August Goals

Happy Tuesday! How is it already August, and how are we in the second week of August? Before we know it, it'll be December. It's been a busy month already...I mean, I'm sharing my monthly goals post eleven days into the month. But better late than never, I suppose.

July went by fast. There were some busy days spent back-to-school shopping and preparing for the first day back to school and work. Thankfully, we didn't have to buy too many supplies since we still had a bunch at home. 

John and I celebrated our 13th wedding anniversary. We celebrated the entire week. We went on a lovely date. Later in the week, we even stopped by Marietta Pizza Company, which was one of the first places we went to when we first started dating. 

We celebrated Mami's birthday. It was nice to spend time with family, eat good food, and have all the kids together for the day. It's amazing how fast the kids grow. I can't believe my oldest nephew will be an adult in just a few months. It seems like yesterday he was just an infant.

July was an eye-opening month. I tried something and quickly realized that it wasn't for me. I definitely needed to take care of my health, and I'm so proud that I took the steps to do just that. I finally started physical therapy after putting it off for way too long, and after just one session, I felt so much better. I'm looking forward to seeing how I progress.

This month, I'm looking forward to getting back to a routine. I already knew it would be a busy month, but so far it hasn't been too bad. However, I'm certain it will get busy in the next week or so. 

I'm looking forward to something big happening this month, and I admit I'm really nervous. I took some time this weekend to have some me time and to prepare as much as I can for what is to come. 

Since it's a new month and I'm a bit late with my monthly goals, it's time to finally share a recap of last month's goals and check out my new goals for August. 

Recap of July Goals

• Read 2 books I borrowed from the library: I read My Name Is Lucy Barton by Elizabeth Strout. I really enjoyed it and can't wait to read the next book in the series. Raphael and I also read several books together. We read Deep Blue: Swimming in the Big Blue Sea by Dashka Slater, Just In Case You Want to Fly by Julie Fogliano, This Is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen, and a couple of Pete the Cat books by Kimberly and James Dean.

• Read 1 book I received from NetGalley: I didn't finish reading any of the books I've received from NetGalley, but I did continue to read a few of them.

• Try 1 new-to-me recipe: I made two new recipes in July! I made a teriyaki chicken meatball bowl and a lemon pasta dish. I've been really inspired by Melissa's recipes and have enjoyed switching a few things here and there. 

• Work in my journal/art journal: Unfortunately, I didn't work in my journal. I will honestly say I was too busy and didn't make time to work in my journal. 

• Watch or stream a movie: I watched Voicemails to Isabelle and Remarkably Bright Creatures. They were both amazing! I haven't watched a romcom in years, and Voicemails to Isabelle was perfect! Remarkably Bright Creatures was amazing, and Sally Field did an amazing job in the film.

• Enjoy the rest of our summer break: I was determined to enjoy the rest of our summer break as much as I could, and I'm glad I did. It was a busier summer than usual, so I'm glad I was intentional with the time we had left before the start of school and work.

August Goals

• Read 1 book I borrowed from the library

• Read 1 book I received from NetGalley

• Try 1 new-to-me recipe

• Work in my journal/art journal

• Watch or stream a movie or show

What are your goals for August? How did you do in July?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

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10 Things That Made Me Happy This Week

Happy Sunday! The first week of school and work has passed. I'm happy to say the boys are adjusting well. I am incredibly grateful that it went well, especially after the awful and stressful week I had. I felt it was so important to remember the little things that gave me joy, and I'm so glad that I've made it a habit to document those small moments.

1. Things to Do When You're Standing Inside of August by Megan Minutillo

2. Barnes & Noble Haul. I mentioned this before, but my local Barnes & Noble is unfortunately closing. Supposedly, a gas station will be built in its place, which is incredibly unfortunate. My local Barnes & Noble is gorgeous. The architecture is amazing, so it's so sad to know that it's going to be torn down to make way for a gas station. As the store nears its final weeks, the sales have been amazing. Books are now 50% off. They also have another sale where you can buy any 5 books in the store for $25 (the only exclusion is books priced at $50 or more). I even found the book that I had been looking for weeks! I may or may not have let out a little squeal of excitement when I found it.

3. A drone captured a humpback whale giving birth to a calf in what was possibly the world's first.

4. I think I may have found my fall drink for this year. Cove's Blood Orange prebiotic soda is so good!

5. On repeat: Lonely Touch by Sarah Kinsley

6. I went to Sincerely Yours Bookstore and bought a new candle and a mini embroidery kit.

7. Currently reading: I've been catching up on some Substack newsletters, and I'm still slowly reading Austin Kleon's Don't Call It Art. 

