In a season of parenting that feels especially hard, our team is excited to share some of the things that are making us happy and helping us get through the days.
It is FRIDAY and we made it through another week! How are you holding up, friends? A couple of weeks ago we launched this new series so we could share some of the things that are literally giving us life right now. We know that not every day is going to be awesome all of the time, but we take heart in finding joy in the little things. What are some of your faves?
Reading
I have been a pretty avid reader my entire life. Getting lost in a great book is my favorite and I have loved passing that along to my kiddos. I not only love to pour over the actual pages of a book, but Audible has become my bestie! My entire family loves to listen to a great book on long road trips. We love adventure stories and historical non-fiction. For my own personal reading, the past couple of years, I’ve taken a turn from my beloved chick-lit and started reading a lot of encouragement and self-growth books. A couple of favorites that I am reading or re-reading:
UNTAMED by Glennon Doyle. (HOLY SMOKES. So many great takeaways – even my husband listened to it after I talked about it so much. While he didn’t agree with everything she wrote, we had some great discussions and, to me, that is the goal of a great book: to spark conversation.
FIERCE, FREE, & FULL OF FIRE by Jen Hatmaker. First of all. Jen Hatmaker is one of my favorite authors and humans. I have been reading and following her for 10 years. I have read every single thing that she has published. As she has grown and evolved in her own self, I have grown and evolved right alongside her. I just finished FFFoF and I am already re-starting it in hard copy so I can highlight my book. PS: My book club is reading this too (this month!) so hit me up if you want an invite!
THE BOOKISH LIFE OF NINA HILL by Abbie Waxman. This is a work of fiction that we are also reading in book club this month. I am only a chapter in, but I think I’m going to enjoy it!
We don’t watch too much television in our house, but when we do, we binge-watch. 😉 We just finished Cobra Kai on Netflix and I am unabashedly unashamed of how much I loved it.
The OG Karate Kid was one of my favorite movies growing up and I had a mad crush on Ralph Macchio. So much that I wrote him a fan letter and, get this, HE SENT ME AN AUTOGRAPHED PHOTO! If you don’t think I was the coolest girl in the ‘hood that day, then you would be mistaken. Karate Kid was one of the first classics that I let my oldest, Hudson, watch. Don’t judge me, but he totally started watching it around age 4 or 5. Poor parenting or great parenting? I can’t say for sure. But what I do know is that he loves it and has a complete and total appreciation for all 80’s music and movies, so I think I won.
Anyway – back to Cobra Kai. It is so ridiculously cringe-worthy but I cannot stop smiling while watching it. I think the cringe-factor just makes it even more like a classic 80’s flick and I am here for it. I cannot wait for Season 3. Oh, and I’m 99% sure we will all be dressing up as characters from Cobra Kai for halloween this year. #noshame
Listening
I rotate between music, audible, and podcasts – but music is pretty much my number one jam. I have a wide range of musical tastes and I switch it up on the reg. I love Pandora because you can select an artist and listen to their “station” – and then Pandora curates a great playlist with music in the same genre. My go-to stations are Dolly Parton (obvs), The Avett Brothers, Nate Rateliff and the Nightsweats, Beastie Boys, Lauren Daigle, & Broadway Showtunes. Pretty random, but all my faves.
Currently, I am crushing on my record player and listening to my faves on vinyl. If you have followed us on Instagram, several months ago I started a room makeover where we transformed a bonus room into my office space. A week or so ago I was finally able to move my record collection and record player in and it is bringing me so much joy! There is just something really special about listening to music on a non-digital platform – wouldn’t you agree?
Drinking
As I am slowly re-emerging into the real world, I have been meeting up, one-on-one, with the CBMC writing team and it has been so good for my soul! I have shared about my love of Coastal Bend Coffee Shops many times – we’ve written about it tons – and today is no different. This week I met up with Erin at Wired Coffee Company and I fell in love! It is such a fun pace, but the iced coffee (with a splash of heavy cream + 2 splendas) was one of the best I’ve ever had. You should definitely go grab one and let me know how you like it! Also, I’m going there again today, so if you see me working, be sure to say hi!
Wearing
Like a lot of you, I pretty much live in athleisure. 2020 has given me the green light to dressing for comfort over anything else. That being said – as I slowly re-emerge from our 6-month self-imposed self-isolation, I am actually loving getting dressed (in non-workout clothes) every day. I always have been a fan of “dressing the part” and literally have certain clothes that I wear for certain things. For example, my beloved #GSD shirt. If I know that I have a huge day of physical/household project, I throw on my shirt with my fave leggings and tennis shoes, don my white bandana, and I am now officially in character (thanks to my costume) and ready to tackle projects. Another fave are my accounting pants. These gems are from Anthropologie and are just the best. I feel glamorous but comfy, and totally like a grown-up. The final article of clothing I’d like to share are the brand new jeans that I got yesterday in my Stitch Fix box. YOU GUYS. I am kind of a jeans snob and, tbh, after my Covid-19 weight gain, I pretty much cannot comfortably fit into my faves. (I’m working on it!) Anyhoo – when my monthly box arrived with a pair of jeans, I almost didn’t try them on. But you guys: I am SO GLAD that I did! They are Judy Blue brand and literally the most comfortable jeans I’ve ever worn. You can order them online via their website or Amazon, but my friends over on the ‘gram also said that you can buy them locally at The B-Hive, Totally Tilden, and Haven in Calallen. 5/5 recommend. Get you some.