I can’t wait to catch up with you!

What I’ve Been Up To:

February was busier than I originally anticipated! During the winter, it’s rare for me to use my camera for business. But this month, I had an amazing floral baby shower, a surprise proposal at Chatham Lighthouse Beach, and headshots for the staff at my church, Westgate Church.

I loved breaking out of my normal habit and working in person with clients again. In the midst of all of this snow (!!!) it’s nice to remember what my normal feels like.

I’m still chugging away at my off season goals, but this month moved a little slower since I had actual client work to prep for and edit. I also took a little bit of time to celebrate my birthday, which we’ll get to in a second. If you look at my goal sheet for where I hoped to be with my off season wish list, I’m a little bit behind.

But I know that my time this month was well spent. I love prioritizing the people I work with. And I know seasons of rest, especially when paired with celebration, are just as productive even though they look different.

For my birthday, we celebrated in phases. On my actual birthday I tried to do as many restful self care things as I could while still being around for my kids. I have a Therabody addiction, so I tried to actually use the products that I have. In the morning, I used the smart goggles and followed it up with the actual Theragun. I had Redlen and Esmie do my back for me.

Let me tell you, I’ve been underutilizing their excitement to play with Mom and Dad’s toys. I see many more mini back massage sessions in my future!

While the kids did their quiet time I read in the bath, which if you’ve been around for any length of time, you know this is a treat for me.

After, I massaged my face and did a micro current session with the Theraface Pro.

And then we headed out to Chinese food. I like Chinese food, but this actually wasn’t my preferred meal. But the kids really wanted to take me to the “purple restaurant” (the actual name is Lavender), and I couldn’t help but indulge their excitement.

On Friday, our original plans were to head to Legal Sea Food. But like so many days this winter, icy weather was on the way, and we didn’t want our babysitters to struggle getting home. I ended up buying my own live oysters to shuck at home, and we got take out. I think it ended up being more fun than going out!

We also hosted our first ever Super Bowl party. We had 13 kids over! It was a blast, even though the game didn’t turn out the way we hoped.

What I’ve Been Reading

I’m currently on a re-read of Emma by Jane Austen. I love all of the Jane Austen novels, and I haven’t read most of them since college. The homeschool co-op I help teach at is currently in the middle of teaching Emma, so I couldn’t resist picking up the story again.

I do have to say that Emma has the slowest start out of all of Austen’s novels. It takes a sane person at least half the novel to warm up to the titular character, Emma. She’s a bit too head strong, she loves to meddle, she’s ultra privileged, and she’s still young. But once you hit that half way point, the magic really starts.

If you haven’t read Emma before, I’m sure you’re asking why would anyone hang on for half of a rather long story before it gets good. And it’s because the second half is absolutely magical. And really, it couldn’t exist in the way that it does without the hard work set up in that first half. It’s a classic for a reason, and I argue that you should stay the course.

If you haven’t read Austen before, I’d say Pride and Prejudice is my favorite. Then Sense and Sensibility. Emma and Mansfield Park probably are tied for third in my heart. Northanger Abbey is absolutely the most fun story of hers, and also thematically quite different from the rest. I don’t really know how to place it. Persuasion is my least favorite of the Austen novels, but I do like it still and think it’s a worthwhile read. But if you think Emma is slow, Persuasion is slower.

What I’ve Been Watching

Dillon and I blasted through Peacock’s new series, The Burbs. It’s corny and campy at times, but we loved it. I’m really hoping we get a season 2.

If you like True Crime and don’t mind a bit of corniness, I think you’ll like it as well.

I’ve also been working my way through The Traitors. I finished season 1 and am in the end game of season 2. This is my favorite “chores” show to have on in the background. I like that I can listen to it and not watch every second but still get the whole story.

And I’m grateful they made the switch to only cast reality stars. I like season 1, but season 2 is admittedly far more entertaining.

What I’m Excited About:

This is my favorite monthly ritual. If you don’t look over your calendar and see all the things you’re excited for, I highly recommend it!

-Redlen’s birthday! I can’t believe he’s going to be 5 already!

–Breakthrough leadership team training. Breakthrough is a marriage retreat that we attend with over twenty other couples and our marriage/life coach, Julia Woods. This will be our third year attending and the second year on the leadership team. We’ve made some sweet friendships, and I’m excited for the opportunity to go again!

-My first ever acupuncture appointment. If you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen the dentist drama I’ve been up to. My dentist and hygienist totally freaked me out and told me the lower teeth were shifting in my jaw and that if I didn’t do something I’d be at risk of bone loss. They advised Invisalign, did my scans, and sent me over to an orthodontist. Spoiler alert, he didn’t think my teeth have moved in at least 15 years, and that my jaw is pretty healthy. I have a very small risk of problems down the road, mostly if I don’t resolve teeth clenching. So, all of that to say, I’m trying acupuncture as a first step. I’ve always wanted to try acupuncture, and I’m excited to go!

Until next time,

Christine