Today, I’m writing about what is a treasure that is lost?
Well, I think this topic can piggyback off a bit about what I wrote yesterday…
Two things that immediately pop into my mind are…hand-written notes/birthday cards and Christmas/holiday cards.
I have always loved receiving a hand-written note and birthday cards. I actually have a couple of boxes that I keep notes and cards that I’ve received through the years. By taking the time to write a note whether it’s a sticky note “love you” or a lunch box note providing encouragement for a test or sending a birthday card, it shows that you took the time out of your day to think about someone else and show them that you care.
Now, my mom, Gma, and aunt send some amazing creations…
My dad always sends me a Snoopy card if he can find it. He’s so funny…he gets lots of free cards sent to him when he donates to various charities. This one, that he sent the kids, cracked us all up…
It’s been a tradition, even before we had kids, to send a Christmas card. To be honest, I know Travis and I received them when we were dating and engaged, so I was so excited to send one once we were married. That tradition has continued on through the years with the kids, and sometimes, if we are lucky, we get a family photo.
December is such a hectic and stressful month, that I actually look forward to checking the mailbox and opening the cards that we do receive. I figured out a way to display this this year.
I remember that Lauren shared that she prays for each family who sent a card as she puts them away at the end of the Christmas season. I love that idea and have kept it in mind these past couple of years.
I think social media is to “blame” for both of these kind of going to the wayside more and more. It’s easier to write on a Facebook wall “Happy birthday” than send a card. I don’t think people feel the need to send holiday cards because we all know what’s going on with our immediate friends thanks to Facebook and Instagram. Also, don’t get me started on the price of stamps. haha
Hello and Happy Saturday! I’m not sure if I’ve ever typed “Happy Saturday” on a blog post or not.
In December, I received an email from WordPress about their January writing challenge. I clicked the link to sign up, and have been receiving daily emails with pretty simple topics including introduce yourself, what brings you joy in life, what brings you joy in life and more.
Like I said yesterday, I tend to have my Monday-Friday content planned and written and some of these topics I’ve previously covered, but thought I might pop in with a post on the weekends this month.
I liked yesterday’s topic, so I’m going to write about that.
Why do you write?
Well, I’ve always enjoyed writing. What little girl didn’t have a sparkly pink diary that locked along with a pen with a fuzzy poof on the top?
I remember having a few and jotting down my thoughts and feelings through the years. Not sure where those diaries are now.
For me, like many, writing is a way to express myself. In general, I’d say that I’m an introvert who is more reserved or quiet until I get to know someone. I’ve pretty much always been that way. I also kind of hang on the peripheral until I get the lay of the land and have something to say. I don’t jump right into a conversation. I like to have time to think before a response too. So, I think writing is a way for me to express myself, provide a thoughtful response and have my voice heard.
Also, I write to show others that I care. I love receiving a handwritten note or card, and try to do the same for birthdays and other occasions. I already miss putting notes in my kids’ lunchboxes.
In college, I most definitely preferred writing a twenty page paper vs taking a test. I think I have a smidge of test anxiety. Tests have answers that are right and wrong. Give me a few pages of writing where I can provide my opinion and back it up with text evidence and I at least feel like I have a shot at “getting the correct answer.” I earned two Master’s degrees without taking a single test. I wrote hundreds and hundreds of pages, but that never stressed me out.
As a teacher, I love teaching the process of writing to students. I love reading their final drafts of work and hearing their voices in their writing.
Now, of course, I write for fun. This blog is a hobby of mine. I love that I’ve “met” others through my site, I have pictures and memories in one place to look back on, and there’s a sense of community in the blogging world. I really do look forward to writing my posts, and engage in the readers through comments. Also, it’s fun to write a bit more informally and take off my “teacher hat” when I can.
I’m writing this right now while sipping my coffee, and it makes me happy. I’m going to proofread before posting because I can’t shake the English teacher in me, but it’s fun to just go ahead and “publish” immediately after typing out my thoughts.
It’s been a great week, but we are ready for a pretty slow paced weekend…which is one of the things I love about the month of January.
It’s great to be back linking up with Andrea and Erika for this week’s Friday Favorites.
