What Brought Me Joy In December
Well, here we are. The FINAL blog post of 2023. It always feels so dramatic to say that. This is the last time I’ll be writing a blog post this year. After this, I’ll see you next year! It’s wild. But here we are.
At the beginning of this year, I declared that my word of the year would be JOY. I know a “word of the year” probably sounds a little cheesy to some people, but it’s become a really important ritual to me to pick one out each year. I truly do spend a lot of time thinking about how I can focus on that word throughout every month of the year, and it has made a big difference in my life. This year, probably more than any other year. I’m so glad I chose this word for 2023. After the absolute insanity that 2020 and 2021 brought to our lives, I felt like I spent most of 2022 just holding my breath and praying for calm. This year, though, I wanted to recapture the fun. Intentionally seek joy out. Find ways to just feel some freedom, be silly, and embrace happiness.
And it worked! There were so many things we did this year that might not have happened if I hadn’t been choosing joy all year long. So, as I sit down to write this little recap of what brought me joy in this final month of the year, I’m feeling particularly grateful that we decided to chase some joy this year.
Because it was a good one.
Moments & Memories
- Obviously, the best is yet to come when it comes to December. I’m writing this before the holidays actually hit, but that hasn’t made this month any less magical so far! I always have the best time experiencing Christmas through my kids’ eyes, and this year was no different.
- So far, we’ve gone to look at lights a few times, had lots of hot chocolate, baked a ton of cookies, done some Christmas crafts, and watched our little elf, Hermey, get up to all sorts of shenanigans. I think it’s safe to say we’ve fully soaked up the season!
- This past weekend my friend Parisa and I co-hosted our first ever grown-up gingerbread house night. We had the best time hanging with some of our friends decorating gingerbread houses, eating snacks, and just enjoying each other. I think so much time gets spent focusing on the kids this time of year, it’s really nice to take a second to do something for you!
- At the beginning of the year I challenged myself to run (at least) one half marathon every single month. I didn’t actually sign up for that many races, just made sure to do at least one run every month that distance. This month, I did my last one and I feel so accomplished knowing that I did it!
- We took a mini one-night trip to San Antonio to soak up some Christmas sights and just be together. We had so much fun, and I always love a super quick trip like that!
- It hasn’t happened yet, but I’m gonna go ahead and call Christmas break a highlight of this month. Today is my kids’ last day of school for the semester and we are all SO READY for a couple of weeks off to be together, relax, and just soak up some family time.
Books + Media
Here’s everything I’ve read (so far) this month…
- Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt – I’ve heard nothing but great things about this book, and it didn’t disappoint! It’s a really great story and some of it is told from a really unique perspective!
- From Blood & Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout – This is a series I’ve heard about for forever, so I finally decided it was time to give it a shot. I really enjoyed the first book! It wasn’t anything revolutionary and I felt like I saw every “twist” coming from a mile away, but it was compelling! I finished it really fast because I couldn’t put it down, and I’ll definitely keep reading the series.
- One Christmas Eve by Shari Low – This is the perfect “right before Christmas” book! It’s told from the perspective of three generations of women in a family, all when they were around the same age. It was so, so cute, and I highly recommend it! It’s free on Prime Reading right now, too!
- Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross – I was on the wait list for this book for months before I finally got it, and I flew through it once it finally came in! I loved it, and can’t wait for the next one.
We watched all the Christmas movies this month! I also started watching Ozark and I can’t belieeeeeeve it’s taken me this long to give it a shot. I’m hooked.
Fun + Games
- We played Gizmos for our family game night, and it’s always such a fun game to play with the kids! Grant (5) can’t really play on his own but loves teaming up with someone, and Jackson (9) is able to keep up with no problem.
- We’ve got lots of games under the tree for the boys (I’m most excited for this one and this one) so I think it’s safe to say that next week we’ll be playing a tonnnnn of games together.
Products
- Snagged this cardigan (pictured above) on sale and it’s definitely a new favorite. It’s perfectly oversized, so incredibly cozy, and looks good with everything. I reach for it even more often than I thought I would!
- I needed a few new drinking glasses for our house so I grabbed these for Corey and I and these for the kids. I love having the lid and straw for us, and the kids felt so so (so!) fancy having cups that look like our nice glass ones.
- I also grabbed this sweater for myself this month and I really love it! It’s lightweight and pretty neutral, but has a fun pop of color that makes it work really well for Christmas (or Valentine’s Day, or just a Tuesday). It comes in a lot of colors, and it’s a really high quality one. Highly recommend!
- Also, twinkle lights. Twinkle lights brought me a lot of joy this month.
Want to catch up on the entire year?