1. What did you do in 2020 that you'd never done before? Had a son via water birth, went months without seeing my family- by the time I see my dad and brother again it will have been a full year (just writing that makes me cry), had Thanksgiving at my house (always wanted to do that, even though it was not how I imagined!), canceled flights due to a wedding being postponed, facilitated virtual school for all of the Fall semester plus half of the previous Spring, fed my husband through a door for 2 weeks, left an inch of poop water sitting in my powder bath for a week until the plumbers could come so I could wash the towels, involuntarily quit going to the gym, turned down an invitation to a friends house even though I wanted to go and had no other plans
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year? 2020 was such a year that I completely backslid on my aim to be zero-waste. Within a few months of the pandemic, we were generating so much waste from takeout, extra bags from grocery pickup, and I was buying regular tea again- I know tea bags are such a small thing but I loved the taste of the sustainable option I was using. That hasn’t slowed down but I do hope to aim for zero waste in the future! For 2021, our family goal is 1000 hours outside. Since outside was our saving grace before we felt safe to go to a playground last year, we want to expand on that good feeling this year.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth? I myself did! And my friend Mel had her son 10 days before I had mine- built in best buds! And my friend Maya had a baby that I still haven’t held.
4. Did anyone close to you die? My Aunt Judy died suddenly a week before Thanksgiving. She had been ill for a couple of years but this came as a surprise, and also a relief that she is no longer suffering or alone in a nursing home where we haven’t been allowed to visit since February. There hasn’t been a service for her yet but I look forward to celebrating her life in the future.
5. What countries did you visit? I traveled between Bedroomland and Living Room Island the most.
6. What would you like to have in 2021 that you lacked in 2020? Hugs. Visits with friends indoors. Giant parties at my house. Family holiday get togethers. In person Girl Scout meetings and weddings. Concerts. Seeing a movie in the theater.
7. What date from 2020 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? November 27th, the day I had my son! A real live boy! :)
9. What was your biggest failure? Failing to communicate my ovulation days on February 29th. Hahaha! It worked out perfectly though- sometimes failure leads you to the exact thing you want and/or need.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury? Not unless you count the aches and pains and nausea of pregnancy and postpartum. Thankfully I avoided Covid!
11. What was the best thing you bought? Number one- I have spent more money this year on random things that I don’t even remember. Number two- my poor husband got horrible gifts/nothing from me for Christmas. Number three- this has been the biggest negative change for me from 2020. I am not a frivolous spender/impulse shopper under normal circumstances.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration? My husband! He has always been a great partner, but I see him turning a corner with knowing what he wants out of his life and fortunately for me, it includes his family. We are so lucky he is ours.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? People who placed expectations on me that I can’t fulfill, specifically surrounding giving birth and postpartum. Women need support and understanding, not pressure of any kind.
14. Where did most of your money go? Into savings accounts. We did refinance our home to lower our interest rate and loan length plus get some cash to remodel the kitchen next year. We chose that path due to the major plumbing leak we had in the summer that we couldn’t wait any longer to fix. So we had half of our home’s plumbing replaced/rerouted just a couple of weeks before I gave birth. That was a very expensive project!
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Nothing. I’m making a Debbie Downer face. I think the whole year feels like a blur of stress and anxiety and disappointment, covered in a face mask.
16. What song will always remind you of 2020? The opening song to Schitts Creek- the show that got me through the year! I watched it all the way through and then started it again at the end of the year...
17. Compared to this time last year, are you happier or sadder? Sadder
ii. thinner or fatter? Fatter
iii. richer or poorer? Richer in bank accounts but poorer with a little more debt :(
18. Is there anything you wish you'd done more of? Aside from all the things I mentioned missing, I wish I had documented my 5th and final pregnancy the way I did with all of my others. I was bogged down with work and virtual school and pregnancy that I didn’t have the mental capacity to do it. I want to remember the details but I definitely don’t remember them now to go back.
18.1 How many date nights did you go on this year? Two. Both were to eat at True Food Kitchen for squash pie- once in February before the pandemic, and once just two days before Brooks was born. We definitely had to pause for contraction breaks that time! But the weather was beautiful.
