All The December Things!

Happy December! 

Happy last month of 2018, happy month filled with celebration & twinkle lights, happy birthday month to me!!!!

My Decembers are notoriously BUSY. I remember my post in this blog from 2 years ago and my December plans were a hot mess. I was trying to cram sooo much into one month! Well, this year is actually pretty similar! Let's first take a look back at my November goals to see how I did, and then journey down the path of the craziest month of the year!

November Goals: 
1. Write poetry. I haven't been writing a lot of poetry, but I sure have been writing a lot besides that!
2. Take grad school steps. I submitted my application to my first school last night!!!
3. Make fun plans. SO MANY! Four friends are coming to visit me today (we're doing SantaCon Boston!), and I'm having a pajama party at my friend's house for my birthday!
4. Meal prep. I kinda did this, but because of Thanksgiving leftovers I have been HEAVILY putting off grocery shopping (also to save $), soooo this one was kind of a fail this month.
5. Contribute to family dinners. Also a fail! Thanksgiving snuck up on me and I didn't end up having time to buy ingredients!
6. Move that body. I had one AMAZING week of workouts and then I fell off after Thanksgiving! But I know I can do it now, I just need to stick to the schedule I made myself.
7. Be grateful! Of course! So grateful for the holidays, family, and friends. And of course, Cosmo.

Now time for .....

This December is another crazy month, so I'm breaking it down by weeks again, just like I did all those years ago! 

Week 1: December 1st to 8th

• SanataCon Boston with my CT friends is December 1st! Be a great hostess, clean the house, get appetizers & alcohol.
• December 7th is my friend Leora's birthday! Go out to drinks with her!
• December 8th is Courtney's housewarming party/Christmas party in CT! Remember to bring a nice bottle of wine and Yankee swap gift!
  
  

Week 2: December 9th to 15th

• Start buying Christmas presents on Amazon before it's too late! 
• This is the only weekend I don't have plans, so relax & restore for the rest of the month!
  
  

Week 3: December 16th to 22nd

• My birthday week!!!!!
• Out for drinks with friends on the 19th to celebrate my unfortunate aging! 
• Bake cookies for the staff cookie swap on the 20th
• Get an ugly Christmas sweater and Yankee swap gift for the staff holiday party on the 20th
• Pajama party with my friends in CT on either the 19th or the 20th (because nothing says "I'm elderly" like asking your friends to throw you a pajama party so you don't have to go outside in the cold!)

Week 4: December 22nd to 31st

• Enjoy Christmas and my Christmas vacation from work to the FULLEST! 
• Read a ton of good books
• Sleep in & relax
• Write write write! 
• Spend New Year's Eve with my friends (as opposed to last year when I didn't do anything for some reason and was extremely bitter about it) !!!
  
  

Overarching Goals for December:

- Don't spend money unless I absolutely need to!

- Get back into my weekly workout habit! 

- Work on consistency in creativity (art, drawing, writing, blogging)

- Stay on top of bills! 

- Be present & enjoy the magic of this season! 

Notes On Thankfulness.

Happy Thanksgiving Eve!
I write this from the couch of my parent's house, slightly exhausted after sitting in holiday traffic for 2 hours. However, last year it took me nearly 4 hours to get home for Thanksgiving, so it's hard to complain!

My dad just bundled up the two dogs in their winter coats (too adorable to handle), the potent smell of dark chocolate brownies is wafting from the oven, and my mom is trying to get me to help her unsubscribe from pornographic emails that she's been spammed with. There's truly no place like home for the holidays.

I did this tag two years ago (since I always seem to forget that I almost completely took 2017 off from blogging/writing in general) and it was so cute to look back on it, so here it is again this year!

The many beautiful things that I'm thankful for, both this year, this week, and this moment...