Here are somerecent favorites:
When I shared my Christmas decorations, I didn’t share the cross stitch my mom made because it wasn’t back from getting framed yet. Over the past year, she made of these Santa cross stitches for both my sister-in-law and me. It’s super cute, and as I went to pack up my Christmas decor, I realized I hadn’t shared it yet.
Hadley’s volleyball photos *finally* came in right after the season ended, and I couldn’t love them more. It’s her first official (professional) photo without her braces.
I picked up this Ramen bowl at TJ Maxx as a Christmas gift for Hadley. As soon as I saw it, I knew she’d love it. Well, the night we got back from KC she couldn’t wait to use it. Insert a run to Walgreens for Ramen, and Hadley made her own dinner!
One of my favorite gifts from Travis is this cedarwood wick candle. I’ve seen them on some websites, but I didn’t know they had them at Kroger. Apparently, that’s where Travis got this one. It smells so good, and the flame flicker sound is so soothing.
I spent Christmas money on some new shoes, and they arrived yesterday! I have two pairs of Golden Goose sneaks, but have heard great things about Shu Shop. I wanted to try this Paz style and decided to try the Shu Shop. Well, I’ve only had them for a night, so I can’t give a full review…but the minute I slipped them on my feet, I knew they were more comfy (less stiff) than my GG. This is the pair I got, and I got my regular size 9.
2023 Reading
Trav’s cousin shared this on Facebook, and I think I may try it for a reading plan this year. I’m not going to be strict about it. I think I will just go with the flow and see how the year progresses. That being said, feel free to share book suggestions…especially with the bottom row!
It just looks like a great way to pick and choose books…change things up a bit.
Favorite Mom Meme:
Y’all, we’re still in the post-Christmas organization process and I’m really hoping we *all* get the house back together this weekend.
Bonus Fave: Flashback Friday:
It’s the pinchy cute cheeks and pigtails for me!
I always love when this January 2013 photo pops up of the kids.
Weekly Recap:
The last week for the year is typically a quiet blogging week. That being said, I shared some of my favorite posts of the year:
Well, you might receive a few extra posts from me this month. In December, WordPress shared the “Bloganuary” writing challenge, and I’ve been receiving the prompts. I pretty much have my Monday-Friday content, but I might give some of the prompts a shot on the weekends.
Since I’m always planning and taking quite a bit of time to write my regular posts, I just thought it might be nice to write a bit more informally every once in a while.
Not Just a Mom:
On Monday, we’ll have our first Not Just a Mom post of 2023!
Here are our topics for the year. We’d love for you to join us the second Monday of every month.
What are your weekend plans? I might just be in my pjs by 7:00 tonight! We don’t have a ton going on this weekend, and I’d like to get some errands run and get this house back in order.
Well, I often feel like my family is always on the go and that we spend very little quality time together. Honestly, I probably don’t give us enough credit, but I thought it would be a good idea to set an intentional goal to watch at least one movie a month together as a family…so we’d have less of this:
We started the year off strong, and then you know the saying…”best laid plans…” Anyway, in general, we did spend more time together watching movies this year. I will take what I can get.
This meme is for Hayden…lol:
Obviously, the main goal was to have all four of us watch the movie, and that did happen most of the time!
Here are the movies we watched this year:
January:
On a snow day in January, the kids and I watched Sing 2. It was one of those movies that Hadley and I started watching and Hayden ended up joining us. We all loved it.
February:
We watched Home Team. It was a funny movie that we all enjoyed.
March:
The Cheaper by the Dozen remake was so good!
April:
We watched the Adventures in Babysitting movie and enjoyed it.
May:
May was a busy month. We didn’t even up watching a movie at home but we went to see the new Top Gun in the theater with friends. It was a definitely a must see movie! (especially in the theater)
June:
In June, Hadley & I watched Sneakerella. It was a cute movie.
As a family, we went with a classic: Big Daddy. I think both kids had seen it before, but it’s still such a laugh out loud movie.
One evening, I watched Goonies with Hayden. We both have seen that movie many times and love it.
July:
One night, while Hadley was at camp, I watched Jurassic Park (original) with Hayden. Again, it’s one we’d both seen before, but will watch it again and again.
Once Hadley got home from camp, she chose Family Camp for our family movie…and Hayden vowed to never let her choose a movie again! haha
It was just ok.
