Welcome to the tenth installment regarding my monthly favorites.
December Faves
First and foremost, happy holidays!
Regardless of what you celebrate, I wish you all endless amounts of happiness, cheer, cheesiness, love, and family time, if that’s what you’re about.
As December quickly approaches the last date on this year’s calendar, I’ve been looking into the past as much as the future—that’s the nature, I guess, of the end of a decade. It’s been fun, exhilarating, and hopeful to consider all that’s happened in the past 10 years and to dream about all that’s yet to come.
I’m looking forward to January and 2020 as a fresh slate, ready to be decorated with new opportunities, passions, goals, and moments that feel just right. Cheers to the new, and may we embrace it well.
And with that, here are my top picks for the month of December.
Tradition: Home for the Holidays
My holiday cheer was a little slow this year. It was a busy and stressful month, and it really wasn’t until we traveled home to Gunnison that I was truly able to enjoy and get into the Christmas spirit. We had a lovely time in our hometown, enjoying annual traditions like early morning present opening, Christmas Eve soup, eating the best sugar cookies of all time, and spending time with family (including our super cute niece and nephew).
Jewelry: Studex
This month, I was sent a pair of earrings from Studex. I’ve been loving these new studs, and think that they’ve made an excellent addition to my ears. I highly recommend checking them out on Amazon.
Professional Development: LinkedIn Recs
One of my goals in December was to beef up my professional presence. First, I took to LinkedIn. Did you know that along with endorsing skills, you can write recommendations for others? And that you can also ask for them? This month I wrote several recommendations for old newspaper pals, and they were kind enough to do the same for me. It’s just a really cool feature that I think everyone should take advantage of.
Couples Cheesiness: Matching Christmas Jammies
Along with our homemade gifts, Chad and I said we would give each other one purchased item (trying to keep things fresh). I gave us these matching Christmas PJs; we opened this gift early and promptly wore them to a holiday party, where we seemed to be a hit. So comfy and cozy! You can purchase these from Old Navy.
Service: Paperless Post
This month I collaborated with Paperless Post, which is a digital greeting card and invitation service. I loved making this year’s holiday card and sending it out to friends and family without worrying about the ecological consequences of paper cards. Win win!
You can read this year’s newsletter here.
Gift to Myself: Updated Resume
Regardless of how happy you are at your job, it’s always a good idea to go through and update your resume every couple of months. When I was looking into more freelance positions, I took it as an opportunity to total re-shape my resume. I used Canva to create something I’m super proud of—it’s graphic design-heavy, with color and photos and an eye-catching design that I hope puts me ahead when I’m applying for side gigs. Though it took some time, this was ultimately a great thing that I did for myself.
Christmas Gifts: DIY
This year, Chad and I decided to make homemade presents. Though they were somewhat a labor of love, I really enjoyed making bath bombs, a body scrub, hot chocolate mixes, hot buttered rum, and a cookie mix. Overall, I feel like these gifts went over well. Plus, they were pretty easy to create!
Holiday Venue: Hotel Colorado
While the entire city of Glenwood Springs is a historic destination, one of the front-and-center attractions is the Hotel Colorado. It’s been a cultural landmark for years—Teddy Roosevelt was a common guest during his presidency (rumor has it that the teddy bear was born here), it was used as an infirmary for the military, and it has always gone hand-in-hand with the hot springs.
This year, I attended two office holiday parties at Hotel Colorado. They know how to make a festive splash—not only is the town’s lighting ceremony held here, but the inside is also decorated to perfection with trees, statues, and hand-pressed gingerbread bricks. It’s amazing. I was glad to be here for both SGM and Resort Trends’ celebrations.
Sweet Treat: Grandma Kay’s Cookies
My favorite thing about the holidays are honestly Grandma Kay’s frosted sugar cookies. Chad’s grandma is something of a baking wizard, and has perfected her recipe. I’m not lying when I say that these are the best of the best. So good, in fact, that Chad and I asked her to make her cookies for our wedding, as our favors. You can’t beat these, and I’ve consumed about 50 of them to prove it.
Exercise Program: Morning Meltdown 100
For the last month, I’ve been hitting it hard with Beachbody’s Morning Meltdown 100. Each workout is around 30-ish minutes, incorporates the gambit of exercise type (HIIT, cardio, arms, legs, MMA-style, abs, and more) and is led by the super intense and beautifully redheaded Jericho McMatthews. It’s a killer program, and I’m enjoying the ride.
TV Show: Schitt’s Creek
I may or may not be addicted to Schitt’s Creek. This show, which I’ve been streaming nonstop on Netflix, is about an incredibly wealthy family who loses everything and is forced to relocate to the aptly named small town Schitt’s Creek—a place the family bought as a joke years prior. It’s one of the funniest shows I’ve ever seen, and has amazing character development for each member of the Rose family. I have the phrase, “Eww, David!” stuck in my head on repeat. Watch this series!
And that rounds out my December favorites! Thanks for tagging along on my pursuit of sunshine.
Cheers,
[…] Chad’s grandma’s sugar cookies. They are so, so, so, so good. […]