2021 Year in Review
As another pandemic year comes to a close, I could lament all the things I didn’t get to do because of COVID (again), but I thought I’d take a minute to look back on the year and remind myself what I actually did do, because all was not lost! Things happened! Less things than a “normal” year, and definitely less fun things, but things nonetheless!
I started the year by doing a Dry January to rein in my quarantine drinking…followed by a Dry March-November when I found out I was pregnant. Not my best timing but it was at least an interesting experience to take such a long break from alcohol because I’d never done that in my adult life.
I completed Levels 1 & 2 of Debra Silverman’s Applied Astrology training which I loved and learned so much from. Send me the time, date, and location of your birth and I’ll tell you eerily accurate things about yourself that will turn you into a believer.
I got my first travel writing gig ghost writing for a travel blogger/influencer and wrote 9 blog posts for her.
I submitted a couple of personal essays that I wrote for publication, and while they didn’t end up getting published, I’m glad I’m getting better at putting myself out there.
I took a few journalism classes at my local community college.
I tried acupuncture…and absolutely hated it and will never do it again haha. Now I know!
I did something that I’ve been dreaming about for years and rented a little cottage on Cape Cod for the entire month of July. There’s no place I’d rather be than home in the summer.
I was able to do a little bit of traveling and visited Shenandoah National Park, stayed in a Getaway Cabin for the first time (which I highly recommend), our friend’s A-Frame up north in Harbor Springs, and had a magical weekend at the Lakeshore Resort on Lake Michigan in Saugatuck.
I went to a yoga festival 6-months-pregnant with my good friend Amanda.
I had another great season in the garden despite the biblical amount of rain we got in June and July and me being away for about 6 weeks of the summer (a big thank you to my garden-sitter Lauren).
I read 31 books, surpassing the Goodreads challenge I set of reading 24 books in 2021.
And last but certainly not least—I had a baby! I’ll go ahead and say that growing and giving birth to Baby Zane was my biggest accomplishment of the year. And while one could argue that the middle of a global pandemic is quite possibly the worst time to bring a child into the world, I figured if I was already going to be home and not out and about in the world like I normally am, maybe it was actually the perfect time to have a newborn? Fingers crossed that civilization still exists on the other side of all this.
So while it wasn’t a banner year for fun and adventure, it was a good year for me in many other areas of my life. Yes, there were some really hard moments too, but the highlight reel is pretty solid and I have a lot to be grateful for.
These early days of motherhood haven’t granted me much time outside of taking care of the baby and myself, but I did choose a word for 2022: ENJOY—and that is my main goal for the year in every area of my life. I’m ready for it.
Happy New Year! 🥂
p.s. For anyone looking to do some processing of the past year and set intentions for the year ahead, Rachel Brathen has two podcast episodes for this that I recommend. I do it every year and have found it a very helpful ritual.