This year:

• TRAVEL! Having the freedom to take my tax return (lol) and turn it into my first bonafied road trip adventure!
• My kitty boy Cosmo. Words cannot describe my love & adoration for this small orange creature.
• My parent's continued health. <3
• Animals in general. There has never been a time that I am more grateful that I became a bit more woke and decided to become a vegetarian. I've said it before and I'll say it again, animals don't deserve us. 
• My dear friends, who have really supported me this year in ways both big and small. 
• My health and liveliness. Especially with all of the dangers in this country, the fear of walking into a store, yoga class, bar, church, school, movie theater. That I am still alive and well. 

This week:

• One of my students on a behavior plan had a perfect week! She is awesome and I'm so proud of her.
• The chillest day of hanging out with two super easy students and watching such a cute movie, "Ferdinand"!
• My school's staff Friendsgiving! So much food, everyone went all out.
• Trader Joe's. It just always comes through in the clutch. 
• Having a short holiday week is just marvelous.

This moment:

• My parent's couch, where I am perched and content.
• The smell of dark chocolate brownies baking.
• My new-ish laptop that is so enjoyable to use... honestly how did I get anything done without a functioning laptop??
• The fact that it didn't take me nearly as long as I thought it would to drive home! 
• Looking forward to so much food, family, and friends time this weekend. My three favorite F's. 

Please take a moment to reflect and be mindful of the true origins of Thanksgiving and where your food is actually coming from if you're eating meat this holiday season. Sorry to be that person, but I am that person! :) Happy Thanksgiving! 

Christmas Gift Ideas for the Cat-Loving Wellness Junkie.

AKA, my personal Christmas wish-list that I'm emailing my mom!

I never ask for big ticket items for Christmas or my birthday (which are inconveniently five days apart...). It is just way more fun for me to open a wide variety of trinkets, books, & skincare. I am recently committed to transferring all of my beauty items to cruelty-free/vegan andddd of course I'm asking for stuff for my son (aka Cosmo the cat).

Maybe it's weird to share my personal Christmas list (and my parents definitely won't be getting me all of these things, specifically probably not the cat stroller, but a girl can dream) but I think there are some fun unique things on here, so if you're anything like me, enjoy!

1. Essential oils stuff. Specifically cedarwood, frankincense, & geranium essential oils because my extensive research has shown that these are not toxic to cats. I am also asking for a car diffuser/humidifier so that I can calm/energize myself while diffusing the rest of my oils on my ridiculously long commutes.

2. Cat accessories. Because I am a true crazy cat lady! I love this cat activity board so that he doesn't gobble up all of his food too quick and also to stimulate his little mind! He also needs a new fishing pole toy since he completely destroyed his old one, so I like this toy pack from Amazon. And just because I'm extremely crazy, I'm asking for a cat stroller.

3. Cruelty-free skincare. Lately I had really been wanting to switch over to all cruelty-free products but buying them all at once is overwhelming, so I'm asking for some for my birthday (December 20th!). The brand Yes to is great, so I'd love the Yes to Cucumbers Face Kit and this Yes to Blueberries Mask. Shea Moisture also has some really cool new vegan skincare!

4. Books. Specifically Adventure Cats, Essential Oils Everyday and the Solo Traveler's Handbook.

5. Miscellaneous. I have been craving a larger water bottle, specifically a hydroflask because they are so functional and heavy duty. I somehow lost my laptop sleeve so I'm asking for a cute new one. I  scoured through Amazon until I found the perfect yellow backpack for all my work/travel needs.

Stocking Stuffer Ideas:

• Scrunchies
• Some adorable Puravida rings like the compass, wave, or little moon! (they always have a crazy good sale on Black Friday!) 
• Look at these beautiful pens for my planner! 
• This pack of cat socks is unbelievable. 
• I could also always do with practical things in my stocking, like a Starbucks gift card, razors, toothpaste, and vitamins. LOL.
  

What are you asking for/most exciting to give for Christmas?!

5 Easy Ways To Make Extra Money When Times Are Tough!

I am a twenty-something who still has not figured out their finances.

I know this is terrible. I know that paying my bills consistently late is screwing my credit score, potentially irreversibly. But I just do not have that innate responsibility gene that my Virgo friend, Alicia, so proudly possesses!