August:
Well the busyness of back to school got to us, and we didn’t sit down to watch a movie together.
September:
In September, we started off strong Labor Day weekend. We saw Grease at the drive in with friends, the kids saw Jaws (in 3D) with cousins, and Travis and I watched the Elvis movie at home. (Unpopular opinion: I didn’t like it.)
October:
Well, this was kind of a random viewing month with not much time. The kids watched the new Hocus Pocus and The Addams Family on fall break.
November:
On Thanksgiving night, Hadley chose Uncharted (because of her love for Tom Holland). I hadn’t heard of it, but we all loved it!
December:
Of course, December is filled with some Christmas movies. Over break, I finally had time to watch a few, and Hadley watched some with me.
One of my favorite movies is While You were Sleeping, and Hadley watched it for the first time with me. Then, we watched another one of my favorites: You’ve Got Mail. (not a holiday movie, but one I always watch on break). Hadley enjoyed both, but said While You were Sleeping was better.
As a family, we watched Home Alone one evening…
….and A Christmas Story on Christmas night.
While in KC, we all watched Glass Onion at my mom’s house, and we all loved it.
While some months, we didn’t see a movie as a family, I think we still were pretty successful carving out time to hang and view some pretty good movies.
Fun fact: my favorite movie of all time is The Parent Trap (original) I watched it over break too.
Well, we all made it to school on time yesterday. Again, the schedule and routine will be good for us, but re-entry is always difficult!
Last week, I shared a Christmas recap, and today I’m sharing about out of town Christmas and the second half of break.
The four of us celebrated Christmas the morning of the 23rd.
We also woke up to additional snow and negative wind chill temps. We enjoyed our morning at home and then prepared to go out of town. Trav’s family always celebrates on the 23rd, and then we were headed to KC on the 24th. Honestly, we kept hearing about the road conditions, some parts of the highway shut down, and more. It takes quite the effort to pack up the car with luggage and gifts, but once we did so that afternoon, we decided to attempt the drive to Louisville. Let’s just say that I was outvoted. Slow and steady was the name of the game. What normally takes 1 hour 15 minutes took over 3.5 hours. Honestly, we didn’t have an issues, but we saw cars on the side of the road, came to a standstill a few times, and more. I was relieved to get to Trav’s mom’s house.
We enjoyed our evening with them…always good food, games, presents, and dessert. We woke up on the 24th, dropped off Homer (He was staying in Louisville), packed up the car, and hit the road to KC. Once we crossed into Indiana, there were no travel issues.
Once we got to KC, we unloaded the car, showered, changed, and got ready to go to my dad’s cousin’s house. I always “joke” that we drive eight hours west to then drive about thirty minutes more because he lives in Kansas. Some of my extended family I only see once (maybe twice) a year. It’s always fun to catch up, there’s great food, some exchange gifts, and play a few games. It usually is a late night after a long day of driving.
Christmas morning, we opened gifts at my mom’s and then went to my dad’s. KC was expected to get some freezing rain/snow Christmas evening, so we went to my Gma’s for dinner, but it was a little earlier that normal. We opened gifts, ate dinner, and then played some Bingo. My kids don’t always want to play games when we are at home, but they always do when we are in KC.
Then, we were in KC for two more days. Honestly, we didn’t do much which was nice. One night, I actually got 11 hours of sleep. I was beat. I always wish we did more, and some years we go to Union Station, the Plaza, or ice skate, but we didn’t do much because the weather continued to be so cold.
Hadley made crepes one morning, and then my aunt and Gma came over to carry on the waffle cookie tradition. We use the waffle iron that we think is at least 150 years old. It was brought over from Germany by my great great grandfather in 1898.
The kids are really good at making these.
Hayden and my mom completed a puzzle one afternoon, and the kids played Scattegories, Jr. with my mom too.
We usually drive home after four days in KC. The kids didn’t know it, but we planned on stopping in Columbia, Mo. (literally right off the highway on the way home) because my Tigers were playing the Kentucky Wildcats. Since Columbia is only 1.5 hours away from KC, and it was a 6:00 game, that meant that we had a bit extra time in KC. We had a slow morning, went and visited my Gma again, packed up the car, had lunch with my mom, stopped by to see my dad and then hit the road to CoMo.
