Bonjour! My spouse and I spent Thanksgiving overseas in London and Paris, and wow, it was an amazing alternative. I’m not an enormous Thanksgiving fan (I do know, I do know) and attending to spend the vacation consuming espresso in little cafes, watching the Eiffel Tower sparkle, and exploring corners of London, was an actual deal with. I hope you’re making it via this vacation season, and likewise the world proper now. It’s heartbreaking. I hope you’ve discovered methods to look after your self, but additionally discovered methods to talk out and take motion in ways in which really feel significant to you.
It sounds cliche to start out a submit this fashion, however how on this planet is it now December?! This 12 months flew by. It’s been an actual blended bag of a 12 months. However aren’t all years a blended bag, when it comes all the way down to it? One of many issues my therapist and I discuss steadily is duality — the concept of holding two paradoxical truths directly. For instance, generally, individuals can do their finest (together with us) and generally, that isn’t sufficient. I discover the vacations to be an ideal instance of this duality. There are such a lot of enjoyable issues to do and locations to be, however it may be exhausting and costly. We see the individuals we love, and but time collectively may trigger us ache. We will have excessive expectations for ourselves and the way the vacations ought to really feel, and but our efforts or expertise can really feel prefer it’s not sufficient. I hope you’re type to your self and people round you as we make it via the chaos, collectively.
My want for you is that nevertheless your holidays unfold, you’re capable of finding magnificence and pleasure, even when it’s fleeting or onerous to entry.
Thanks for letting me be part of you on these Sundays — it’s been a candy spot this 12 months. I hope to see you in 2024!
• What are you making for Christmas morning? My spouse and I sometimes take pleasure in a quiet morning by the tree, and I’m going to combine it up this 12 months and do these Lemon Poppyseed Morning Rolls and a potato leek quiche. Add some bacon (perhaps?) and occasional with whipped cream and it appears like a fairly excellent morning. (Pleasure The Baker)
• My good friend Olivia Muenter is so sensible and beautiful. I actually loved this submit from her Substack about dressing up to your life. (Instagram, Substack)
• ‘Tis the season for planning and household time! I cherished the following tips for navigating your loved ones textual content chain. Additionally, a reminder I want for instances once I’m with individuals I don’t know nicely (like vacation events) and aiming to be social and nice: it’s okay to be awkward! (TIME journal, The Good Commerce)
• Your mates don’t all must be the identical age! Personally, I spend loads of time with individuals youthful than me (I train center college by day, have stayed in touch with many former college students, and have many colleagues who’re youthful than me), and I recognize the attitude they bring about to my life. Since I turned 40, I’ve discovered that I actually recognize the attitude, recommendation, and way of life of so many ladies older than me. I don’t have aunts or older sisters, so I’m very into having clever older associates. (The Atlantic)
• I’m a lifelong Californian, and whereas I notice many people don’t suppose we’ve got “actual winters” I’m in Northern California, and common winter temperatures are within the 40ss and 50s in the course of the day, and we’ve already had numerous frost (and a random snow warning?!). The worst half is that it will get darkish by 5 PM, which is difficult for individuals like me who are suffering from seasonal affective dysfunction. I swear by my blissful lamp, however I additionally favored the following tips about the way to get forward of winter and the dread that may accompany it. If you happen to’re in a literal or metaphorical winter, I discover myself returning to this ebook many times, and extremely suggest a learn when you want some bolstering. (Self, Bookshop)
• I make this orange gingerbread cake yearly and it’s change into a signature dish to the diploma {that a} good friend particularly requested me to carry “that incredible orange gingerbread you at all times make” to an upcoming gathering. Clearly, I’m blissful to do it — it’s scrumptious, seasonal, and the pomegranate seeds make it look bejeweled. (Pleasure The Baker)
• As an elder millennial, I really feel this difficult: First Gen Social Media Customers Have Nowhere To Go (Wired)
• I’ve loads of targets for 2024, however the one I’m presently most centered on is curbing spending on dumb issues. I’ve change into a relentless impulse purchaser in recent times, and I’m over it. I deleted my fee strategies from Amazon (and intention to cease procuring there utterly by the top of 2024), have cleared my bank card data from all my browsers, and am additionally going to do this impulse spending journal concept, as a result of it combines the factor I’m working to enhance AND my love of gold stars. (The Monetary Weight-reduction plan)
• I’m a books particular person, and I each love and detest this time of 12 months, during which each outlet posts their finest books of the 12 months lists as a result of my TBR checklist is already fairly lengthy. In accordance with my purpose above, I’m making good use of my library and my beloved Kindle (for which I desperately need one among these cute Kindle holders). I’ve been getting good books so as to add to my checklist from The New Yorker (although the maintain instances are months and months for a few of them!) and my new favourite factor, Ann Patchett Tok (aka the Parnassus Books Tik Tok account) the place she recommends backlist books that you just don’t have to attend eternally for on the library! (Etsy, The New Yorker, TikTok)
• I’m hoping to host family and friends extra steadily in 2024, and I discovered this submit about tablescapes to be attention-grabbing and useful. I additionally observe Chelsea Fagan’s TikTok for stylish, stellar internet hosting and ceremonial dinner concepts. (Eater, TikTok)
• In the same vein, I actually recognize posts like this on the way to inventory a pantry, plus Pleasure’s knowledge on the way to arrange it. (New York Instances, Pleasure The Baker)
