January Favorites

Before I get into my first favorites of the year, I want to talk about some insanity happening—AKA, the weather.

I’m so thankful I can do my job working from home, because when the news tells you to limit your time outdoors as little as possible for your safety, you know that’s not going to be a good time.

I found the map above yesterday, which says we’re expecting a low of -21 in Chicago today (with a windchill of -47). Except it’s -23 right now sooooo…

According to The Weather Channel, the last time Chicago hit -20 was in 1994, so that’s…going on I guess.

Anyone else dealing with near-record temperature lows? Happy January! T-49 days until the first day of spring!

Alright, now that I’ve provided the weather report, here’s some excitement that’s a bit more positive.

January Favorites

My New Nephew – I’m an aunt!!…again!! My super pregnant and adorable sister had her baby boy a couple weeks early, and I feel so unbelievably grateful to have been able to visit them in the hospital this time and visit a LOT more than every 5ish months like before.

Organizing Like Woa – I’ve been working like a madwoman over this past month, unpacking an endless stash of boxes and figuring out how to organize our stuff in a new place (with much less storage). It’s been an exciting adventure (because that’s the type of person I am). I will say, though, no matter how many baskets and bins I get to help organize things, it never seems to be enough. Still, thanks for all the bin options, Target!

Random Episodes – We’ve been quite busy over this past month, but it’s nice to have TV on either in the background or to wind down at the end of the day. Since we haven’t had cable or anything most of this month, we started doing this thing where we choose a TV show to watch and then pick the episode at random. Our system: go to random.org’s dice roller and roll a set of dice twice. The first number is the season we’re going to, and the second number is the episode. It’s obviously not a flawless system (there may be more/fewer seasons than what you’re rolling on the dice), but it’s a fun way to explore old episodes of shows like Parks & Rec (below) or It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

Focus on the 24 Hours Ahead – Although I shared this quote last year, I rediscovered it recently and it has resonated with me more than ever. I might share a different quite similar to this soon because I have a lot I want to say about it, but for now, let’s just go with: Focus on the 24 hours in front of you. Our lives will change, circumstances change, goals change. All we can do is focus on the now and do what we can today to get closer to what we strive for.

Spicy Chickpeas – I don’t like really spicy food, but I can’t get enough of these flavored roasted chickpeas. In fact, this was Matt’s bag to snack on, but I most definitely helped it disappear fast. You can find these at a lot of grocery stores near the nuts/trailmix. If you want a tasty snack with a boost of protein, I highly recommend this flavor!

10,000 Emerald Pools by BØRNS – I’ve been regularly playing this song for months. It’s so catchy and sends pleasantly chill vibes.

Silicone Muffins Cups – I’ve been wanting to try silicone muffin cups for awhile now, so I’m excited to have gotten some over the holidays! I can’t speak yet about whether they’re better than a muffin pan (especially in regards to cleaning them), but they worked just fine for these Banana Bread muffins! (And you don’t need a muffin pan if you use these, since they’re form-stable.)

Coffee Shops Everywhere – As stated earlier in this post, it’s a bit chilly out so I don’t want to voluntarily leave the house lately unless i have to. However, it’s so nice having probably 5? different coffee shop options within close walking distance! I’ll appreciate this a lot more soon, due to my new work-from-home life.

Luckiest One by The Wood Brothers – A friend recommended this band to me a few months ago, and while I haven’t listened to much else by them, this song really stuck out to me.