Once we pulled into town, we told the kids why we were there, and they both were excited. We found a parking spot right by the quad, and went to see the columns and Jesse Hall. We stop through CoMo every few years, so while this wasn’t the kids first visit to Columbia, they probably don’t remember much of the last time they were there.
The weather was beautiful that afternoon. A lady offered to take our photo, and I was clearly outnumbered in the black/gold to my three in blue.
Travis and I met in Columbia. He worked for Mizzou’s athletic department as did I my senior year. For many reasons, I love Columbia, but meeting him was a wonderful twist of fate.
We walked around a bit before heading to get some food.
Unfortunately, two of my favorite places were packed, so we stopped for nachos and a drink before heading to the game.
After dominating against a ranked Illinois team the week before, Mizzou Arena was sold out! I hadn’t been to this arena in years, and it was all of our first time attending a game there.
All I was asking for was a competitive game…
…and it was even better than I’d hoped with a *dominating* win for my team.
I joke that my family should be thankful that I’m such a gracious winner!
After the game, we drove on to St. Louis to spend the night. We finished up the rest of the drive to Kentucky the next morning.
NYE
I’m not a big NYE person, but some of our friends host a progressive dinner. The friends’ houses are close together and in our neighborhood, and they’ve been kind enough to include us the past couple of years.
One house has apps, then another house has salads, then the main meal, a dessert house, and ringing in the new year house.
Another friend and I helped at the main course house. We had beef tenderloin, Brussel sprouts, and I made potato casserole.
The set up was so pretty.
The kids were in and out of all of the houses, and Hadley snapped a group pic for us.
Like I shared yesterday, we also drew three words as our “words of the year.”
These were mine:
It was a great night.
As an addition to yesterday’s post and my interest in Enneagrams, @ashton.creates had Enneagrams for the new year…
5…
Night in
Traditional food
Bed by nine
To do lists
Reflecting
Netflix
6…
Sparklers
Small gathering
Sparkling cider
Midnight
Goals
Dreaming
Most of these are pretty on brand for me I would say.
What are your typical NYE plans? January 1 sure hits different when I have to go to school on the 2nd!
Well, yesterday wasn’t as bad as I thought it might be. Thankfully, I didn’t have to be to school until 9:00, so today will be the first day of my alarm going off at 6:00 again. It was good seeing my colleagues yesterday, and it’s always great to get students back in the building. I know, even for my own family, it will be good to get back on a schedule and a routine.
Anyway, we went to a New Year’s Eve get together, and my friend had us each draw three words and we shared them as our “Word of the Year.”
I’m sure you’ve seen those graphics where they say the first three words you see are your words for the year. That’s where she got this idea.
Anyway, the words I drew were: creativity, reset, and calm.
I like those words. I’m generally pretty creative, and I’ve said that this blog is my main source of creativity. January is a perfect time to reset on all the things. I want to get back to tracking what I eat and working out. I also want to take the time to plan and get organized. My birthday is next weekend, and I’m always pretty reflective this time of the year. I think with turning another year older and the start of a new year, I was meant to have a January birthday. It’s just a natural time to hit the reset button. Lastly, I actually feel like January is a more calm month in general after the holidays, and it’s just what I need.
I will keep these three words in mind this year.
I’ve shared this account before, and am always curious to see what @the.enneagram.mom has to say about 5w6.
Enneagram 5:
Enneagram 6:
I also saw this on Instagram, and it stuck with me as good intentions for this year:
I hope to have a great year…both 2023 and 43. I hope the same can be said for you!
I’d love to say, “Happy Monday,” but this Monday morning brings the end of break. Teachers report back today, and the kids come back tomorrow.
Also, Happy 2 0 2 3!
I love that Tanya is continuing to host this link up this year, and I always love seeing what others have purchased.
This is a super sized post/gifts edition. I purchased these items over the past few months but didn’t want to share until my people had received the gifts 🙂
Random:
The shower in my bathroom had very little pressure and was taking forever for the water to get hot. Finally, Travis ordered this new shower head, and my showers are back to being amazing. Also, goes to show what little I know about plumbing. The water gets hot immediately now. It was taking up to five minutes before I would even get warm water.