18.2 Which date night was your favorite? Clearly the lunch date. We had a great conversation, beautiful weather, awesome food, and a little walking to try to get the baby out.
18.3 Did you take a trip without kids? Nope.
19. Is there anything you wish you'd done less of? Worry. I had anxieties over lots of things with my pregnancy that I never worried about before. This was the smoothest pregnancy and best labor ever.
20. Where will you be spending the Holidays? We stayed home this year. My mom was with us for Thanksgiving because we were waiting on the baby to arrive. Christmas Day we went to my in-laws house and while I desperately needed a nap and a calm day, I got a lot of support when we went over.
21. Any athletic achievements? Giving birth without injury to a 9lb 5oz baby
22. Did you fall in love in 2020? Yes! I didn’t know that our family needed another human until Brooks Harrison arrived.
23. How many one-night stands? nope
23.1 What Family Trips did you take? We went to Houston for a short spring break trip. It was a fun time before everything turned upside down! We were planning a trip in the fall to Tennessee/Dollywood/Memphis- some sort of fly/RV driving trip combo that didn’t work out for obvious reasons.
24. What was your favorite TV program? Schitts Creek and Bridgerton. I tried to watch a few other series but couldn’t get into them at all.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year? ain't nobody got time for that! (Keeping this answer from last year)
26. What was the best book you read? I read a few good ones that I don’t recall. On the topic of reading, we took lots of neighborhood walks and found two Little Free Libraries which were so fun for me and the girls. I struggled to get into a handful of books that teach about race issues but I plan to keep trying on those! Wait! The best book was Eloise. The girls and I fell in love with her naughty antics! “Hello, this is me, Eloise.”
27. What was your greatest musical discovery? None. Still disappointed about the 2 concerts I had planned before the pandemic canceled them. I know there would have been more. Looking forward to getting that back in my life!
28. What did you want and get? a pedicure
-What did you get but forgot you wanted? A healthy baby and a water birth
29. What did you want and not get? Still want a natal chart reading, to visit a medium, and to take llamas on a walk (this is a real thing!)
30. What was your favorite film of this year? I know we watched movies, but nothing stands out.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I turned 37 and I think I had cupcakes? Man this year sucked so much ass.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? If my transition at work went smoothly. I wish I were able to train the new person directly rather than have it filter through 3 people.
It’s a complete mess now and it’s really hard to watch that happen to something I did for 7 years. I love training people and feeling helpful and putting systems in place that work and are efficient!
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2020? Maternity overalls baby! It was my uniform and they were all rented. At the end of the year it was nursing tanks, cardigans, and leggings or PJ pants. Also I got a diamond band for my final push present (husband is relieved and my finger is totally full)!
34. What kept you sane? Zoom prenatal yoga. Getting to hear Mimi’s voice in my own home was my favorite part of every Saturday. And my doula Delilah- her words at the exact right moment gave me the birth I always wanted. With the girls, we discovered trails leading to the creek across the field from our house. We went weekly to explore and I felt so at peace listening to the water and looking at the trees. That was a big highlight of the year.
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? Dan Levy and his facial expressions. I follow him on Instagram now and he and I own the exact same teapot. It’s a real connection.
36. What political issue stirred you the most? This year was a shit storm for politics. I tried not to let it in too much but it’s really wild how the truth gets twisted and everyone chooses the reality they want to believe instead of looking at both sides for themselves. I’ve seen it from both directions in my own family.
37. Who did you miss? I missed all of my people. It’s crazy that my dad hasn’t met his grandson- before he always met my kids within 24 hours of birth. I did find ways to connect- Marco Polo has been great! And texting at any and all hours of the night. My friend Mel moved back and guessed my pregnancy and told me about hers. So I want to focus this answer on what I gained this year in regards to connection rather than who I missed. Because I missed a whole lot. We missed 3 weddings! That’s a lot of important family and friend time!
38. Who was the best new person you met? I didn’t meet anyone new. Because I was always at home.
39. Rate this year on a scale of 1-10: Um. 2. One point for Brooks and One point for the fun times in February and early March. The rest can suck it. Cheers to a new year and the fact that I’m finally getting this reflection written!
0 comments:
Post a Comment