Happy New Year everyone! Wow – it’s hard to believe that we’re already days into 2021! I can’t help but feel tremendously excited for what this year will bring! I wanted to do a quick reflection on the tumultuous year of 2020, share my word of the year, & give a little life update because I haven’t even shared too much regarding Norway yet, which is currently where we are residing! Lots to share today…so let’s get into it!
+ Traveled to Indonesia
It’s been a long year, but at the same time, I feel like it flew by. I brought in 2020 spending much needed time with my family in Florida for over a month after Devin left for Indonesia! To think the world has completely changed since then is just crazy to me. I remember my family voicing their concern about me making the trip over to meet Devin in Indonesia due to increased press regarding the virus, but I felt comfortable & headed over to Indonesia late January! It was seriously the longest travel day EVER but I’m so glad I was able to go & be with Devin during his third season of playing professional basketball.
Indonesia was quite the experience. There’s the Indonesia that you see all over Instagram but what you don’t see is the immense amount of people living below the poverty level & the endless amounts of trash. It was crazy to live there for a little over a month & witness it all first hand. Although Indonesia is no longer a third world country, it truly feels like a different world over there. Devin & I still talk about that all of the time. Anytime I travel, I always find myself so so grateful that I live in the United States, but my time spent in Indonesia truly solidified that gratitude. Don’t get me wrong though, there was definitely some good that came out of our time spent there & we still were able to create beautiful memories, spent a few days in Bali, & I was also able to take a solo trip to Singapore! You can see my photos from that solo trip in this post!
+ Spent lots of time @ home
I kid you not, the day after we returned home from Indonesia, the United States starting talking about shutting down boarders & wow, were we grateful to be HOME! As you all know, many of us, stayed home a lot this past year. I’m a home-body, so it didn’t bother me, but I say that while also acknowledging how difficult quarantine was for so many people. I was very grateful to be quarantined with Devin, because I know so many were given no other choice but to isolate alone. My heart goes out to anyone who experienced loss of any kind this year + a huge thank you to all of the essential & front line workers who still showed up to work in the middle of a pandemic. I think it’s safe to say that we all deserve a huge amount of grace after this year.
+ We got married!
Devin & I first started talking about getting married back in February of 2020, while in Indonesia. Those original plans were halted because of COVID but come mid-summer, when my two younger brothers were visiting Devin & I, what started as just a question after a game of mini-golf – my youngest brother asked “so when are you guys going to get married” – turned into us deciding it was due time & planning a wedding in four weeks. Our wedding day was perfection. We were married on August 8th, in the same church Devin’s parents were married 32 years ago & married by the same priest who also married his parents & he even baptized baby Devin too. It was incredible. All of the pieces came together so seamlessly & we celebrated with 10 family members at the dreamiest venue tucked away in the lush green mountains of Vermont. I couldn’t have asked for a better day to celebrate our love! I’ve posted a few wedding blog posts already here on the blog & still have a few left to do!
Wedding Blog Posts:
- Getting Ready Photos + Wedding Day Glam
- Our August 8th Wedding Ceremony
- Wedding Planning + Detail Shots I Loved
- My Wedding Dress + The Ones I Didn’t Choose
+ Family
As I briefly mentioned, two of my brothers were able to come spend two weeks with Devin & I this summer & we all had the best time! We spent a handful of days at a beautiful lake in Vermont with Devin’s family too, the boys enjoyed paddle boarding, canoeing, playing basketball, we went on a hike, & got lots of ice cream haha! It was such a fun time. And of course my family flew in for our wedding, & although that trip was pretty short, it still was so nice having them in New England since it’s been years since they last were there! I also was able to spend a little over two weeks in Florida with my family in September too, which was so nice, as always. Soaking in some much needed sunshine was crucial before heading back to experience winter!
+ I turned 26
I celebrated my 26th birthday on October 20th! I spent my day doing some of my favorite things, watching reality TV, eating Amy’s Pad Thai, enjoying some dairy free ice cream, & preparing for my trip over to Norway which would come just five days later! I wrote about this in my IG birthday post caption, but the week leading up to my birthday, I consistently found myself seeing the numbers 333 everywhere! I’m very big into numbers & their meaning! 333 is a sign that comes from high vibrational light beings with the intent to tell you that you are protected, loved, & on the right path. As I entered my 26th year, I couldn’t have come up with a more perfect reminder! Such a beautiful reminder that no matter your age, you are always the perfect age for where you are in this life!
+ Celebrated my first year as a Beautycounter consultant
My Beautycounter business was one of the biggest blessings that came out of 2020. I joined as a consultant in October of 2019 after my 25th birthday – you can read more about that decision in this post, but it was truly the best decision & has since contributed to my life in ways I couldn’t have imagined! I stayed consistent after a slow start & really saw my business grow as a result of my passion & hard work. ALL while educating others about the important of choosing safer products. Celebrating my first year as a consultant, achieving a huge promotion which was a such a big goal of mine for 2020, & having my best month ever was so rewarding. I’m so grateful that I get to share Beautycounter as my job, the incredible friendships that have developed because of me saying yes, & the opportunity I’ve had to help over 100 people make cleaner, safer swaps. I’ve never felt more fulfilled!