The rest are gifts. Amazon sure came in clutch again for me this year.
Hadley:
Here are a few gifts that Hadley received:
She gets her love of pjs from me. She sent me a pic of plaid flannel shorts/button up that she like from Aerie. By the time I went to order, they were sold out. She ended up really loving these green plaid pjs.
I’d seen these “varsity letter” bags all over the internet. I figured the “stuff” one would be good for when we travel. She took it with her to KC, and would hold it up and say, “I better get my stuff together” 😂
She requested a pair of “Ugg like” slippers, so I sent these to my mother-in-law as a gift idea. Hadley has worn them most of break, both inside and outside of the house!
Hayden:
Here are a few gifts Hayden received:
I thought this light up Chiefs sign would be great for his room.
He’d been wanting a medal holder for a while now, and I chose this one because it has a shelf for trophys as well.
This Under Armor jacket was at the top of Hayden’s list.
Trav:
Travis continues to be hard to buy for, but I picked him up a few things via Amazon.
I was going to put this LED magnetic tool in his stocking, but ended up wrapping it. It’s a flashlight that has a retractable/flexible neck, but it’s also a magnet for picking up things. I figure he can mostly use it for the flashlight feature.
This travel power strip was already used on our trip to KC/hotel stay. It has four outlets and three USB ports, so we could charge everything in one spot.
This waterproof dry bag is something I thought Travis could use especially during cross country and track season. The number of times we’ve tried to keep towels dry for after a race or keep wet running clothes from getting other things wet are too many to count. I could see where this would come in handy while camping as well (We don’t camp…just another suggested use 😆.) They come in a variety of sizes, but I got the 5L one.
Stocking:
Here are a few stocking stuffers I picked up:
This pack of sticky note “to do” lists made the perfect stocking stuffer. I put one in everyone’s stocking (including mine and my mom’s stocking) I’m going to take the remaining ones to school.
These spider clips looked like something Hadley would wear, so I put a couple in her stocking. I kept one for myself, and then she gave the other remaining two to friends.
Other gifts:
Here are a few other gifts I gave (or received!)…
My Gma suggested a warm and cooling neck/shoulder wrap as a gift idea for her. I got this Sharper Image brand one, and she’s already used it and loves it. I didn’t realize that it was scented, but it does say “herbal aromatherapy,” so I should have known. It’s a “lavender and herb spa blend” which does smell like a spa!
I saw this stove top glass teapot as a gift suggestion and thought my mom would like it. It’s pretty, so it can sit out, and it can be used on the stove or microwave. It includes two teas.
My mom mentioned a belt bag for travel, but I thought this cross body seemed more practical because it holds so much more. It comes in a variety of of colors.
My mother-in-law got me this dough bowl candle, and I can’t wait to use it.
January is my self-imposed break for Amazon, but I did order a few things after Christmas that I plan on sharing in February.
I’m off to a faculty meeting with a strong cup of coffee! Have a great day.
{This post contains Amazon affiliate links…Thank you for supporting my blog!}
Happy last day of 2022! I can’t believe another year has passed.
This is a post I start in January and just add to each month. It’s a fun way to take a peek at the year.
Here’s a look back at 2022:
January:
We started the year in Cincinnati cheering for the Chiefs (vs. the Bengals). It was a heartbreaking loss for our Chiefs.
Per usual, we got our first snow day(s) of the season. Sledding with friends is always fun.
On my birthday, I went to see my fave, Heather McMahon, with some of my friends.
February:
We were still cheering for those Chiefs in February.
We celebrated Valentine’s Day with a festive lunch.
Hadley had her first dance competition of the year.
March:
In March, Hadley had her second dance competition of the season.
6th grade basketball wrapped up for Hayden with a heartbreaking loss (why are those our ‘thing?’), but it was a great season none the less.
We *finally* were mask free at school! Look at those smiles.
We cheered on my school’s boys basketball team in the sweet 16 at Rupp.
April:
April started off with Spring Break in Asheville.
While there, Hayden and I visited the Biltmore.
Hayden’s final year of baseball started.
I’ll treasure all of the baseball memories!
Travis and I were able to go to Keeneland with friends.
Middle school track started for both kids.
We celebrated Easter.
