Currently - February '19

anticipating - a visit from my brother and his girlfriend in two weeks! Looking forward to trying some new restaurants together, visiting a museum or two, and enjoying their company.

going - to Richmond for a little change of scenery next weekend with a night in a cushy hotel, exploring new neighborhoods, and trying some new breweries.

making - chocolatety desserts. My mom has been cleaning out her recipe collection and sent me  "Make Mine Chocolate! A 1994 Recipe Calendar from Nestle." Despite being 25 years old, the recipes from April (Toll House Crumbcake) and May (Bittersweet Chocolate Pound Cake) were both winners, so today I'll be making July's Chocolate Truffle Tart to bring to dinner at a friend's house.

watching - the weather forecast. Like many other places, the past few weeks have brought 60-degree swings in temperature here in the DC region. Last Monday it was close to 60 degrees outside; tomorrow they're calling for a wintery mix. Knowing which jacket to put on before leaving the house is kind of anyone's guess!

wearing - Burt's Bees Lip Shimmer in Fig. I don't think the color looks anything like the color of the cap; in fact it's quite subtle which is why I like it. Me, only better (and with my pale, dry, winter skin, I'll take anything I can get)!

Linking up with Anne, as usual.

Real Life Resolutions vol. 4

Our 2019 nengajo - Happy Year of the Boar!

I have a quote pinned on my "wise words" board that says, "The only time you should ever look back is to see how far you've come." I've come a long way in the past two years thanks in part to those detailed lists of weekly, monthly and annual goals (see 2017 and 2018).

For 2019, I'm taking more of a back-to-basics approach with four larger goals for the year:

1. Bike across Iowa during RAGBRAI
2. Read The Power Broker, a 1,338 page book about Robert Moses
3. Knit something with sleeves
4. Meet with a financial professional

This year's simpler approach comes in part from reading this article about burnout as the result of attempting to maximize every moment, and the fact that when I tried to make a list of 9 goals for 2019 I was making up goals I wasn't very excited about just to fill in the list. Not much point in that, now is there?