‘Editor’s Corner’ is a monthly-ish series highlighting what I’m loving, what I’ve been up to, what’s on my mind and more!
Hello! I hope you had a great Christmas if you celebrate it! Although I didn’t get the white Christmas that I’m always hoping for, it was nice to have stress-free driving weather. Speaking of weather, aside from an extremely windy day in the middle of the month, it has been unseasonably warm for December and I’ve been loving it!
1. We had a great time celebrating Christmas with family and doing a variety of Christmas-related activities. It was especially fun seeing Lake’s excitement on Christmas morning! As I mentioned in one of my gift guides, Christmas hits different with kids!
2. We went on our first road trip as a family of four to Kansas City earlier this month. The drive there and back went extremely well as both kiddos pretty much slept the entire three hour trip! I wish I had some advice to give there, but it was just pure luck! T ran the Great Santa Run and Lake ran her first ever fun run. Lake also had a blast playing at Penguin Park.
3. My best friend sent me this video of a baby trying pizza for the first time and it’s absolutely hilarious!
4. I recently bought this sleeping bag for Lake. I considered getting a character one (Peppa Pig – who she absolutely loves) but I liked the idea of keeping it more neutral so she can grow with it.
5. It’s been a lot of fun following Iowa State’s basketball season. Talk about a 180 from last year! They’re currently undefeated, however they take on No. 1 ranked Baylor tomorrow, so we’ll see if that lasts!
6. I was saddened to hear of the passing of Bob Dole, whom I’ve always respected and admired. When I was elementary school I wrote him a letter and he sent me back a note and an autographed photo. I thought that was so neat and I proudly framed and displayed the photo in my room. (I was big on writing to politicians, celebrities and athletes and getting autographs back then). I wholeheartedly agree with President Biden’s proclamation that he was “a statesman like few in our history and a war hero among the greatest of the Greatest Generation.”
7. A couple of good articles I read this month:
- Top 10 Googled Questions Answered by UnityPoint Health in 2021
- 67-year-old millionaire regrets not teaching his kids these 6 top money lessons when they were young
8. 2021 was a very memorable year with the number one highlight undoubtedly being Etta’s birth. This precious little girl has brought SO much joy to our family and we thank God for her every day. I’m also so grateful that I was able to thoroughly soak up and savor my maternity leave with her. It’s definitely something that I will treasure forever. Other 2021 highlights include:
- A fun little “babymoon” in Minneapolis
- Celebrating our 7th wedding anniversary
- Our first trip as a family of four (to Kansas City)
- Our nephew, Levi, getting married
- Lake starting gymnastics
- Lake running her first fun run
- Being a guest on Hello Iowa
- Taylor Swift’s 10 minute “All Too Well” (of course I have to include this!)
9. With 2022 on the horizon, I thought I’d share just a few resources that I think would be fabulous for kicking off the new year:
- Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones – It’s pretty safe to say that this book is universally lauded. You can check out my blog post about it HERE.
- The Five Minute Journal: A Happier You in 5 Minutes a Day – A great and simple journal for planning and evaluating, reflecting and increasing gratitude.
- Q&A a Day: 5-year Journal – Quick and easy and SO much fun to look back on previous year’s entries. (There is also one for moms).
10. And lastly, ONE GOOD QUOTE – in the spirit of the coming new year:
“What the new year brings to you will depend a great deal on what you bring to the new year.”
-VERN MCCLELLAN
I hope you had a great December and I hope you and yours have a safe and happy New Year’s!
Thanks so much for reading!!
-Jolene
P.S. – ICYMI this month:
Christmas Favorites
Merry Christmas!
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*Click HERE to read past Editor’s Corner posts.
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