Travis and I went with friends to the Chris Stapleton at Kroger Field.
Hadley had her final dance competition of the season, and they came home with lots of awards.
Track season continued.
May:
Travis and I started May by attending the Oaks.
We celebrated Mother’s Day.
Baseball continued…
Hadley had her end of the year chorus concert.
The kids had their 6th grade championship meet for track.
Sixth grade went by in a blink!
June:
With June, came the end of baseball for Hayden.
Hadley had her dance recital.
We spent lots of time at the pool.
Hadley had swim team.
I had Covid (and cleaned my closet!)
Towards the end of June, Travis and I celebrated our 17th wedding anniversary.
We went to the lake with friends.
Hayden took another trip to the lake and realized his love for fishing.
I went to the New Kids on the Block concert with friends.
July:
In July, we took a fun family vacay to Mexico.
Hadley went to camp for a week.
Then, we visited family in Kansas City.
We had family photos taken.
Then, we celebrated my Gma’s 90th birthday.
Before heading back to Kentucky, we made a stop at the Lake of the Ozarks with friends.
August:
Before heading back to school, we enjoyed a family dinner at Jeff Ruby’s.
Hayden finished up summer basketball.
…and the kids started S E V E N T H grade!
Cross country began (with Travis as the coach)…
and dance started back up.
September:
In September, cross country continued.
We attended many UK football games. (Well, I attended one…the rest of my crew went when they could)
October:
In October, we took the best trip to 30A with our friends for Fall Break.
Love this family photo.
Right after break, Hadley got her braces off after two phases with phase two lasting almost two years.
Of course, we went to the pumpkin patch.
I got to see Heather McMahon again! She taped her Netflix special in Lexington.
Travis, the kids and I spent an afternoon at Keeneland.
Hayden had state cross country. The boys team did amazing! (Hayden made the all area team and Trav was the area Coach of the Year!)
The kids had fun on Halloween.
November:
Basketball picked back up again in November.
Hadley reignited her love for volleyball.
We had fun with friends at the Breeder’s Cup.
Both kids ran in a meet in honor of Trav’s dad.
We went to McDazzle with friends.
…and the kids turned T H I R T E E N!
Hadley had her Winter Showcase for dance
We celebrated Thanksgiving.
We went to our favorite place to pick out our Christmas tree.
December:
Volleyball continued (& the professional pics finally came in)
We attended a few holiday parties and carried on traditions (like baking cookies and going to the Horse Park to see the lights)
Right before break, volleyball wrapped up and Hayden made the school basketball team. Also, the kids finished their science fair projects.
We spent the first week of break finishing up Christmas shopping, baking cookies, watching movies and more.
We celebrated Christmas early at home (with snow and frigid temps outside) before heading to Louisville…
…and then KC.
Like any year, this one was filled with highs and lows. We were busy, but were able to do quite a few things as a family. I continue to feel grateful for health and happiness for all.
Now, we are ready to bring in 2023! See you next year! 😉
Hello! Wow! (unfortunately!) this week seems to be flying by…the same can be said about 2022!
Today, I’m sharing a little blogging recap for 2022.
I don’t spend a lot of time looking at stats, but the end of a year is the perfect time to look back, and WordPress makes it pretty simple to take a look at posts, viewers, etc. It’s also fun to see how much this little site grows year to year.
A few stats from the year:
Posts: 221
Words: 157k + words written
Best day: Friday; Best hour: 7am
I started this blog in August of 2019, and some all time stats include:
Views: 208.5k
Visitors: 62.8k
Posts published: 705
Countries – People from 84 countries have read at least one of my posts. That just blows my mind.
There are some “big time” bloggers, and that isn’t my goal. If one person or 100 people read one of my posts, I appreciate it. Truly. This is definitely a fun hobby for me, but it’s also rewarding to see growth every year (and the same can be said for every “like” or “comment”). Blogging is more fun and rewarding when I’m able to engage with readers ☺️ I can’t say it enough how much I appreciate “my readers.”
Today, I’m sharing some of my favorite posts from the year. These posts, to me, were the most meaningful and/or fun to write.
Favorite 2022 posts:
1.
I loved starting the year off with my Not Just a Mom friends…
We finally did the shiplap project that I’d wanted to do for years.
3.
