Tena Koutou and welcome to another New Year. I hope that the festive season was a good one for you all and that you have recovered from the tinsel laden, Christmas wrapping day, which we all call Christmas. Don't get me wrong, I love the spirit of Christmas, but at times it feels as if we all end up on a roller coaster ride, heading for this big day, worn out by tramping down the supermarket aisles, the shopping malls, with basically a zero budget for this big extravaganza, unless you were lucky enough during the year to have popped a few dollars away. I found myself absolutely exhausted when I finally made it to this big day that we all put so much emphasis on. The day started before 6am with excited voices oohing and aahing over the gifts in their Santa sacks. As I rolled out of bed, eyes still half asleep, these sounds alerted me to the fact that this indeed was Christmas morning. After sharing in my boys' excitement and checking my own stocking, which was filled with little goodies, I got to snuggle back on the couch and indulge in some really beautiful Christmas movies, whilst cooking the ham for our potluck chrissy dinner, which was later to be devoured by many whanau members, 24 in counting. Anyway, I'm hoping that you all came though this time, unscathed and all in one piece, your puku and your pockets.

So what may lie ahead for you all, as you sit and ponder over the remnants of 2011? New Year's resolutions may be created, or previous resolutions from the year before are revisited. A New Year, allows you the space to take stock of what's happening for you and look at what needs changing, and how to live to get the most out of your life, for you and your whanau. You get to rebirth new dreams and hopes that are still waiting on the back burner for you to pick up and run with. If last year's resolutions didn't come to fruition, you may want to ask yourself what's holding you back. I want to encourage you all to take a leap of faith in the direction of your dreams. Don't waste another year going through the motions and doing what others think you should be doing, do what makes you happy and this in turn will have a positive impact on the rest of your whanau. Your little people continue to observe you, they know when you are not happy and this impacts on how they feel. You know how it is when kids play up when you are already having the worst day ever - this is no coincidence.

Whaia te iti kahuranga ki te tuaha koe me he maunga teitei

So my shout out to you all today in my first column of 2012, is for you to make this year, YOUR year. This is a time to rediscover yourself, and walk forward in the direction of your dreams. If we, here at Parentline, can be of any support, in your journey through this year, you can call in and see us, in the Community House, King Street or contact us on 355 1655.

Nga Mihi
Jo