8. I recently learned about the Tiny Art Show, and it's so cool. I really hope there's a pop-up one day near my city.

9. After the horrible week I had, I'm so glad this video randomly popped up on my feed.

10. I went to the Smyrna Handmade Market and bought some peaches (the last one for the season), some plain and Mexican cheese bagels, some baked goods from Bonnin's Bakery, and some drinks from Soul Food Holistic Healing. I'm set for some meals and desserts for the week. I absolutely adore shopping local and helping support some of my favorite small businesses. 

What made you happy this week?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

Photo by Jess Bailey on Unsplash

July 2026 // A List

1. July was a month full of surprises. Some good and some not so good. As usual, good days (mostly thank goodness) and, of course, some not-so-great days.

2. The clock ticked away as the end of summer break neared and preparations for school and work began. Sadly, today is the end of our summer break. We'll be back to work and school tomorrow. 

3. I'm still blown away that my middle child, Gabriel, will be in high school this year. Michael and Gabriel are really excited to be going to the same school again, which has helped settle my nerves a bit. I'm looking forward to how much my sons will grow this school year.

4. The end of July and the month of August always feel odd. It's still officially summer, but the hints of fall begin to trickle in. Although I'm sad summer break is ending, I'm so excited for autumn. I'm ready for cooler weather, pumpkin spice lattes, all the baked goods, and all things cozy.

5. I dove into recipes and really liked this chicken meatball bowl recipe and lemon pasta recipe. Even better, the boys really loved it too!

6. John and I celebrated our 13th wedding anniversary. I can't believe it's been 13 years since we got married, and we've been together for 18 years. Time truly flies by. It was so great. We went to the Marietta Square and ate at one of our favorite restaurants. We also stopped by one of my favorite little coffee shops afterwards. We celebrated the entire week, which was so much fun.

7. We celebrated Mami's birthday, and I got to see my nephews and nieces. I'm always blown away by how much they seem to grow. We all had a blast spending time together. I can't wait for the next family event.

8. July was the month for movies. I watched Remarkably Bright Creatures and Voicemails to Isabelle. 10/10, highly recommend both movies. 

9. I learned a lot of lessons in July, and some were very much-needed and ultimately incredibly appreciated. Again, this summer was a summer of lessons, and I'm grateful for it...even though some of them were hard. I truly think everything that happened needed to happen. 

10. In July, I found myself really taking care of my health and making it a priority. If there's anything you can take from reading this, it's to please, please, please remember to take care of yourself. Stop putting off going to the doctor or ignoring what your body is trying to tell you. Protect yourself and your future.

11. I love that my little sister and I have been bonding a lot more. It's been a while since we talked for hours on the phone.

12. As I think about August, I hope that it's a smooth transition and we get used to going back to a routine. I really hope that there are no "surprises" in August. May the next month bring consistent creative energy (it seemed to slip a bit in July) in whatever form or medium it arrives.

13. So long, July. You were truly an experience. Hello, August. I'm equal parts excited and nervous. Just like July, I think you're going to be a month full of lessons. There's going to be some major changes, and I'm trying to be hopeful. Please be kind to me.

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Just Four Things

1. I recently watched Voicemails to Isabelle and really loved it. I haven't watched a rom-com drama in such a long time, but I'm so glad I listened to everyone who recommended this movie. Also, the soundtrack is amazing. 

2. I've been reading Allie Sullenberg's Substack newsletter, The Museum of Small and Important Things. I love a good listicle, and she started a new series, Mind Museum, which I thought was pretty cool. She also has an excellent series called Tiny Desk Tour, where artists give tiny desk tours of their creative spaces and share their creative processes.

3. I'm planning to sell a few books on Pangobooks and possibly reopen my Etsy shop, and realized a label printer would be useful. So I recently bought a Munbyn thermal label printer, and so far it's been great. It was fairly easy to set up (John helped a lot), and now I can print labels. I love that it doesn't use any ink.

4. I really wanted to try more recipes this month, and I'm happy to say that I did. I've been saving some recipes I've found on Instagram and finally made time to make them. I also love that some of the recipes I've been trying are things or flavors that I normally wouldn't even try. And surprisingly, they have turned out well. 

What have you been up to?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

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10 Things That Made Me Happy This Week

Happy Saturday! Now that school will start again soon, it seems like the weeks are flying by. John and I are planning to continue celebrating our wedding anniversary, and I'm really excited for our date.

1. This was a strange week, but also a very interesting one. A lot of things happened, and I'm looking forward to what the next couple of weeks bring. I'm trying to stay hopeful and taking things one day at a time. But so far, so good.