I changed up my “beauty routine” this year, and loved sharing my favoriteDime beauty products.
I actually received a quite a few comments and messages afterward with many saying they tried the products after reading the post and loved them.
4.
I loved sharing about our day at the Oaks races. Kentucky is a special place…especially the first week of May!
5.
I always love linkups, and the Let’s Look with Shay and Erika with the topic of “my hometown” was fun to write.
6.
It was the end of an era for Hayden as he wrapped up playing baseball as a twelve year old. I loved my years as a baseball mom, and it was fun looking back at all the teams he’s been on and how much he grew as a player.
7.
We loved our Mexico vacay, and the recap posts were a great spot to share about our trip and keep all the memories in one place.
8.
I also changed up my makeup routine this year. I’m still not a master of makeup, but I still love using the Seint products.
9.
Somehow I blinked, and we have a couple of teenagers in the house. I loved taking the stroll down memory lane.
10.
One of my favorite posts to write every year is sharing my top 5 favorite reads.
I shared that one yesterday! It was a pretty good year of reading.
Bonus: I also loved sharing about our Fall Break trip to 30A this year. It was the kids first time there, and we loved going with our friends.
As always, thanks so much for reading! Let me know if there are any blog topics/suggestions. Sometimes I get writer’s block, so I’d love some input on ideas.
I should be back tomorrow with a recap of 2022….which is another one of my favorite posts to write every year.
Today is one of my favorite posts of the year. I’m sharing the books I read this month (Christmas reads!) as well as the Top 5 books that I read in 2022.
I love reading and always enjoy seeing what books others are reading.
For the past couple of years, I’ve read Christmas books in December. To me, these are usually pretty light hearted and perfect to read this time of the year.
December Books:
This month I read:
{As always, book summaries are from Goodreads…}
With such a long post, I’m just sharing the summaries and my rating. My quick thoughts are the fact that these are perfect reads for December. Most were light-hearted and festive while others did have a sad moment or two. That being said, I thought this was the perfect mix of books for my December reading.
The Holiday Switch:
Summary:
Lila Santos is ready for her last winter break of high school. The snow in her small town of Holly, New York, is plentiful, the mood is as cozy as a fuzzy Christmas sweater, and she’s earning extra cash working at the local inn—AKA the setting of the greatest film of all time, Holiday by the Lake—while moonlighting as an anonymous book blogger.
But her perfect holiday plans crash to a halt when her boss’s frustratingly cute nephew, Teddy Rivera, becomes her coworker. Lila is type A; Teddy is type “Anything but Lila’s Way,” and the two of them can’t stop butting heads over tangled icicle lights and messy gift shop merch. But when they accidentally switch phones one afternoon, they realize they’ve both been hiding things from each other. Will their secrets—and an unexpected snowstorm—bring these rivals together?
Rating:
Always in December:
Summary:
It started with a letter. It ended with a love story.
Every December, Josie posts a letter from her home in London to the parents she lost on Christmas night many years ago. Each year, she writes the same three words: Missing you, always. But this year, her annual trip to the postbox is knocked off course by a bicycle collision with a handsome stranger–a stranger who will change the course of Josie’s life.
Josie always thought she was the only one who avoided the Christmas season, but this year, Max has his own reasons for doing the same–and coincidence leads them to spending the holiday together. Aglow with new love, Josie thinks this might be the start of something special.
Only for Max to disappear without saying goodbye.
Over the course of the next year, Max and Josie will find that fate continues to bring them together in places they’d never expect. New York City. Edinburgh. The quiet English countryside. And it turns out, Max had every reason to leave and every reason to stay. But what does fate hold for Josie and Max as Christmas approaches again?
A devastating, romantic, life-affirming love story, Always, in December will stay with readers long after they’ve finished the last page.
Rating:
Christmas in London:
Summary:
A charming, glamourous love story set at Claridge’s in London during the magical week before Christmas starring a sweet NYC baker and the Cooking Channel Producer who could change her life.
It’s a week before Christmas and Louisa Graham is working twelve hour shifts at a bakery on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. When a young cooking show assistant comes in from the rain and begs to buy all the cinnamon rolls on her tray, she doesn’t know what to do. Louisa is just the baker, and they aren’t hers to sell. But the show burned the rolls they were supposed to film that day, so she agrees.
