Ending 2020 on a High Note

The author's house covered in snow on Christmas day 2020

Happy Holidays! The season may look different this year than in years past, but I have to say, this was one of the best Christmases I can remember. My son (2 years 10 months old) loved every single present he got and wanted to play with each one before we could convince him to open another one. He drew on a rainbow scratch pad, played with Peppa Pig characters, bowled, got a huge kick out of recording his voice on a microphone and playing it back, banged the keys on a toy piano…and I had the joy of watching his excitement. My daughter (4 months) was pretty relaxed all day, just taking it all in.

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Memoirs and Self-Help Books that Moved Me, Motivated Me, and Made Me Think

Three shelves of books

The summer vacation season is upon us, and the weather here in East Tennessee is already getting hot and humid. Whether you’ll be lounging on the beach with a book or staying in your air-conditioned home avoiding the heat, the lazy days of summer are a great time to do a little reading. Most of the “Best Beach Reads” lists out there tend to focus on novels, but as someone who reads a lot of nonfiction, I thought it would be fun to round up some of my favorite memoirs and inspirational books that I’ve read over the past few years. Here they are, in no particular order:

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Snapshot: March 3, 2019

In this occasional series, I share what I’ve been reading, watching, thinking, and doing.

Sitting on the porch listening to the rain on this Sunday afternoon

What I’m Reading:

Nightstand: The Primal Wound: Understanding the Adopted Child; Being Adopted: The Lifelong Search for Self
Handbag: Man’s Search for Meaning (yes, still)
Audiobooks: Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance; There There (for a book club I just joined – I read part of this and listened to part of it)
Article: “This is the Secret to Being a Successful Working Mom” (don’t let the click-bait-esque title fool you – there’s a lot of good advice in this piece)

What I’m Watching: The Good Place; Unbreakable Kimmie Schmidt (I’ve been watching very little TV lately and haven’t seen a movie in ages)

What I’m Listening To: I’m way behind on listening to podcasts, but today I listened to this episode of HerMoney with Laura Ling talking about resiliency

Current Guilty Pleasure: Looking at tiny houses and renovated RVs on Instagram

Where I’ve Been Recently: Beaufort, SC for a long weekend in January

What I’m Looking Forward To: Going to a yoga class with a friend this week. It’s a small thing, but I don’t go to many yoga classes these days, and spending time with a friend is always a bright spot in my week.

Where I’m Going Next: Malibu and Nashville for professional conferences

Latest Personal Project: I don’t know that I’d really classify this as a project, but I’ve begun listening to positive affirmations and hypnotherapy tracks on YouTube, and I think they are helping to shift my perspective.

Recent Moment of Joy: Teaching my son to say “thank you”

Grateful For: Increasingly longer days and the lack of snow here

Have a wonderful week!

Alexis

PS: If you were hoping for the next installment in my series about being adopted, it’s coming soon — I just needed a little break from writing about that for a while.

Goals and Resolutions for 2019

New Year’s Eve/Day has always been one of my favorite holidays. It’s an occasion to reflect on what has been and look forward to what will be, to process the past and leave it behind before making a fresh start. I love the hope that January 1 brings. Now that the winter solstice is behind us, I find myself getting exited about the days growing longer, the weather getting warmer, and all the adventures that lie ahead.

2018 was a year of transition for me, and also a year of joy. I spent most of the year settling into parenthood and finding a new normal, so until very recently, I haven’t been setting many goals or tackling new challenges (aside from the big and obvious challenges of caring for an infant and managing to keep the machinery of life chugging along). I now feel ready to reprioritize some of my former goals and begin moving forward again.

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Happy Birthday, Alexigraph!

Photo of flowers in Santorini with the text “We’re 1!”

After just a few days of planning, I started Alexigraph on January 8, 2017.  It took me nearly a full day to set up the site, but then I made my first post and I was off and running.  It’s hard to believe I’ve been at this for a full year!  I love sharing my thoughts and experiences with you, and I truly appreciate you taking the time to read them, respond, and share.

In celebration of one year of blogging, I’m rounding up some of my personal favorite posts from the past year (in no particular order).  I know, it’s a long list — I had trouble narrowing it down! Read more