A year in the rearview.

Happy New Year! Happy 2025 - I’m so excited for it.

But first, 2024. She’s in the review, but man, whatta year!

It was a slow down and find your way year for me. A year to coast in the right lane with 60 mph on the cruise control. If someone wanted to pass me, that was fine. I stayed in my lane so they could go around.

The foundation for 2024 was 2023. That had been a particularly rough year for me because I was chasing things I thought were important and I came into 2024 just needing to slow down. It took a minute, but I finally did. I took my time, let myself roll down the windows and hang my arm out, radio blaring. I kept moving, but I also kept my foot just lightly on the gas. Usually I’m pedal to the metal, with some break stomping in between, but not in 2024.

It was what I needed. And now, I’m ready to pick up the pace in 2025, but with the wisdom I picked up in 2024. This time, I’m going to find my speed and put that baby on cruise control again. I’ve learned that the highway is long and I’ll get there, even if other people get there first. I’m cool with that

Winter -

I was coasting in January. Frankly, I went in barely holding on by a thread. 2023 had been a stressful year in the office and I took a week off for the holidays, thinking I just needed a break. I thought I’d head back to work with a clear head, ready to hit the ground running. But…. I didn’t. In fact, I came back to an inbox full of little fires that I thought I’d put out in 2023. The first week of the year felt like a continuation of 2023 and I cried hard, begging my husband to support me quitting my job and he said “sure, but we’ll lose the house” and that felt like a fair concern, so I carried on.

But that was an important kick-start to my year. If I couldn’t quit my job immediately and I had to basically survive, I had to find some kind of solve for the interim, and I decided that 2024 was not the year to be an overachiever. The only way to have a less stressful year was to stop picking up bags of shit that were already lit on fire. Let someone else grab those, I thought. I’m very motivated to be MVP at work all the time and I decided that in 2024, I was going to let someone else be MVP. I was just going to do my job and try to leave the office at 5pm every day. I had to let that be enough.

Work is still stressful, obviously. But 2024 was nowhere near the shit-show the previous year was. I did my job, and as it turns out, when I’m not trying to be the best at all the things, I’m actually pretty dang good at my job. It was less stressful to do less, but I was also still hitting my metrics. I was still successful. Now there’s a lesson.

Anyway, the first part of 2024 sounds like it was sort of negative, but I promise it wasn’t. I was setting up the framework for year that didn’t need to carry as much unnecessary stress. On that subject, I also discovered Gentle January which I leaned into 100%. Resolutions, sure, but like, chill resolutions in January. Ease in, sleep in, take care of yourself. That was my mantra. I did a lot of napping and laying in bed to read and you know, isn’t that what winter is for? If the natural world hunkers down and goes to sleep, so why shouldn’t I?

Spring -

Hooo boy, Earlier in January, I was influenced by an IG ad for a blogging course for $27, which I bought and then promptly forgot about. One day in March, I cracked that baby open and consumed the entire course in a few days. A week or so later, I bought my domain name, waffled over colors and branding, and became obsessed with launching this website. I was so full of creative ideas and inspiration. Jennie Leigh suggested I’d be rich by now, which is not true, but I have really enjoyed having this space. I did earn about $100 in affiliate sales since March, which a living it is not, but I also do the absolute least, so I think that’s pretty cool.

In May, my oldest niece graduated from high school. Kind of bittersweet. She was born when I was a senior in high school, so it felt really full circle to see her in a cap in gown. We tried to recreate a picture we’d taken 13 years earlier when she “graduated” from preschool, and look, it’s cheesy but to me, it’s a framer.

Summer -

Hell yeah, brother. I’m a summer gal. A sit at the beach all afternoon (and all weekend) gal. I live for the summer months. The early summer was fraught with rain every GD weekend. It’d be bright and sunshiny on a Monday, and then like freaking clock-work, by Friday afternoon, the gray skies would roll in. I was very crabby. You’d think the weather was a personal attack.

But she cleared up and we had a beautiful summer! One that lasted and lasted and lasted. It was warm well into October, when we usually start to see snow, so I feel like I recouped what I lost in June.

I turned 36 in July. We went on a long weekend camping trip and I spent my birthday floating down the Pere Marquette with a setlzie in hand. On a weekday no less!

I live in a tourist town on Lake Michigan which has its perks. I love to take a half day off work and wander around downtown like a tourist myself. I also love to just hang out at home. I move out on my deck for the entire third quarter of the year, eating every meal out there. Snoozing on the patio couch. Bringing out the projector so we can catch up on the Bluey minisodes. Etc etc.

I take my kids to an amusement park every summer and here’s my trick: pick some random Tuesday in August and you’ll beat the crowds. This is our 3rd year in a row and it’s worked every time. Minimal lines that allow us to ride our favorite coaster 5 times in a row and we got Dippin’ Dots more than once. Usually more than twice. Booyah.

Fall -

Fall started off warm and it was so nice. We were at the beach well into October which is WEIRD in Northern Michigan. But we do not complain about miracles! Labor Day was a GD gift.

It cooled down eventually and that was nice too. Everything in its time, right? My best friends are still the girls I went to high school with and in October, we gathered up our kids and hopped on a ferry to Mackinac Island. What a great time to visit that island. It’s busy AF, but just slightly less so in the fall. We had a great time.

Reading and Eating -

Melted Ice Pop from bubly was my personality through the summer. It’s the best flavor - so spot on - and I chugged so much of it.

Yolk by Mary H.K. Choi was one of my favorite books this year. It held top spot unwavering until I randomly grabbed Long Island Compromise by Taffy Brodesser-Akner on a whim last week. Both are top-notch.

Wintering by Katherine May changed my perspective on seasons of rest (very on point for my year). I feel like it’s been a pivotal read for appreciating a long winter, instead of dreading it.

Enjoyed bits, here and there -

No further context. Just some pictures of moments that make me think oh yeah, that was nice, wasn’t it?

By December, I was feeling pretty well recovered. Something I didn’t expect, but that I’m very proud of, is learning to disassociate from work a little bit. I used to check my email pretty regularly on the weekends and after hours, and one bad email can ruin an entire Sunday, you know? It was compulsive and I remember thinking that abstaining from it was a muscle I had to exercise. I deleted my email off my phone entirely, and became resolute about not answering calls when I was out on PTO. The result? 12 months later, I take a few days off and don’t even think about work. And folks, that is life changing.

My goals for 2025 are pretty simple. I have health and financial goals as usual, but overall, I’m looking to enjoy things more fully. To just look around and notice things that are already pretty nice and enjoy them. Things like taking a nap on a Sunday afternoon or eating dinner outside. A well made latte or a good bottle of wine on a patio. Stuff that makes for a very good life.

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Happy New Year, friends. I hope 2025 is the best year yet. May we all have long Sunday afternoons, plenty of good things to read and eat, and all the bottomless mimosa brunches we can wish for.

The Best of 2024