The next morning, Louisa finds out that her cinnamon rolls were a hit, but the star of the show was allergic, and the whole crew is supposed to leave for London that afternoon. They want Louisa to step in for their annual Christmas Eve Dinner TV special at Claridge’s. It’s a great opportunity, and Digby Bunting, Louisa’s famous baking idol, will be there. Even if he does seem more interested in her than her food.
And then there’s Kate, the show’s beautiful producer. On their first day in London she runs into the skinny boy she jilted at St. Andrew’s in Scotland ten years ago. Now he’s a handsome, brilliant mathematician, and newly divorced. Their familiar spark is still there, but so is the scar of how they left things. Kate and Louisa are busy preparing for the show, but old and new flames are complicating their work.
Set during London’s most festive time of year and filled with delicious food, Christmas in London is about love and friendship, and the season’s most important lesson: learning how to ask for and give forgiveness.
Rating:
The Christmas Wedding Guest:
Summary:
The Somerville sisters believe in love, but they’ve lost faith it will happen for them. Reggie hasn’t been home since the end of the world’s shortest engagement. When her parents decide to renew their vows, she buffs up her twinkle to help with the Christmas wedding. Unexpectedly, Toby, her first love, is back too, and the spark between them shines as brightly as ever. In the spirit of the season, will they let go of past hurts and greet the New Year together?
Done waiting for the one, Dena is pregnant and on her own—on purpose. But then a gorgeous, sad-eyed songwriter checks in to a room at her inn. Micah, unable to write since he lost his wife, finds inspiration in Dena’s determination to be a mom. One snowflake-speckled kiss and he’s a goner. But Dena is afraid to believe that a rock star could fall for a cookie-cutter small-town girl like her.
As the Christmas wedding draws closer, these two sisters just might unwrap the most treasured gift of all—love.
Rating:
Christmas Shopaholic
Summary:
Becky Brandon (née Bloomwood) adores Christmas. It’s always the same – Mum and Dad hosting, carols playing, Mum pretending she made the Christmas pudding, and the next-door neighbours coming round for sherry in their terrible festive jumpers.
And now it’s even easier with online bargain-shopping sites – if you spend enough you even get free delivery. Sorted!
But this year looks set to be different. Unable to resist the draw of craft beer and smashed avocado, Becky’s parents are moving to ultra-trendy Shoreditch and have asked Becky if she’ll host Christmas this year. What could possibly go wrong?
With sister Jess demanding a vegan turkey, husband Luke determined that he just wants aftershave again, and little Minnie insisting on a very specific picnic hamper – surely Becky can manage all this, as well as the surprise appearance of an old boyfriend and his pushy new girlfriend, whose motives are far from clear . . .
Will chaos ensue, or will Becky manage to bring comfort and joy to Christmas?
Rating:
Recap of Books 2022:
This year my Goodreads goal was that same as last year: 40 books. I was able to read 41! Thank goodness for a couple of vacations and winter break to get me across the finish line. There were a couple months this year that I only read two books, so I wasn’t sure I would hit that goal.
Here are my Goodreads stats:
41 books read
14,824 pages read
The shortest book I read (Lucky) was 232 pages
The longest book I read (Katie Couric’s Going There) was 736 pages (was it?! I really don’t remember it being that long of a book!)
Average book length in 2022: 361 pages
My 2022 Reads:
Looking back, I realized that I’ve read by the fire, in the mountains, poolside and with my toes in the sand. That definitely makes for a great year of reading.
I felt like I started off 2022 strong with reading, but then wasn’t reading as much. From July on, I felt like I was reading more books that I enjoyed and was able to find a bit more time to read.
Before I share my Top 5 reads of 2022, these deserve honorable mention recognition:
One Italian Summer
This Time Tomorrow
Every Summer After
Our Woman in Moscow
Summer Love
Meant to Be
Here are my 5 favorite reads of 2022 in the order I read them…
Becoming Mrs. Lewis, (also my fave of the year, I think. My Gma recommended it to me.)
The Rent Collector.
The Sweet Taste of Muscadines
This Tender Land
The Things We Cannot Say
I clearly lean towards more serious books with a side of historical fiction.
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