Skip to main content

It's been 6 Months...

 ...since we have been home.

Summer came and went in a blur of birthdays, outings, mini-trips, and adjustments. 

Fall is almost over and we have found our rhythm now that Lana has started school. And by rhythm, I mean a vague sense of a daily schedule that allows for some curveballs. There is still a pandemic. There are still protocols to follow if any one (mostly Lana) is a "close contact" with positive Covid-19 person. So are schedule allows for possible quarantine situation.

Winter is coming (see what I did there, #GoTFans?). Holidays, family gatherings, cooking fun. That is what I have in store for our family. 

I spent this second half of 2021 investing in me. In my last post, I talked about hitting that Pandemic Wall. The post was mostly about the joy I found with music, which did/does help. I just needed more. 

When we returned home from Germany, I was back in my zone. I am back in a environment where I can navigate, where I can advocate for myself. I set some boundaries. I focused on me. Somethings were tangible. Spa days to pamper my body. Fashion pieces to elevate my look. Books to nourish my mind (or escape). Again, ticking all the self care boxes. 

Other things were not so tangible. I said No to things. I've told myself to "Stop" when my mind spirals. Whether it was a fear that I made some terrible mistake, or whether it was learning that someone in some capacity is not happy with me. I've told myself "Stop." I didn't make a mistake. I can't make everyone happy and THAT IS OK.

To be honest, that non-tangible investment into myself are the things that I am most proud of. It's taking me a long time to get to this point. It's been an eye opening journey and I celebrate the progress that I made. 

So what's next? 2022. What is the plan? Mindfulness, Create, not consume.

More about that later. Until then, take a breath, make a list, and do your best without burning yourself out. 

Love,

Jessica

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Finding Joy in Music.

 Dear Friends, I will be honest with you. I had a rough couple of weeks in the middle of February. It was just another day and as I sat down on at my desk to start another day at work and I just yelled out in frustration out into the universe "I HAVE NOTHING LEFT TO GIVE." Marcin was also in the office and gave me a look that pretty much said, "Yep, she lost it." In truth, I did.  Since then, I gave every aspect of my life about 15% because I was trying to hold onto the 35% percent of my sanity and actively get back 50% of sanity back. I did all the self-care tips that one reads on Buzzfeed, Pinterest, podcasts, and blogs. Yoga, go for a run, take a bath, etc. Marcin even started to take both Caesar and Lana out for long walks so that I can have time to myself. I started writing in a journal again. I ticked all the "self-care" boxes and probably got my sanity back to 60%. But there is one thing that always take me to such highs - Music.  I don't need m...

2020, the year I managed to.../2021, the year I hope to...

Dear friends, 2020 is almost at an end. To say it has been SOME YEAR is an understatement. Through the ups and downs, through the global pandemic, through the hateful violence, it's hard to feel accomplished for the things that you might have done this year.  At the same time, if there is one thing I learned this year is that I have the right to celebrate myself. So in 2020, I.... 1. Relearned how to crochet and made a beautiful afghan for Lana. *Fun fact - I call this the Pivot blanket. 2. Learned how to make pasta dough  3. Ran a total of 26.2 miles which ended with a 5 K on my birthday. 4. During a break in the pandemic, visited Prague. A place that was on my Travel Bucket List. 5. Conquered Polish cooking by learning how to make Golabki and Pierogis. I know everyone is paranoid about making grand statements for 2021. To be fair, I think 2020 taught us to be a little bit more humble, a little bit more patience, a little bit more kind to others who are NOT like you.  Ha...

Remember Blogging?

 Dear Friends, Remember blogging? When you would just type out your thoughts on a web page and your friends would read it? Before vlogging? Before TL;DR posts on Facebook? Before being Insta-famous? In my 39 years, I have had 3 blogs. First was Livejournal. Is that still around!? Quick Google search tells me yes.  I actually liked that format. Just my words on the screen. No need to find the right image to tell the story. Sometimes, when there is nothing to write, just a good old fashion survey. 10 or 20 superficial questions about you that makes you smile and may make your friends smile.  Then there was "Healthy Obsessions of a Girlie Tomboy on this platform. This is when I jumped on the blog about learning healthy eating habits and my new obsession with running. I also was documenting my journey into fashion . .HA! That blog ended in 2012 because I felt like an imposter in the world of health/running/beauty. I also wanted to focus on the third a final blog... "The Adven...