10 Things That Made Me Happy This Week

Happy Friday! Today I'm linking up with Charlotte, Lindsay, and Beth for their weekly grateful and happy list linkup. 

1. First two weeks at my new job have been great

2. Upgrading my phone

3. Valentine's Day displays at Target

4. Conversations with Mami

5. Shakira's BZRP Music Sessions #53

6. Coffee

7. Writing blog posts

8. Finally having time to catch up on TV shows (Currently catching up on season 4 of Roswell, New Mexico)

9. Chocolate chip cookies

10. Did I mention coffee?

What made you happy this week?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

Cheers to 2023

Cheers to...

new beginnings / new opportunities / new life / hopes and dreams / better days / enjoying the little things / busy Mondays, fun Fridays, and lazy Sundays / a life well lived / embracing change / overcoming fear / reading all the books / family / day dates with your love / trips to Target / trying new things / making time for yourself / exploring your city / exploring new places / spending time in nature / letting go of baggage /  doing the things you love / getting things done / doing it your way / creativity / you

May 2023 be everything you wished for and more.

This post is part of a blog hop with Exhale-an online community of women pursuing creativity alongside motherhood, led by the writing team behind Coffee + Crumbs. Click here to view the next post in the series "Cheers!". 

Photo by Alexandra Golovac on Unsplash

If You and I Had Coffee

If you and I had coffee...

We'd meet up at one of our favorite local coffee shops. I'd order an iced coffee because I definitely need one. Coffee is my drink of choice these days. Don't worry, I still drink my hot chocolate, but coffee has been a must these past couple of weeks. I'd also order a couple of pastries to share and a few to-go to treat myself.

If you and I had coffee...

I'd tell you that I'm trying to get used to my new routine. Since I started working, I've had to switch so many things around. I'm unable to do my usual stuff in the mornings since I work, so it felt weird having to run errands in the afternoons or weekends. I have tried to get everything done during the week because I want my weekends to be free, and I want to enjoy the weekend. 

As for my new job, I really am enjoying it. My coworkers are so nice. Everything is really going well, and I'm so grateful for that.

If you and I had coffee...

I'd tell you that I haven't been working on many of my memory-keeping projects. I have a few projects that I want to work on. I'm still deciding whether to work on some of my half-finished projects or let them go. Maybe I'll just work on them when I feel like it. I just haven't had enough time, and I've been exhausted. 

As I've said before, I'm still adjusting to my new schedule, and it's been a busy couple of weeks. I am hoping to get to creating soon because I miss playing with paper, paint, and all of my other art supplies.

If you and I had coffee...

I'd tell you that I have a few goals this year that I'm hoping to accomplish. So many of my goals this year are actually tied to one of my words for the year. It feels weird because the word doesn't sound exciting, but it is meaningful. I'll probably share more about this soon because I don't have the words to describe everything I'm feeling about my word(s) for the year. 

If you and I had coffee...

I'd tell you that I'm feeling a little bit anxious, but also excited. I hope this year is a good one and that nothing goes wrong. I swear last November really terrified me, and some of that fear got carried into this year; however, I feel much more hopeful.

If you and I had coffee...

I'd tell you that I'm glad we were able to catch up. It was nice to slow down and spend time with a friend. I'm looking forward to meeting again in February. Here's to ending this month on a good note, having good days, and having a great year. Here's to 2023. May all your hopes and dreams for this new year come true.

What would you tell me?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash

10 Things That Made Me Happy This Week

Happy Friday! Today I'm linking up with Charlotte, Lindsay, and Beth for their weekly grateful and happy list linkup. 

1. New promotion/job started on my birthday

2. Celebrating my 32nd birthday

3. Feeling hopeful and excited for the new year

4. Target's Valentine's displays

5. My new headbands from ZillymooseHeadband

6. Changing up my hairstyle

7. Encouraging words and well wishes from friends, family, and my new coworkers

8. New ARC from one of my favorite authors

9. My favorite fleece sweater

10. Coffee...so much coffee

What made you happy this week?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

January Goals

Happy New Year! I'm a few days late, but I usually take a few extra days since it's my birthday week. 2022 was a wild ride. I've said it before, most of the year was great, but the last part of the year was brutal, especially the month of November. Oh my goodness, I think I felt every emotion in November and felt like I was being pulled in so many different directions. December was not as stressful and was a much more gentle and more relaxed month than November. 

I've spent the past few days reflecting on 2022 and thinking about what I want in 2023. I didn't have a word for 2022, which is odd. However, I have a word for 2023...well I've narrowed it down to at least 2-3 words. I'll share more of that soon, but I may end up having a couple of words rather than just one. Has that ever happened to you? How do you pick just one word when several keep coming back to you? 

I only made a few goals in December because I tend to not work on my goals during that month. It's a hectic month, and even though I still set goals in December, I always give myself some grace. If I accomplish my goals in December, that's awesome, but if I don't, it's ok. I'm surprised at the number of goals I achieved, especially since I forgot about my goals. 

Before I continue to ramble, let's get back to the point of this post which is to share my goals for January and recap how I did with my December goals.

Recap of December Goals

• Read 5 books: I read 29 books. Most of them were novellas and holiday-themed books, which I absolutely loved. One of my favorite reads for December was You Had Your Chance, Lee Burrows by Piper Rayne. Another favorite read was Wild Tongues Can't Be Tamed, a collection of 15 original essays by multiple authors.

• Read and review 2 books I received from Netgalley: I read and reviewed Out of the Fires by Carrie Lara, I Gave Myself the World by Catarine Hancock, I Always Think It's Forever by Timothy Goodman, and Ode to a Nobody by Caroline Brooks DuBois. I really loved Timothy Goodman's book and definitely recommend it.

• Complete 1 half-finished memory-keeping project: Yikes! I did not do this. I still have so many unfinished projects; I'm somewhat tempted to cut my losses and let a few of them go. However, I really don't want to stop working on them. What do you usually do when you have unfinished projects? 

• Publish 2 personal pieces on the blog: I shared my piece for the Exhale blog hop (find more info below) and my monthly list post and coffee date post.

• Participate in Exhale's December blog hop: I was really excited to participate in last month's blog hop. I almost missed it, but I'm so glad I didn't. You can check out my piece here.

• Try 1 new recipe: I made some frosting-filled chocolate chip cookies and followed this recipe by Cinnabon. They turned out great, and I plan on trying some more recipes using Cinnabon's frosting.

January Goals

• Read 3 books that I didn't finish in 2022

• Read and review 3 books I received from Netgalley

• Publish 2 personal pieces on the blog

• Participate in Exhale's January blog hop

• Try 1 new recipe

What are your goals for January? How did you do in December? Have you set any yearly goals?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

Photo by Content Pixie on Unsplash