monthly recap | march 2017

Well. Wow. What a shit month. It's seriously been a month of extremes, with lots of incredibly sad moments and new opportunities. There are so many different emotions, which is really weird for me, as I'm not a super emotional person.

top blog of the month

My tribute to my stepdad, Gilbert, was the hardest one to write and is the blog that received the most response this month. I appreciate everyone's support, but I'll be honest. It's been pretty tough. But the outpouring of love has been amazing. I've heard so many new stories, shed so many tears, and had an opportunity to hold my family a little bit closer.

hpotm (hot post of the month)

Again...Gilbert was larger than life and his tribute secured the top spot on Facebook this month.

insta-greatness

Apparently, teeny tiny dog birthdays are a great big hit on Instagram. The top Insta-post for March was celebrating my sweet Izzie-Belle's 6th birthday.

travels

The majority of this month was spent with my family. We've been spending so much time together, and I am eternally grateful for that. However, I managed to sneak a quick trip up to Pittsburgh so I could see our new home. The Man Friend and I got a house that's over a century old in an adorable little village that's about 20 minutes from the city center. I really enjoyed the time that I was there and though it's going to be difficult to be away from my family, I'm excited about a new adventure in a new city.

food

Again, this month was pretty crap-tacular, recipe sharing included. Though it was a bit of an unintended consequence, the stress and anxiety of everything going on has helped me lose about five pounds (woot, woot!). That being the case, and the fact that the Man Friend has been gone, there hasn't been much of a need to cook. However, I recently shared a delicious and quick pasta recipe made with fresh asparagus. It was good enough that it was the first full meal I had seen my mom eat in a few weeks. 

books

Though I haven't been cooking or traveling much lately, there's been a little more of an opportunity to read/listen to books this month. It's pretty convenient to listen to an audiobook while cleaning out drawers and packing boxes. I've managed to plow through a ton of books, including several "throwback" novels. I'm also reading a ridiculously funny, sweet, and heart wrenching book, loaned to me by my sweet friend Rebecca. It's helping me refocus and re-evaluate without making me feel like I'm reading a self-help book. I'm also excited to read the books on this spring's reading list. I'm already halfway through (and completely in love with) one of them already.

upcoming plans

Shit. The movers come next week. While I'll be spending a good chunk of my time in Texas for April while our family continues to figure things out, our house is going on the market and allllll of our stuff is getting shipped up to The Burgh. My sister is also getting married in three weeks, so there will be a couple of trips on the board, too. 

I'm sorry things have been a little slow (and probably a little boring) through March. I really appreciate everyone's flexibility so I could be with my family. However, I'm really excited to start some new adventures with my sweet Man Friend in a new part of the country. I've been chatting with some locals, so I plan on planting a small raised-bed vegetable garden and to hit up all of the farmer's markets.

I'll be traveling back and forth between Texas and Pennsylvania for the next several months...so expect to see some tips on maximizing travel points!