Monthly Musings: January 2019
Happy New Year, friends!
I hope you found time at the end of 2018 to carve out some well deserved rest. I took the last two weeks off to give my body the rest it needed and I feel like a new woman; my body rejuvenated, my mind clearer. My time was spent catching up with friends, wedding-going, having date nights with Boyfriend, and getting super acquainted with my couch. It has been glorious.
While resolutions have never really been my thing, I’ve resolved to try harder this year. Try to be a better person, every single day. To relax more, and not to get as worked up. Breathe deeper & longer, to rest my body and my soul. To be more in the now, and to appreciate the little things. Be a better friend, and to let my friends know how much they mean to me. To be a better daughter, sister, partner, person. Laugh more, dance more, sing more, bake more, do more. Basically, my new year’s resolution is to be the very best version of myself, as much as possible. Will you join me?
Monthly Musings, January 2019:
I took some time out these past few days to update our Westport Guide. We visit every year around December/January & I’ve added a few of our recent finds to the list. Please enjoy this photo of Boyfriend striding-by ‘Mayo’s Leading Fishing & Tackle Shop’, I know I do.
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Related: our Vienna post went live a couple of weeks ago! I’m so excited to share it here because it has been sitting in my drafts for a YEAR. We visited last December for the Christmas markets, but a lot of the bars/restaurants/culture in the post aren’t December related, so check it out!
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I recently became the proud owner of an Amazon Alexa device and it has literally blown my mind. She has been renamed Echo and Boyfriend & I have accepted her as one of our own. A particular highlight was when we asked her to rap to us. Thanks, Kid!
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Boyfriend & I dedicated some time yesterday to taking a serious look at our wardrobe. What we actually wear vs. what we like the idea of wearing but never really do. Anything we weren’t sure about or hadn’t worn in over a year was mercilessly packed up and donated to our local charity shop. It feels so good!
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We had some amazing additions to our cookbook collection recently! My bestie bought me the most thoughtful book ever – Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat – and I find myself re-reading every single word on every page. It’s an incredibly fascinating read, to understand the hows and whys behind eating and food. If you purchase one cookbook for yourself this year, let it be this.
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Another amazing addition to the collection is Los Angeles: Cult Recipes. Boyfriend & I are big fans of the ‘Cult Recipes’ books – we already have the New York one – and this one is just as fantastic as we’d hoped. Boyfriend has his eye on the In-N-Out burger, while I’ve been dreaming of the calorific mac-and-cheese-pizza. Only in LA!
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Can we talk about how beautiful these new smock aprons from Hedley & Bennett are for a hot second? I am obsessed. H&B have been a favourite of mine since Joy the Baker gifted me one a couple of years ago, but I was beyond excited when I saw the release of the smocks a couple of months ago. We have the charcoal one, and it’s worth every single cent of the FedEx bill headed my way. So beautiful!
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Last week, we hosted our favourite pescatarian friends for dinner and had the very best time! We went for a trusty Smitten Kitchen recipe for mains – because you can never go wrong with Deb – and Kladdkaka for dessert. By the end of the night, nearly all the food was demolished. Having friends over for dinner is one of the things I enjoy most about having our own space.
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What are you reading at the moment? I’m currently reading the Detective Erika Foster novels by Robert Bryndza. They’re both easy on my brain and intriguing at the same time. I think I’m going to hit up Crazy Rich Asians next, but I would love any suggestions!
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Boyfriend & I are patiently waiting for the cinema to start releasing the Oscar worthy films, but in the meantime we’ve been getting our movie fix on Netflix. During the week we watched Bird Box and it left us divided; I loved it and Boyfriend thought it was so-so. Last night we poured ourselves some Spanish wine and snuggled in for Vicky Christina Barcelona, a classic we both loved.
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An oldie but a goodie: Fudgy Fudge Brownies. Gooey, melt-in-the-mouth deliciousness. I recently remade these babies for Boyfriend’s birthday & added a peanut butter swirl through the batter – best. idea. ever.
Have a fantastic month, friends!
Hugs,
Vicki xo