Em for Marvelous is one of my long-time favorite blogs, and she writes a post like this every year... which inspired this one! I love recapping my year and this feels like a great way to do it. I'll also be back on the 31st with a "2022 in Review" post, so check back for that!
Best adventure/travel/trip: We took a short road trip in May with Caroline and it was exceptionally fun. It felt mighty brave of us to take a 9-week-old on a trip, but it turned out to be great. Of course it was slower than we usually travel, but she was a great rider and made it easy on us. I was ready to get home after a couple of days, but that's the beauty in a Harrison Jenkins road trip: there are no plans and you can go home whenever you want, ha. We traveled to New River Gorge National Park, Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Cleveland OH, Erie PA, Pittsburgh, the Flight 93 memorial, Gettysburg & Antietam Battlefields, Harper's Ferry MD, and Shenandoah National Park. It was definitely ambitious, but I love looking at the photos and we will have so much fun telling Caroline about it when she's older.
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Best TV show or movie: Is there any other answer than Top Gun: Maverick? Harrison and I got out on one of our first dates after having Caroline to see it and it was fantastic. If you haven't seen it yet, go watch it now!
Best album or song: I'm going to go with an artist here: Zach Bryan. I've listed to his music casually in the past, but here lately I've been binge-listening to it and holy moly is it good. The lyrics are well written, the music is beautiful, it's fun and it's deep and it's easy to listen to. If you're new to Zach Bryan, here are a few favorites: Motorcycle Drive By, Something in the Orange (Z&E's Version), The Good I'll Do, Burn Burn Burn, and Oklahoma Smokeshow.
Best follow on Instagram: I've followed her for a while, but Jess at @rootsoutwest is fabulous. She is consistently an account I check every day. She is also a farm wife + mom, so she's relatable, funny, and real. She posts the best deals and ideas for everyday life.
Best new podcast listen, newsletter subscribe, or blog follow: Hands down, The Lazy Genius podcast. Kendra is a fellow NC gal and she has an amazing following. She gives tips on making life easier, which is definitely something I need! She has also written books, one of which I received for Christmas and I'm so excited to dig into!
Best book you read: I read a lot while I was on maternity leave, and Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid was probably my favorite! Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover was a close second. (I did read Verity, and it was very good, but it was a tough read after just having a baby!)
Best kiddo milestone: It is incredible the skills that Caroline has gained in 10 months, but my favorite is probably clapping. It is so much fun... and extra cute when she claps when she's sad.
Best faith grower: Definitely Caroline's birth. Nothing has made me feel as close to God as being granted the ability to carry and birth a little human. Birth itself showed me how strong I can be, even though I don't think of myself as a physically strong person at all. I have leaned so heavily on my faith during the postpartum period, as well.
Best trend you tried: I jumped on the Stanley cup train and I'm so glad I did. I went with the 30 oz. one, which I think was a good choice. Does it keep my drinks cold extra long? No, I wouldn't say so. My Simple Modern tumbler keeps ice longer, but I love the handle on the Stanley and I think that makes it worth the extra money. Simple Modern came out with their version of the Stanley right after I ordered my Stanley, and I think I might would like that one better, but I'm still very happy with the purchase.
Best beauty purchase: Exuviance Gentle Cream Cleanser. My skin looks better than it has in a while, and I think it's largely owed to this cleanser.
Best family memory: Partying it up at my sister's wedding! It was such a beautiful day and we had so much fun. She and my new brother-in-law are such a perfect couple.
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Best new tradition: We don't do it every week, but pizza Sundays are favorite days for me! I love the refrigerated pizza dough from the store (not the kind in a can, but a bag), so we'll get that and some toppings and usually watch a movie (or Yellowstone, currently!)
Favorite blog post written: The formatting is weird because I originally published it on Substack, so forgive that until I have time to fix it, but Boil the Carrots is my favorite from 2022. I wish I had written more, but this one was real and raw and resonated with a lot of people when I posted it!
Best new recipe: I discovered that I love Brussels sprouts... when they're made a certain way! These honey balsamic ones are to die for!
Best hack or habit: I started running the dishwasher every night and it's a game changer. It feels slightly wasteful, but apparently running the dishwasher uses less water than handwashing! No matter how big the load is, I hit start before I go to bed. This helps me keep up with the dishes - something I really struggle with.
Best mama moment: Taking Caroline to my sister's bachelorette weekend was so much fun. It might seem insane to take a baby on a bach trip, but it was so much fun. We rerouted our plans due to Hurricane Ian, but we still made it to Charleston for a day. It is one of my favorite cities, and even though Caroline has no memory of it, I feel like it was such a fun mom/daughter bonding trip!
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Best home improvement: This is super recent (less than 24 hours old at the time I'm writing this), but my sister-in-law got us Ring cameras for Christmas and I think it's awesome! Harrison hung them and it's been great so far. We have bottle lambs in the backyard currently so the notifications have been going crazy, ha!
Best little luxury you enjoyed: I purchased fun new champagne coupes at Ikea this fall and they make me feel so fancy! Champagne/prosecco is one of my drinks of choice, but I rarely purchase it because an open bottle doesn't keep, of course. I love using the coupes when I do buy it, or for cocktails!
2022 was such a blessed year for us. It was not free from challenges, of course, but looking back I feel nothing but joy and gratitude. I can't wait to see where 2023 takes us!
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