Zaffino Recap 2023

Hello Friends and Family!

If you’re reading this, then you know how to use a QR code! BRAVO and Happy Holidays! This year was a year of growth and perseverance. Here’s the recap:

Josh:

Josh spent the year navigating new responsibilities as his company went through rapid fire shifts during it’s transition to new ownership. Josh travelled to California, Washington DC, Las Vegas, New York City and North Carolina, helping health clubs get up and running and working with teams. He also spearheaded his companies annual summit, hiring his wife as one a speaker for the event. Smart man. 😏

In addition to all things work, he continues to serve as a trainer to his long-term clients and went the extra mile to get certified as a referee for soccer. (Many refs have quit due to the parental abuse from the sidelines, but if you know Josh, you know he can handle it - and yes, it can be that bad!) He shined on the field as an equitable, yet firm ref - even when Jaxon was playing!

Jaxon:

Jax continued to make us proud, firstly as just a funny, caring and inquisitive kid and second, as a dynamo soccer player. I continue to invite people to his games, telling them “No- really, it’s not youth soccer. It’s like watching tiny professionals!” Jax plays club soccer for the Chicago City Soccer Club. It’s a competitive club and has been a major place of growth for Jax, both in physical and mental skills. He’s learned how to let the trash talk roll off of his back, hold his ground, communicate boundaries (off the field) and play on a team. At one of the club meetings that was attended by mostly adults, he shot up his hand to ask a question. Everyone turned to him and he said “What does the future of City look like?” The crowd went wild. This kid has plans! His team took the league championship for their division in the fall and he’ll be gearing up for a summer of Super Y, which is an extremely competitive tournament league. We’re really excited to watch the games.

In terms of school, it’s also been an amazing year. With mostly A’s and a few B’s, Jax (and his classmates) have worked hard to catch up from homeschooling during the pandemic. They’ve been studying the native tribes of Illinois and learning how to code in Computer science. Jaxon’s school is big on core values and he has twice been awarded for exemplifying kindness, inclusivity, and empowerment. He’s been able to go see the Chicago Wolves play hockey and most recently, the Joffrey’s Nutcracker as an award for his behavior at school. Yes - we are beyond proud.

Flashlight:

Flashlight turns 4 this February and learned this year that the food we prepare is better than the food in his dish. He also learned that some couches are not ok to sit on - namely our new family sectional where we spend most of our time. He is not a fan of not being up with us, but alas…

Flash has always had tummy troubles, but we finally made a breakthrough with some (very expensive) food and all is well (and much easier to pick up.). He continues to sit, stay, be shy, give “boops,” pretend to be a spider monkey, show up for cameo appearances on my YouTube Channel & do dog things.

Jenna:

I bet you thought I was gonna put myself first, right? 😂 This year was a doozy. I transitioned out of my salaried COO position with Spark This Day.com back into my business full time. It took me a couple of months to figure out what my next focus would be. For those of you who don’t know, I have been serving as a small business coach since 2016 and throughout the pandemic, helped many a business with their emergency plans. This left me a little burned out from coaching as well as in competition with the get-rich-quick coaches that came new onto the scene. While in my position at Spark, I was able to take a break from coaching while reminding myself of the value that my work provided. In addition, I was able to pace myself in considering how I wanted to use the Health Coaching credentials I received in 2020.

As we head into 2024, I’m happy to say that I’ve transitioned into a full-time coaching practice. I help busy professionals make the lifestyle shifts they need to engage into the health support that makes a difference in their lives. I’ll sit my board exam for Health Coaching this spring and am set to begin accepting some insurances. I am still helping my business owners, however, I am finding that the health coaching skills translate absolutely beautifully over from one subject to the next.

Personally, I suffered a torn plantar fascia this year, coupled with a number of other accompanying injuries that put me in a boot and on a scooter for 2 months. I’m recovering ever-so-slowly with full function, but not without discomfort. The process has been long and arduous, but I continue to get stronger and am making my way back into the teaching intensity of years past - kind of…

I began teaching Pilates at a yoga studio near our house called “It’s Lit.” The community there is a lot like what I build at Helios and it’s great to be back in person again. I’m still streaming on Youtube and getting closer every week to getting paid on the platform. I’ve also been doing corporate speaking gigs and continuing education for movement pros on the side. Oh and I wrote (another) book! Life is full! ❤️.

The Family:

We spent a good deal of the year sunning ourselves on the side of the soccer field, and loving every minute of it. We took some time off to rent a friends home in Montello, WI, a quaint little place on a lake with lovely neighbors and also spent a long weekend hiking Starved Rock - truly a sight to behold! We travelled to celebrate Caitlin’s wedding in early fall (I was the officiant!) and it was so good to have our family together for the most beautiful wedding.

We had a list of 23 things for 23 and checked most of the boxes, except for getting a new car and painting the house. They’ll go on the 24 list :).

We’ve had our series of ups and downs with the ever changing financial climate and ever rising costs of living. However, at the center of each stressful episode is a family unit who is willing to talk through it and support each other in the process. Our small successes keep us strong and we know that the big one’s matter more because we got there together.

Enjoy the pics below and thank you for being a part of our lives.

Love,

The Zaffinos