Hey Reader.

I’m bringing back my monthly recaps!

If you’ve been around a while, you might remember these.

They used to be a regular staple.

You can peek at a a few past ones here: Jan 2025, Feb 2024, May 2023)

And if you’re newer here, this is where I share the real numbers of my business.

Not the highlight reel.

Not the “best month ever!!!” version.

Just what actually happened.

Here’s what January looked like for me.

Income: $6,784.08​
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Not my biggest month. Not even close.

And I’m honestly ok with that!

January was my first month back after maternity leave, and with a 3-month-old at home I was still working part-time for most of it.

Almost all of this revenue came from one-to-one client work, which I’m currently fully booked out on.

Expenses: $1,828.56

This is WAY higher than normal for me

Here’s what I spent money on:

✅ Deposit for my accountant to get started on my taxes

✅ New office chair

✅ New office chair, paint and some artwork for my husband's office

✅ $75 on coffee because I spent a lot of time working at local coffee shops last month

✅ I finally joined Gemma Bonham Carter’s AI All-Stars Program to sharpen some of my workflows and efficiency

So… how are my 2026 goals actually going?

I set 5 main goals for this year.

Here’s where things stand:

1️⃣ Launch a new digital offer

No progress yet! January was very much a “get back into rhythm” month.

That said, I’ve been thinking a lot about what I want this to look like and how it fits into my long-term plan. The groundwork is happening, even if it’s not visible yet.

2️⃣ Consistent weekly emails

I’ve sent 2 emails to this list in 2026, so I’m not doing super great at the consistent part just yet.

3️⃣ Create 3 new opt-ins

Nothing built yet, but this one matters to me because I want to create resources that actually help you move forward, not just grow my list. I’m thinking through what would be genuinely useful and actionable.

More on that soon.

4️⃣ Save at least $24,000 for retirement

I haven’t made any transfers to retirement this year. I’m waiting to see the final number on what I owe in taxes before locking anything in, and then I’ll probably automate monthly contributions from there.

5️⃣ Upgrade and organize our home

I’ve been decluttering here and there, and we recently painted and decorated part of our master bathroom. It’s definitely a slow burn with a newborn and toddler in the mix, but progress is progress.

Looking at all of this, January wasn’t a flashy month.

But it was stable.

I worked on a lot of cool client projects.

I navigated returning back to work so much better than I did with my first kid.

I actually found the time to read 3 books!

That all feels like enough.

And the farther I get into this business, the more I’m learning that enough is still pretty powerful most of the time.

I'll be back next month to share another recap and hopefully have some more progress on my annual goals.

❤️ Mara ​
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PS - If you have any book recs please send them my way!

In January I read Wild Card and Wild Side by Elise Silver. Both were ok.

I also read The Phoenix Pencil Company, which had a really interesting premise, but moved kind of slow towards the end.