the construction paper, markers, and stickers, and go to town writing down our ideas for the new year and sharing those with the group, too. 

I’m not sure whether I have this yearly exercise or my Scorpio moon (iykyk) to thank, but the practice of identifying what my next phase of growth should be is still something that I really value. I’ve noticed that I typically start thinking about what I need to work on over the next year in the fall, as the world around me starts to change. Such was the case for me this year. 

Inspiration struck a few months ago during date night. For fun, Noah and I like to pull random “get to know you” questions off the internet to discuss things we might not during the course of a normal day. One of the questions we landed on that night asked, “What do you miss most about your childhood?”

We each listed a few things and had fun sharing old memories. And as I thought about that period of time, it was more clear to me than ever that technological advances made since I was a kid have changed the way people spend their time and relate to each other in a big way. 

Maybe everyone in the whole world has already had this realization, but as I was thinking back, it hit me that people our age really straddle the divide of two very different eras. Noah and I are part of the generation that grew up using VHS, DVDs, and streaming services. We were kids both when landlines were commonplace and when smartphones were first introduced. We grew up in that time where elementary schools taught kids both how to send letters and to use Microsoft Word. We were teenagers when the iPhone, iPad, and laptop were first introduced into households and when social media was invented.

In summary: our generation’s ability to remember a time before smartphones and social media, combined with the insights we gained by pioneering the use of those technologies during our formative years, uniquely qualifies us to understand just how much our social culture has changed.

Make no mistake, I feel lucky to be alive right now (watching Stranger Things freaks me out because I can’t handle how NORMAL it was for parents not to know where their kids were back then – like, how did these people live without Life360). But I also feel oddly nostalgic when I remember what it was like to live in a world where everything wasn’t available to me 24/7. Limited technology use in all aspects of my life is one of the things that I miss most about my childhood. My parents were adamant about controlling how much time I spent watching TV, and when; when I got on social media, and for how long; and what time I was supposed to turn off my device for the night. 

When you become an adult, it’s widely accepted that you get to make choices about your screen time for yourself. Unfortunately, I can’t say that being the warden of my own tech use has served me well. I fill so many areas of my life with non-meaningful screen time. My brain is hooked on the dopamine rush I get from using my cell phone and social media. But I want to get healthier by finding a way to enjoy how technology connects me to others without letting it take over my daily life. And that’s why I’m starting this blog!

My mom ran a blog when I was growing up, and I still remember how it sparked conversations and authentic connection with our loved ones. I read that blog now, as an adult, to remember what it felt like to live through that moment in time. Though it was created for a similar purpose, I don’t use my social media to do those things, so I’m trying a different medium this year to keep friends and family up to date with what Noah and I are doing. I’m a big talker 🙃 and not so much of an artsy photographer girl, so this feels like a better fit for me. I’m also hoping that making the switch will free up my brain to be a bit more present with my loved ones when we’re having fun, instead of focusing on how to take a really aesthetic picture of what we’re doing.

…if you can’t relate to this struggle, then YOU are probably an artsy photographer girl and I am so happy for you.

Anyway. If you’ve made it this far – thanks for doing the experiment with me 🙂 More to come from me about all the crazy, embarrassing, and boring things we get up to in our corner of the world.