It's pretty crazy that it is already February. Weren't the holidays just last week? I feel like I just got rid of that little elf--I mean, that she returned home to be with Santa. Then there's the fact that with the start of the second month of the year, it means my birthday month is officially over. I wrote about my attempt at embracing my age here and, to be honest, 37 is starting pretty awesome. I've been surrounded by a relatively healthy family, fun friends and a fresh hair cut/color. Plus, I love the beginning of new months because we get to look back on the month that was!
After spending a rather large portion of December tending for a sick family and being sick myself, January really was the month all about me reconnecting with my friends--old and new. I (finally!) met some blogger friends in real life, enjoyed lots of dinners out and took advantage of some extra time with my husband who's band had a slower month. But don't worry--American Bootleg has a very full February so if you want to see them, there are plenty of opportunities. While my husband and I didn't catch any sunrises together this month, we did watch some movies and get caught up on some DVR-ed shows. Because isn't that what you do in winter in Minnesota?
The adventure that I enjoyed the most this month was venturing out one Wednesday evening with my mother and daughter to watch my grandparents at their weekly square dancing meet-up. It brought back so many memories of my childhood and I was so happy to pass that on to my daughter. It was a wonderful night and resulted in one of my most popular posts I've ever published. But, more than that, my grandma loved what I wrote. And that was all I wanted.
With the start of a new year comes resolutions, for some people. I'm really not one of those people. That's not to mean that I'm not reflective and set goals for the year ahead, but I tend to resist the term "resolution" because I feel like there's a level of failure that is expected. Regardless, I did decide to join a group of bloggers and pick a word to focus on for 2015. My word is "proactive." To see why I picked that word (and what my friend ProCra has to do with it), check out this post.
I've had a few lighter moments on the blog this month, starting with a life lesson I gave my kids at dinner one night. Then I shared just a sampling of the times my son has made me laugh recently. Finally, I tried to show you how my brain operates and what I think about on any given morning. Luckily, I don't think I lost too many readers after my crazy was on full display, so thanks for that.
Finally, my Friday Favorites have spanned a lot of interests this month. From my love (for now) of spending NYE with my husband at a bar while he sings to my new favorite app, Collect. Then there was an update on my journey to read a book a week for a year and a little post on the importance of reading books that make us uncomfortable. And it wouldn't be a month if I didn't have at least one random post--that came in the form of a Fast Five edition on Friday Favorites.
So that's the recap, now lets look ahead a bit. February is the shortest month of the year, but is turning into a really big month for me. I've got a date with a friend scheduled so I can try pho for the first time and another meet-up with some lovely bloggers planned (did someone say Cards Against Humanity?). Plus, there's my absolute, no question about it, favorite holiday of the year, Valentine's Day. (Just to be clear that was written with a lot of sarcasm.) Then there's been my experiences in the kitchen thanks to a freezer meal workshop that has given me confidence that I can feed my family good, healthy meals. Plus, we have our first family vacation to an exotic locale on the books! Plane tickets have been purchased and grandparents are looking forward to our arrival in sunny, warm Florida. A condo on the beach, a nice pool--it's going to be a wonderful week.
I can't wait to share details on these topics and more. I hope you are having a wonderful start to your February!
{P.S. If you like recaps/reviews, check out my 2014 year in review here. Or, on a smaller scale, my November recap is here.}
xo Sara