2. Costco. We've saved so much money on food and gas. The gold star executive membership is definitely worth it.

3. Jenna O'Brien's documentation of colors that feel like summer made me want to make my own. Maybe I'll include one in my journal.

4. On repeat: something like this by Cil

5. I tried two different recipes, and they came out really good. I made a teriyaki chicken meatball bowl using this recipe, but changed a few things. The boys really loved the teriyaki chicken meatballs, which made me excited since Raphael can be a picky eater. I also tried a lemon pasta dinner. This was an interesting meal. However, I'm not sure if I'd try to make this recipe again. It wasn't awful, but I think the lemon flavor was too intense for a pasta dish.

6. I went to a different nearby farmer's market, and it was nice. I ended up buying some peaches and apples. Now I'm dreaming of baking so many treats.

7. Must-watch: Remarkably Bright Creatures. Make sure to have a box of Kleenex nearby.

8. This made me laugh. 

9. As of today, there are 99 days until Halloween, and I can't wait. I'm so excited for fall.

10. John and I went to the Marietta Square and decided to go to the Marietta Pizza Company. The slices of pizza and calzone were huge! They seemed way bigger than normal. We ended up taking some of our food to go. Then we went for a walk and grabbed some coffee and BonBon candies at Tuesday Coffee & Shoppe.

What made you happy this week?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

10 Things That Made Me Happy This Week

Happy Sunday! I hope you all are enjoying the rest of the weekend. We're still trying to savor the last few weeks of summer before school and work start again. So we've been out and about this weekend. It was nice not having a set plan and just going wherever we wanted. Also, John and I have been celebrating our wedding anniversary. I can't believe it'll be thirteen years of us being married! 

1. Millennial English Teachers vs. Gen Z Students. I laughed way too hard at these, especially the one about Macbeth.

2. I have been dealing with back pain, especially when I wake up, and I learned about putting a pillow between my legs when I sleep. It's been a game changer. 

3. The boys have been in a hot chocolate phase, and I love it! They've been asking for hot chocolate at night, and it's making me excited for fall and winter. 

4. We went for a walk near our downtown square and checked out the farmer's market. Although it was nice, it was also incredibly hot. 

5. On repeat: Track 10 by Charli XCX

6. A/C. Although we've been going on a few adventures here and there, we have definitely loved staying home where it's nice and cool.

7. Currently Reading: Don't Call It Art by Austin Kleon

8. So relatable. I felt seen...and at least I'm not alone?

9. It's National Ice Cream Day! We stocked up on a few of our favorite ice cream treats. 

10. A lot of big things are coming in the next few days and weeks. I'm excited, but really nervous and a little stressed. Fingers crossed that everything works out.

What made you happy this week?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

Photo by Courtney Cook on Unsplash

10 Things That Made Me Happy This Week

Happy Friday! This week went by pretty fast. I'm excited for this weekend. I'm hoping to spend some time at the pool and possibly watch Remarkably Bright Creatures or Off Campus.

1. I won a Goodreads giveaway and received my copy of What If We Get It Right? by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson. I'm excited to read it.

2. I tried Trader Joe's S'mores Clusters, and oh my goodness, they are so good! I definitely plan to buy another bag or two.

3. Currently reading: Cherry Baby by Rainbow Rowell

4. I finally bought some really big storage containers and can't wait to put them to use. I'm still decluttering, and these containers are going to make things so much easier to organize a couple of spaces.

5. On Repeat: "Cherish You" by Mikky Ekko. I first heard this song while watching Voicemails for Isabelle. The soundtrack for this movie has some really fantastic songs.

6. We started back-to-school shopping (I know...I'm so sad summer break is almost over) and I'm so happy with how much we were able to save. We still have a bit more to do, but I'm excited to see how much more we save. 

7. Inspired by: This journal by Magdalena, Ammie's Hobonichi Cousin daily pages, and Karenliz's art journal pages.

8. On the wishlist: Have you heard of the Buddha Board? This thing looks so cool. I love that you can draw something and then it vanishes depending on how much water you use. This seems like such a useful art tool.

9. Random afternoon storms. One of my favorite things about summer is the storms that come out of nowhere. Pair it with a favorite candle and a good book...and it's perfection.

10. I have a better idea of what my next steps are for my career, and I'm excited (and a little nervous). The past few weeks have been very eye-opening. Although there were some stressful days, I think everything that happened needed to happen. I'm feeling a bit more at ease, and I'm so thankful for that.

What made you happy this week?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

Photo by Courtney Cook on Unsplash