Last week I turned 32. More often than not I have a lot of birthday feelings and reflections. I don’t remember ever feeling *dread* with the beginning of a new number, but last year I do remember feeling like “31?!?! I JUST turned 30!!” Time is freakin’ FLYING, and I know that’s just going to get worse, so I think if I’m reflecting on anything for 32, I’m just thinking about times this past year when I’ve felt like time actually moved deliciously slowly.
For me, everything slows down a bit when I’m writing in my journal, especially if I take the time to make it colorful, am writing down memories from an amazing weekend, or am writing a poem or something more creative.
Reading a novel while sports are on in the background always feels good. Walking around campus for a quick work break and taking photos that no one will ever see of the flora and fauna is another good one.
Just generally being on my phone LESS is always a good call. I could write pages and pages about my issues with screen time, but I’ll save that a bit for the “I’m Loving” section.
A couple of weeks ago I shared a poem I wrote on instagram, and though it has nothing to do with my birthday necessarily, I think it actually sums up 32 and how I feel about this stage of life pretty nicely. I like our 30s. I remember when I dreamed about ALL of this:
I ❤️ adulting
Jury duty and taxes and shockingly high AC bills suck, sure,
But they don’t hold a candle to
Showing up to your friend’s daughter’s softball game
Asking “What can I bring?” to the Memorial Day barbecue
Joining a community choir
Going to church because you want to
Or choosing not to
Backyards big enough for tomato plants
Cards and cocktails night
Breaking bad parenting cycles
Being good at our jobs, finally
Noticing how much better we’ve gotten in the kitchen
Insisting on the bill at dinner with our parents
Tickling a baby and seeing a smile that looks just like her mama’s,
The mama you’ve known since you both were 14
We’re finding our groove, doing it our way
Building the life we dreamed so long about
It’s here
It’s here
It’s here
For more mediocre poetry, you can follow me on instagram.
eating
Trying to come up with recipes for this section for the past couple of months has shown me that I am a WINTER cook. I love stews, chilis, roasts, my CROCKPOT, my DUTCH OVEN — hearty, one-pot meals that simmer for hours. Those are my go-tos.
But in the summer? We’re snacking on pickles out of a jar over the sink, grilling hot dogs, living on BLTs with gorgeous summer tomatoes, etc. There’s just not a lot of real cooking going on over here.
But when I do, I’ve been gravitating toward my air fryer. Cody’s boss gave him a zucchini and a yellow squash out of his garden (so wholesome!!) and I plan to use them in this recipe I tried last week – Air Fryer Cajun Shrimp w/ Sausage and Veggies.
It’s exactly what it sounds like.
I buy the EZ peel frozen shrimp from Aldi, a smoked sausage link, chop up a bell pepper or two along with zucchini and yellow squash, then toss some cajun seasoning on it, and the air fryer has it done in MINUTES with zero clean up.
Even with the chopping, it comes together pretty quickly - like 20 minutes. This recipe doesn’t call for anything to go with it, but I will be hungry in an hour if I don’t add some rice.
reading
This book, Hello Beautiful, is everywhere, but here is one more person telling you to read it. I am only 30 percent of the way through, but just the first 100ish pages have had such astute observations about what it’s like to be human. I am kind of blown away. Sometimes you only get a few lines like that in a whole BOOK, but this is chock full of them. There’s a good bit of plot — like we are moving through life milestones, quickly — but at its heart this book is a character study of a family over time. Someone said it reminded them of Ask Again, Yes, and I would completely agree. I loved Ask Again, Yes, and I’m loving this.
loving
Two things, one boring one and something a tad more fun.
I paid $33 for a lifetime membership a few years ago to an app that would block social media (and other internet-using apps) from all my devices. I can schedule when I want them blocked, so right now I have all social media blocked from 6 – 9 a.m. so I spend less time on my phone in the mornings before work. You can tailor the “block lists” so that it’s not all or nothing, too, which is nice.
It’s not perfect (you can just delete the app if you REALLY need to be on instagram THIS SECOND), but it helps immensely when I’m in a season of really trying to limit my screen time.
I am a late adopter to a lot of makeup things, including cream blushes. But this E.l.f. Luminous Putty Blush ROCKS. It’s only $7, has lasted really well, and gives the most yummy, buildable color. I’m enjoying the orange-y shade as a mix up from my usual pinks. The putty blush brush is a must to go with it (only $5). Applying it with your fingers is…not as effective.
That’s all from me this week, friends. I hope your week is full of as many hot dogs and fireworks as you want!
Love,
Alex