That said, I am not a total mess. I do have a two substantial jobs, but sometimes even this is not enough to live right outside of Boston and lead the lifestyle that I desire. So here are five of my personally tested, tried and true, somewhat outside of the box ways to make pretty much instant money when the need to pay your bills on time hits (and it will)!

1. Become a dog walker.
I signed up for Wag because I live close to a city, and there are dogs to walk galore! If you don't live near a city, there is Rover, and Care.com has a pet needs option. This is a great way to make some extra money, and I find myself walking dogs on the weekends if the weather is nice and I don't have any plans. What a great way to waste a few hours - exercise and hanging out with cute dogs!

2. Find date-night babysitting on Care.com and Sittercity.com.
My schedule is pretty packed with my school and tutoring jobs, but every now and then I'll have a weekend with no plans and wonder how to make money at night when it's too late to walk dogs. Well, here is the solution! Switch your search criteria on these websites to "one-time" and behold - a plethora of date night babysitting! And best yet, usually the kids are sleeping during these times, so could it really get any easier?

3. Sell random stuff on Facebook Marketplace.
This is for when times are truly tough. I have sold artwork, technology, and jewelry all on Facebook Marketplace and it's just too easy. The only frustrating thing is that sometimes your items may take awhile to sell - I have a friend who has been trying to get rid of her bed frame for two weeks. But when they do sell, there's instant cash for you!

4. Sign up to be a test subject in the name of science!
I haven't personally done this myself, but my friend with PTSD has been a test subject for a pretty intensive medical study where she sometimes got up to $500 for each session. Yes, she did get injected with different dosages of drugs, but it's in the name of science (and being poor)! These can often be found on Craigslist, but I'm sure there are other more reputable websites to find them if you try a quick Google search or look up local colleges/universities.

5. Return recent impulse purchases. 
We are all guilty of spending $100 at Target on Christmas decorations. Oh, just me? Well if you have a recent impulse purchase that is resulting in not being able to pay your bills, maybe make sure you kept the receipt and just take the stuff back. Money may not buy happiness, but it does buy happy feelings of financial security!

I hope this helped some of the hustlers out there! I know it isn't easy for me to keep track of my money, but knowing that there are always ways to make some extra coin really helps my sanity when I just NEED to go sweater shopping but my electric bill is 2 months past due.

Cheers to being a boss ass bitch in control of her fiscal income. 

A Christmas Mistake!

Happy Saturday! 

This week was an odd one. I somehow mustered the energy to go to the gym and do some killer workouts three days in a row! Monday was an intense heavy legs day, Tuesday I went to the gym after tutoring (so at 8pm, who am I???) and did back & biceps, and Wednesday was chest & triceps and 30 minutes of cardio! And I am honestly still sore.

I still plan to go to the gym today (fingers crossed) but I am feeling so lazy and also have a home to-do list that I need to get done. Involving putting away laundry and oh yeah, applying to grad school. I love being last minute for important things! I will also watch a healthy number of SVU episodes, Christmas cooking specials, and potentially How The Grinch Stole Christmas (third time now).

I wanted to take this opportunity to warn you about the dangers of Christmas decor shopping.

Because Target, Dollar Tree, and Michael's got me, and they got me good.

I went Christmas shopping last weekend in Connecticut with my friend Shawn, then came back to Mass and proceeded to spend another hundred dollars at the Target dollar spot. And now I can barely afford groceries! So beware, budget accordingly, and don't do what I did. Pictured above are my Dollar Tree & Michael's finds, but Target dollar spot is just glorious and irresistible.

There is something about decorating for Christmas that just brings me so much joy. I was talking about it with my friend Alicia today as we browsed Christmas Tree Shop about how it evokes the feeling of hygge. I am obsessed with this Danish concept!

Coziness, candles flickering, logs burning in the fire, knit blankets, comfort food, and friends all gathered around. 

Nothing like hygge for the holidays! Just learn from my mistakes and don't spend your Christmas shopping budget on fun decor alone. Oops!