Every December, I love sitting down with a warm cup of tea, a cozy blanket, and my journal to reflect on the past year and choose a word for the next. It’s a ritual that grounds me, a way to step intentionally into a new season with purpose and clarity.

In 2025, my word was Simplicity. It taught me how to slow down, say no, and make room for what truly matters. After a year of refining my routines, decluttering my home, and finding peace in stillness, I realized I was ready to take the next step, to not just simplify, but to grow.

That’s why my 2026 word is Cultivate.

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🌱 Why “Cultivate”

There’s something so beautiful about the word cultivate. It’s gentle yet active, a reminder that growth takes time, patience, and care. It’s not about rushing toward change, but about tending to what’s already here and creating space for new life to flourish.

For me, Cultivate represents a year of intentionally growing every part of my life, from my garden to my health, my creativity, my relationships, and even my home.

It’s the perfect bridge between the determination of past years and the simplicity I embraced in 2025. Now, I’m ready to nurture what I’ve built, to pour love, time, and effort into the things that matter most.

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🌾 What I Want to Cultivate This Year

1. My Home
2026 will be the year we begin building our new home, which makes this word even more meaningful. I want to cultivate a space that feels peaceful, lived-in, and full of character, a true reflection of my heart and the life I’ve been creating.

2. My Garden
This will be my last gardening season in this yard, and I plan to make it my best yet. I want to cultivate a garden that’s overflowing with beauty and abundance, and preserve as much as I can to carry a piece of this place into my next chapter.

3. My Health & Wellness
After a year of focusing on simplicity, I want to cultivate strength and balance, nourishing my body with whole foods, homemade meals, and joyful movement. I’m excited to rebuild healthy habits with care and intention.

4. My Creativity & Social Media
I want to grow my social platforms with authenticity, sharing the kind of content that feels real, warm, and inspiring. Cultivating an online space that reflects my love of homemaking, DIY, baking, and cozy living.

5. My Relationships & Community
To cultivate means to nurture, and I want to do that with the people in my life. More dinner parties, more porch nights, more spontaneous coffee dates with family and friends.

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🌸 What I Hope to Learn

This year, I hope Cultivate reminds me that growth isn’t just about progress, it’s about patience. That tending to small, everyday moments leads to beautiful harvests later. That the most meaningful things take time, care, and presence.

Whether it’s pulling weeds in the garden, baking bread from scratch, or sketching plans for our future home, I want to live each day with intention, to cultivate joy, peace, and purpose in all I do.

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✨ My Word in Action

Throughout 2026, I’ll be sharing monthly themes, challenges, and reflections on how Cultivate shows up in my life, from the kitchen to the garden to the little everyday moments that make a home feel alive.

Here’s to a year of tending, growing, and blooming.
Here’s to a year of Cultivating the life I’ve always dreamed of. 🌿