Wowowowowow it’s December 31st! In the words of my fave JVN, can you BELIEVE?! I feel like I say something similar every month but seriously, for being so insane I feel like year has gone by relatively quickly! Perhaps that’s a good thing 😉
I’m not one for 2021 being a new fresh start. I think it will largely be an extension of 2020 – the date may change but I’m well aware that all of the hard shit we are dealing with globally isn’t going to disapear come January 1. That being said, I’m hopeful and cautiously optimistic that things will start turning around for the better – in this country and hopefully the world.
On a more personal note, while there are certainly some things I’d like to leave behind in 2020 there are also a lot of things I’ve learned that I hope to take with me. Stay tuned for more thoughts on that in the coming week.
WORD OF THE WEEK | BRUCE! It’s Bruce’s 3rd birthday today so please humor me while I talk about how much I love him. You know, in case that wasn’t already abundandly clear. C and I got Bruce in February 2018 at 7 weeks old during a very stressful time in our lives. We were living on one income and SO many people told us we shouldn’t get a dog: it wasn’t financially sound, we should wait to have kids, it wasn’t fair to have a dog in the city etc. etc. Well, I’m here to tell you that getting Bruce was the best thing we ever did! Shout out to my mom for never saying any of these things and for encouraging us to embark on the process! ILY. Here’s the thing – the cost wasn’t a serious burden because one of us was always home to care for and walk him, getting him before kids meant we were able to nurture and grow a living breathing thing together which will inevitably be a huge asset when we finally become human parents, AND the city is so dog friendly. Also, little did we know that if we waited to have kids before we did anything, we could have been waiting a long time. Interestingly, our experience with Bruce is a perfect example of the importance of focusing on right here, right now and making decisions that feel right for you. Thanking my lucky stars that C and I listened to what was best for our little family and grew it by four paws! Bruce is the sweetest, bestest, cutest, fluffiest nugget in the world and I (we) love him so much it hurts. Now, some puppy spam:
LOOKING BACK | December was pretty chill – in more ways than one! – all things considered. Get it? It snowed 😉 Anyway, the December snowstorm was actually really fun! Bruce had blast in the snow (we did too!) and we made some memories I will always cherish. Silver linings, folks! If we hadn’t moved out of the city we never would have had the suburban snow experience that we did. As far as the rest of the month goes, I don’t think I really left the house much! Some really exciting things happened like C’s job and birthday but other than that it was pretty darn quiet. And I’m learning that I don’t mind it! I’m trying really hard to embrace the slow days and validate the importance of that time. I’m completely guilty of glamorizing busyness and measuring the success of my days by the number of things I check off my to do list. And while there’s a time and a place for getting shit done I also am learning that being busy isn’t a measure of success or my own worth. My body and mind have been so grateful for the extra nourishment and grace, so I’m hoping I can keep pushing for balance in that sense.
ONE THING I LEARNED | I really enoy a slower paced holiday season! I honestly loved Christmas this year. Like, it was the best. C and I really made the most of our day off and spent it in front of the television, watching movies (we never get to do this with our work schedules) and snuggling with Bruce. We spent the entirety of the day in our pajamas and even though I set the table quite nicely, we didn’t even change for dinner. For someone like me (enneagram type 2, the helper) who spends their days taking care of others (a job I truly enjoy) and putting others first in most aspects of my life (something I am working on), the holidays can be pretty stressful and leave me seriously depleted. I love our families (seriously, we are the luckiest) but typically by the end of December I’m exhausted and really drained. For once, there was no one to think about but ourselves. We had zero obligations, parties, events or conversations that we did not want to do, attend or have. It was definitely a lesson in boundaries and I think we’ll take a lot of the things we learned into the years to come.
WHAT I’M EXCITED FOR | C and I have some really exciting stuff happening in 2021 and I cannot wait to share it all with you. I am doing my very very very best to keep my lips sealed until the right time so don’t guess and ask because I AM NOT GOING TO TELL YOU. I’m not. Seriously stop asking me.
ONE THING I’M PROUD OF | I typically focus on myself but this month I gotta say MY HUSBAND! He started a new job that he’s really excited about and is working his tail off in the very best way. Changes – even the positive ones – can be hard, and we’re still finding our footing with commutes, schedules and all that working in the COVID world entails. It is not lost on either of us how lucky we are to have jobs right now, and that the challenges we are dealing with are well worth it. For the most part, we are feeling pretty good and I am so hecking proud of all he’s doing and will continue to do!
SNAPSHOTS | Some unedited #lifelately highlights from my camera roll…
The last time I got dressed and left the house / a loaded THEC aka our NJ weekend tradition / my fluff nugget
Chef C is his new apron (thanks, Carla!) / Bruce snuggles / An insane sunset
SNOWDAY! / Our stockings / Matching jammies part II
Christmas tablescape / A brief distant family meet up / NJ Transit
Our faces when an old friend gets engaged / Bothering dad at work / Fave face mask right now (the other kind!)
BROWSING, READING, LEARNING, LISTENING | Non-Outlander fans, you can skip ahead 😉 After a whirlwind month I finished seasons 1-5 (FYI seasons 4 and 5 can be streamed on Starz and you can use the free trial to snag it!) and immediately was so sad that it was over. So I did what any seriously obsessed fan would do and I started the books! And now I’m over 60% of the way through book 2 (which you can follow on my goodreads, if you’re so inclined). For those of you who haven’t read the books, I cannot reccommend them enough. They are long and a serious commitment, but it’s basically like watching the show but with so much extra bonus content. I’m completely hooked.
On Christmas Eve and Day we watched our first holiday movies of the season, which included: The Holiday, Elf and Home Alone. Our plan this weekend is to start Bridgerton. I heard it’s basically Gossip Girl meets Downton so, ya girl is obviously jazzed! I’m hoping to listen to some more podcasts soon. I miss them but really only listen to podcasts when I walk – and I haven’t been doing much of that! In one of my last weekly updates I made a note to get some cold weather walking gear and never followed through – second time’s the charm!
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