2013 in Review

I know I've written about a good deal of things that happened this year, but let's cap it off.

New Things

• I learned to drive a stick shift.
• I went to the my husband's family's Thanksgiving in Florida and cooked stuffing for the first time.
• I've started brewing and drinking loose leaf tea.
• I found out I really enjoy pilates, and I'm pretty sure it helped me lose a little weight, which I gained back after my free classes stopped.
• I joined a young professionals Bible study where I made real friends!
• I'd say this year is the first I really started caring about politics and world events.  Caleb's huge into these things, and I've been trying to get involved with him, and the work has started to pay off!
• I learned that I like pistachios after a whole life of hating them!
• My blog post about products from the Korean cosmetic store Face Shop became my most popular post ever.  It's brought in over 6,000 views since it was published in May (which is a lot for me).  I'm still surprised as to why it took off like that.

Something I've Always Liked: Moroccan Lanterns

One day I'd like to visit Morocco.  I have this vision of such new colors and smells and an entirely different ambiance from everything I've seen before.  Maybe I watched Alladin too many times growing up, but I imagine Morocco to be such an enchanting and invigorating place.

I think having some of lanterns like these is one way to bring home the magic.

sold by MyCraftWork, LLC

Recommended, Plus a Real Life Recommendation

Just a few things I'd like to share, because one can't know about everything on the internet without some help.

Fascinating photos of endangered tribal peoples by Jimmy Nelson

A Buzzfeed article telling you about the YouTube musicians you should know about (including 3 of my favorites, Pentatonix, Eric Whitacre, and Lindsey Sterling!)

An album of foster foxes!

There's a new online company called PinchMe pulls together samples of new products for you to try for free!

And now for the first real life product I've ever recommended...

Where to Buy Christmas Gifts Online

First of all, I admit that I'm not the most involved with online shopping, but I have made some new discoveries this year I want to tell you about.  Maybe they'll be helpful for you like they've been to me, or maybe they'll just show you more pretty things to fancy!

I wrote about Scoutmob and their shop here before, but I want to make sure you know how awesome their shop is.  As their logo says, all their wares are made by independent crafters.  This means you can find literally unique things for your home (like these tables), carefully beaded jewelry (like these made by my friend Kelly), and all kinds of interesting and quirky things.  Me, I'd love to have this saddle blanket.  Isn't it perfect?

I've Been Away. Here's a quick update!

November ended up being much busier than I anticipated.  For one thing, when you're leaving work for a week, the preparation leading up to your vacation can be intense.  I hardly got to take any time for myself that week, but it was completely worth it when Caleb and I found ourselves on the island of Vieques for a week.

This was our house!

Technically, those are pictures of the back and front yard, but they do the trick.

Caleb and I rented a house called Casa dos Cuervos.  I'll write more about it later, but this is a quick update, so I need to keep moving.  For now, I can tell you it was amazing and you would love it.  I promise.

When we returned, Caleb and I had a week and a half of work before leaving again for his family's Thanksgiving in Florida.  The milder weather was very welcome, the folks were friendly and funny, and the food was just right.  I made my mom's dressing and it got great reviews, mostly because it includes bacon.

Now I've got Christmas on the brain, and I'm very glad to see myself excited about it.  Last year's season was very difficult and frustrating because I wasn't ready to be back in America and I felt like Christmas in general was just an ugly display of consumerism and superficiality.  2013 brings our first Christmas as a married couple, our first small tree, getting to pick which new traditions to start, and for-real branching out as a new family.  I'm excited, and, frankly, I'm glad I have Caleb as my husband this year.

Next on my docket:

Buying Christmas presents

Figuring out what to take for a party appetizer

A wintery date to include picking a tree and possibly a Snuggler

Seeing The Hobbit with my sister

Hosting a Christmas dinner for the young adults in our combined families

Figuring out what to have for Christmas Eve dinner

Christmas!!

What do you have going on these days?  Did you have a great November?