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.
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:
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.
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.
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
