33 favorites
Today is my 34th birthday! Last year, when I turned 33, I rounded up 32 favorites from the previous year. Looking back at it now I realized it's kind of a time capsule of being 32. This year I'm adding one more thing and appreciating another trip around the sun.
Here are my 33 favorites during my 33rd year...
1. Marching in the Women's March in January
2. Wearing side-swept bangs and finding a new stylist I really like (with haircuts for $40!).
3. Being in a great reading groove and reading memorable books including Carry On, A Gentleman in Moscow, The Night Circus, The Signature of All Things and Little Fires Everywhere.
4. Visually keeping up with what I read using #kelseyreadinglately.
5. Crossing off my to-dos in my Get To Work Book with my mini-highlighters. I love how colorful it makes my days.
6. Changing my Nikki McClure calendar each month at my work desk.
7. My standing desk at work. The key is using a good quality squishy gel mat; I prefer to slip off my shoes and stand in my no-show socks.
8. Reading short chapter books to Dashiell and Cedric sitting through story books.
9. Taking evening walks while talking with my two oldest friends in Austin (we've know each other since kindergarten and second grade).
10. My Instant Pot and making homemade yogurt.
11. Picnic dinners at the pool this summer.
12. Having a hygge summer in general.
13. Finally making a wedding photo book.
14. Surprising Chris with a trip to Tuscon and compiling an audio birthday card for him from friends and family.
15. A trip to San Francisco by myself.
16. A new commute route to work along surface streets and through neighborhoods instead of on the highway.
17. Celebrating the 10th anniversary of my book club (I've been a member for 9 years) and the lifelong friendships I've made.
18. Diligently tracking our spending in Mint and sharing how I spent my personal allowance each month.
19. Planning ahead for Christmas using the CHRISTMAS spreadsheet I started last year. I just started a new tab for 2017 and it was really helpful to see my notes from last year. (We chatted all about Christmas planning in a recent episode of The Girl Next Door).
20. Taking two days off work in December for Christmas elfing - wrapping, shipping, running errands while sipping a peppermint mocha instead of harried on the weekends.
21. This episode of The Girl Next Door Podcast.
22. Switching from coffee to tea in the mornings. (I know!) My favorite is mint tea with soy creamer and a little pour of spiced honey mixer.
24. Listening to Wow in the World and Story Pirates with the boys while we're in the car.
25. Google Keep app for lists and notes.
26. Mystery novels; especially reading Still Life over the Thanksgiving holiday after bedtime and with a generous helping of leftover pie.
27. Thanksgiving. We ate outside, the boys ran around with cousins, the two pies and green beans I made were great and Chris made awesome veggie burgers. I made this sweet potato pie, this chocolate pie, and these green beans.
28. Upping my skin routine with retinol
29. Focusing on getting enough protein everyday, especially after going to Orange Theory, and tracking what I eat with My Fitness Pal.
30. Baby Driver (made all the better because we saw it at the Violet Crown)
31. Rekindling a habit of writing in my One Line A Day Journal and coming across notes from 2014, like the day I found out I was pregnant with Cedric.
32. A great little bar opening in our neighborhood (which is what I asked the universe for in 2017!) and going there on a bike date with Chris.
33. Adventures big and small with Chris and our boys - the best part of any year.
Here's to another trip around the sun!