10 Things Vol. 1

I recently started reading blogs again. Years ago, I would log on every day and check in on my favorite bloggers. Then things moved to Instagram and I spent less time reading their respective blogs unless I was looking for something specific. To be fair, some of them may have also spent less time writing on their blogs. But as I’ve been enjoying blogging myself more lately, I’ve also been craving reading more. I got inspired by Carly (I mean, I’m often inspired by Carly) and how she posts every day and I realized not every post has to be super long or earth shattering. What I like about reading blogs is almost more mundane anyway—it’s like seeing into the lives of “normal” everyday people. Anyway, all that to say, Carly does a “10 things” post that I really enjoy and so I thought I’d try out the format to see if it’s something I want to introduce every once in a while. Here are ten random things on my mind this week.

SOCKS

Such a weird thing to be bringing me joy right now, but I’ve been finding myself in workout clothes frequently (usually to lounge in, but I also just started working out again!) and it was making me feel sort of junky. I’d be feeding Levi, sitting in his room, feet propped up and staring at them in pill-y, less than fresh looking socks I’ve had for years. I decided it was time for fresh ones and purchased these. It’s kind of nuts how refreshed they make me feel. Like literally bringing me joy. It also spurred me to go through my socks and underwear drawers, reorganize and get rid of things. So both my feet and my dresser feel fresher!

WORKING OUT

Speaking of working out, I started weight lifting again! I’m only one week in, but I’ve worked out five times! I’m giving myself a lot of grace and basically starting as a beginner again and it’s been challenging, but I’m feeling so good about it. I can tell it has definitely improved my mood mentally. I’ve tried to switch into “robot mode” and just tell myself I’m doing it rather than waiting for motivation to kick in, because motivation can be unreliable. My goal is to work out for at least 30 minutes, five times a week. I had to sit down and come up with a game plan for how and when I’d do this while being the primary caregiver to our six month old. I wrote out which exercises I’d be doing on which days, breaking up each day into a different set of muscle groups. That way, day of, I’m not wasting time wondering what I’ll be doing. I’m started with the basics this week and seeing how my body reacts and I’ll adjust as necessary. So far, I’ve been SORE, so even though mentally I think I’m not doing enough because I’m inadvertently comparing myself to my previous self, clearly I am doing enough for the moment. Pre-planning the workouts and knowing I only have set times to workout in (aka Levi’s nap time) has helped a lot and starting off the first week strong has got me excited to continue!

WARM WEATHER

It’s been pouring rain outside, but all the stores, bloggers and ads are telling me it’s spring! I bought this H&M watercolor floral dress and I just can’t wait to wear it. The long sleeves mean I can wear it in the Spring before it’s super warm and the print is just gorgeous. It’s definitely getting to be that time of year where I’m ready for the weather to change so I can switch up what I’ve been wearing for the past few months. Although I will say, I kind of hate just how early the fashion world switches over to Spring and Summer clothes. It’s kind of like a tease since it’s not actually warm out and I have no plans on going anywhere warm, plus I feel panicky that I have to buy those kinds of things now because by the time the weather actually turns they will have moved on to the next season. I get being a little bit a head, but it feels like the equivalent to seeing Christmas stuff in HomeGoods in October and then by the time you’re ready to get some new ornaments, nothing is left. And it’s getting earlier every year!

DRAWER KNOBS

We finally redid our bathroom last year and I love the way it turned out. It’s so much brighter now. While of course the big impact comes from the new tile work and brand new shower etc, sometimes it’s the little touches that really take it to the next level. I bought these gold egg drawer knobs for our bathroom vanity drawers and they are just perfect. They have a great weight to them and when put on long ways (not how they’re displayed on the site), they really make such an impact. The bathroom has been done for months and they still delight me every time I see them. The other day I was thinking if we ever move, I’m taking them with me. Which I realize is a silly thought, I can definitely leave them behind and buy new ones if it comes to that, but that’s just how much I love them.

