Well hello there! I’ve got my coffee cup and no agenda. It’s just me and my thoughts today–who’s ready for a little catch up?
Apparently I’m a 90 year old because I hurt my hip. I’ve been hobbling around since Friday. How did I hurt it? Your guess is as good as mine. I went on a nice 4 mile walk with a friend on Friday afternoon–but seriously, body? You’re going to fall apart on me because of a walk? ::hangs head in shame::
We finally went on a vacation. If you’ve been hanging around for a while, you’ll know that Jonathan and I went to NYC for my 30th birthday in 2016. 2016! That was our last vacation. So at the start of this year we sat down with a calendar and actually planned out a vacation. We went back to Charleston for the first proper time since 2012. (I say properly because we went back in 2015 for a wedding–but we weren’t in the downtown area.) Man, has that city changed. We used to spend a lot of time there back in college, and all our nostalgic places were gone. 😩 We finally asked what the deal was, and a bartender explained that since it’s been rated the #1 vacation spot in the US two years in a row, all the businesses are capitalizing on the tourism and building rents are skyrocketing. It was a little heartbreaking, but I guess like with most things, it can’t stay the same forever.
My book is finally coming out in paperback. I know a lot of you are probably like enough already! Yes, I published the book as an e-book back in 2014–but it’s a totally different experience releasing a physical book. This feels real to me. This feels like a dream realized. It’s available for pre-order at the moment, and all pre-orders are signed copies. So I’ve been spending my free time freaking signing books. And if I’m 100% honest, I can’t believe any of it. It’s a really important physical reminder to myself that we can really do anything we want. W e can really make our dreams come true, friends. Sometimes the journey doesn’t look the way you thought it would. But at the end of the day, dreams realized are dreams realized. If you want a signed copy of your own, grab it here.
I’m getting back into cooking again. When we lived in Buies Creek, we ate every single meal at home. Jonathan and I are both pretty decent and adventurous cooks and often find ourselves slightly disappointed with expensive meals out; we always expect a bit more. Eating out (or grabbing take out) is just so dang convenient though. I’ve made a conscious effort to get back into meal planning and to spend more time in the kitchen, and I’ve really been enjoying it.
Our house is becoming a home. This May, Jonathan and I will celebrate our 8 year wedding anniversary. We’ve moved 6 times in those 8 years. Needless to say, we hardly ever unpack every box, and we certainly don’t mess with hanging things on the walls. But we’re finally settling down a bit here in Charlotte. We’ve already been back for three years (how?) so it seems like we might be here to stay for a bit. (Now that I’ve said that, watch us pick up and move again. 😂) Anyway, we rented a house just outside the city last winter, and we finally just started turning the place into a home. I had no idea how different a place could feel once you start to make it your own. (Plain beige walls will apparently make you crazy after a while.)
I lost my digital voice for a hot minute. It was really discouraging to look back at this blog for the year of 2017 and see that I hardly showed up. I know I was busy doing other things, but this space has always been a priority for me. I’m glad to be back. I’ve had a lot of questions about my social media detox and the kind of effect it had. I only detoxed from The Big Three (ha, unintentional This Is Us reference): Facebook, Twitter, Instagram. So I still allowed myself to read blogs. Back in the day, blogging was the only real way to get a glimpse inside someone’s life. But now with social media, there are a hundred different ways for us to share. I found that even though I was reading blogs, I wasn’t feeling connected to anyone. I’m 100% guilty of not always breaking down the wall and truly sharing in this space. I enjoy writing articles on topics that are important to me. But I need to remember to just show up sometimes, raw and vulnerable. I’ll try to do more of that this year.
Okay, that’s all I have for today I think. What’s been going on with you guys? Catch me up!
**Shameless plug because I have to: if you want a signed copy of Yeah, maybe, you can snag one here!**
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