+ Traveled to Norway
On October 25th, I flew over to meet Devin in Bergen, Norway! Devin left for Norway a week after our August wedding & I had to wait until my visa was approved before I was allowed to enter the country. Usually the visa approval process takes about 2 or so weeks, but mine took over 5 weeks. After I received my approval, I booked my flight a week later! Once I arrived, I got my first COVID up the nose test & Devin & I were allowed one single hug outside of the airport. I then had to quarantine for a full 10 days, complete with MAJOR wifi issues…safe to say, it was a long 10 days haha! Once my quarantine was complete & I tested negative, Devin was allowed to move into the apartment where I spent my quarantine. We have lived in the apartment since! I’ve been in Norway for over 2 months now! It’s truly such a beautiful country & Bergen, the city where we live, looks straight out of a storybook. It’s absolutely beautiful! But it rains A LOT! I guess you win some & lose some HA! Devin is having such an awesome basketball season too, so that’s been so enjoyable to witness. We will be here until the end of March, which is when his season will be ending!
+ Celebrated 3 years of blogging
On December 17th, I celebrated three years of launching this blog! It truly feels like yesterday that I first had my launch. It was something I wanted to do for months but kept putting it off until I finally just went for it. I self-taught myself everything when it came to staring & running a blog & to look back on my 3 years of growth has been so rewarding. I’ve enjoyed every second of blogging, & I cannot wait to continue to share throughout 2021 & beyond!
Top 5 Blog Posts of 2020
- DIY Coconut Hair Mask
- My Honest Vejo Review
- Why I Love Starting My Days With a Spirulina Smoothie
- Beautycounter Skin Twin Foundation Review
- Everything You Need to Know About Becoming a Beautycounter Consultant
+ Continued my healing journey
In January of 2020, I published a blog post celebrating my first full year as a vegan, you can read that post here. This January will be two years since going vegan & I truly believe that was one of the best decisions I could have made for myself. After years of struggling with daily digestive pain & discomfort, as I transitioned towards a plant based way of eating, although it was definitely not an overnight success, I slowly but surely began to feel relief. 2020 has been the best year yet in terms of my digestion & I attribute that to my diet, working closely with my energy healer, Krystal, & being mindful of where I exert my energy. For those that don’t know, digestion issues are highly triggered by stress as well! But to see my digestion improve the way it has this past year, has been tremendous. I also have been on a 2 year+ journey of hormonal acne after making the decision to go off of birth control which has been difficult for sure. My skin still is not perfect, but I’ve taken great strides with my skin this year too. There are a few other things that I want to focus on in 2021 to further my healing journey, but I’m very proud of my progress made this past year. Healing can be the greatest test of patience there is, so I’m very grateful in my ability to be patient with myself throughout this journey.
+ Rang in 2021
Devin & I rang in the New Year in our apartment here in Norway, with a pretty great firework show directly outside our apartment! Nothing better than watching fireworks in sweats, from the comfort of your bed! It was perfect & our sixth New Year’s spent together, which is kinda hard to believe! I remember our first New Year’s like it was yesterday! We both are so excited for what 2021 will bring. To bring up numbers again, I’ve seen the numbers 555 quite a lot leading up to the end of 2020. On New Year’s I told Devin & was so surprised when he told me he’s seen 555 too – 555 means a great change is ahead!
So that was quite longer than I anticipated haha! I was planning on doing a brief recap, but here we are, 2,000+ words in! I spent some time during the last full moon to write out my goals & intentions for the year. I’m not really one to set resolutions anymore…I’m highly driven by goals, so I focus on goal setting instead. So during the full moon, I sat down to list goals that I’ve set for myself personally, my blog, my Beautycounter business, my finances, & some miscellaneous ones. I also like to reflect on my year by jotting down everything good or exciting that happened. I did this for the first time last year & when I read it back the other day, it was so nice to see, so I wanted to do the same for 2020.
In a year of so much uncertainty & loss, as cheesy as it sounds, I’m a true believer in the power of good. There was still so much good that came from 2020 & I think that good is easy to overlook given the unprecedented events that occurred. There is always something to be grateful for. I’m leaving 2020 feeling immensely grateful & excited for what is to come.
With that said, my word of the year is EXCITEMENT…
I try to live each day with excitement & I feel very grateful that I live a life where I’m able to feel that way. I feel very aligned with my current track of life & I’m extremely excited to see what 2021 has in store.
So as we embark on this New Year together, I want to sincerely thank you for being here & supporting me. It brings me a great amount of joy that I get to do & share what I love every single day.
I wish you all a tremendous, happy, healthy, & fulfilled year ahead!
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