BREAKFAST NOOK

When we moved into our house five years ago, neither of us had a table. I was coming from a small apartment where I didn’t have room for a table and Brendan did most of his eating at the counter, on the couch or at his parents. I wanted a table right away, but wasn’t sure exactly what I wanted design-wise. We also had just spent more money than we’d ever spent (buying the house) and had a lot of furnishing to do. So we bought a really cheap table that was roughly the right size at Living Spaces. It’s a dark manufactured wood and not really what I would choose, but the price couldn’t be beat and we could take it home that day. The plan had been to replace it eventually. Well, eventually took a lot longer than I had expected. We furnished the rest of the house and I kind of forgot about the table. It was (is) functional. But we spend more time than ever at the kitchen table and being cheap non-real wood, it’s super worn out and kind of gross looking now. I knew it had been wearing out, but something recently made me see just how worn out it was and now I can’t unsee it and sort of hate it so much. Of course, that means now I want a new table … and also that I want to rethink the whole space. I’ve become hyper fixated on deciding how I want to design it which is both exciting and exhausting. Why am I like this? I can’t just leisurely have fun with this new project, I have to obsess and it takes over most of my thoughts until I’ve made decisions on how I want it to look. None-the-less, I’m excited to update the breakfast nook and will likely do a before and after blog post once it’s all completed!

FIRST VACATION

We took our first “trip” with Levi! We went down to Carmel for two nights to see how he would handle sleeping in a hotel. I’ve always loved the idea of traveling with my kids, but it’s a lot to coordinate (and pack!). This was just as much practice for me as it was for him. He did so so amazing! I know we can’t count on him doing that well every time, since he’s so little and is changing every day, but it was a great boost to my confidence that we could do it. He even napped on the go the entire time we were there. I was fully expecting to be in our hotel room more frequently because I thought we’d have to return for naps, but as it worked out he did fine in his stroller. Granted, this was two night stay and if we were gone longer, I’d probably want to make sure he was getting good naps in, but still! I’m planning to do a write up of our trip and the experience traveling with a six month old soon.

PERFECT BALLET FLATS

I may have stumbled across the perfect ballet flats while we were in Carmel. The pair I purchased are the most perfect toe shape, slightly almond, neither too round nor too pointed. The brand is French Sole fs/ny. I had never heard of them before but Googled after purchasing and it looks like they have a lot of cute ones! I got the “Hannah” style in “beige Vermont leather” which I can’t seem to find anywhere online to link, but here is the same style in black. They’re beautiful and comfortable and remind me a little of Chanel flats with the cap toe style.

HAIR GROWTH

The postpartum hair loss is real. I’m glad I knew about it in advance because otherwise I would have been shaken by how much hair I was combing out for the few months after having Levi. I think I’m finally back to my normal levels of shedding and I’m also seeing tons of regrowth all around my hairline which leaves me with a lot of one inch baby hairs sticking up all around forehead—fun! I’m glad it’s growing back, but also kind of confused about why it’s all coming back in this spot because I thought I was losing it evenly all over.

BLOGS

I mentioned this above, but I’m excited to start reading blogs again! So much of Instagram is Reels these days, which don’t interest me. I feel like a lot of influencers no longer do Stories where they’re talking about real life anymore, it feels more like they’re putting something together for a partnership which I understand is how they are able to make a career out of what they do, but I also just miss the everyday bits? Maybe I just need more friends, but since I’m home a lot these days, I’m looking for ways to connect with or at least relate to other women, so I’m looking forward to reading more blogs and hoping to find some new ones!

SORRY, BRO

Speaking of reading, my friend wrote a book (and got it published!). Not only is that an amazing accomplishment in and of itself, but it’s also really good! I was a little nervous to start it, what if I didn’t like it, what would I say? But I was instantly hooked and all worries immediately melted away. It’s heartwarming, funny and an easy read. I actually laughed out loud multiple times while reading. The story takes place in the San Francisco Bay Area which makes it that much more fun to read if you live around here. It’s a queer rom-com about an Armenian-American woman rediscovering her roots and finding herself and is sprinkled with lots of interesting bits about Armenian culture.

Let me know if you enjoyed this type of post & if I should continue to do them!

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