A couple years ago, at a girlfriend’s bachelorette party, she made a point to come around to each of the married attendees and ask for our best advice about marriage. What lessons had we learned? she wanted to know. What was one thing we would tell our engaged selves about marriage, if we could go back in time?
I don’t know why my response popped into my brain at that exact moment, but I’ve since shared my answer with many of my girlfriends—whether they’re about to embark on their own marriages, are already married, or are in long term relationships. It’s the relationship advice I remind myself of most often, no matter where I stand in my own marriage.
Happy Tuesday, friends! Popping in today with a little roundup of 8 things I’m loving, from new spring accessories, to tech that’s making my life better, to bowls I’d been coveting for years without realizing it.
Happy February! Was it just me, or did the first month of 2019 fly by? I can’t believe it’s already February 5. In the spirit of Valentine’s, for this month’s #mood I’m feeling all things fresh, feminine, and pastel-hued. Admittedly, I’ve never been a huge fan of Valentine’s Day. Nothing against it at all, but we’ve never used it as an opportunity to buy gifts or go out to dinner (I’d rather pick a random Friday night for that). Some years Joe will come home with flowers; a few years here and there, he came home with really good quality charcuterie, a handwritten love note scrawled on the bright white butcher paper (and yes, I loved him for it).
But when considering the month ahead and what’s on tap, it makes sense that I’m feeling Valentine’s a little more this month, and have also selected this four-letter word as my February mantra:
#mantra
love.
My second sister and niece arrive from Korea tomorrow. I am at once excited, nervous, scared, elated, and completely terrified of being disappointed. I find myself mining the deepest wells of hope that this will be something. That together, we blossom, and the something which could have been might miraculously take root and grow. Maybe this month, love and connection will take on a different shape than I have known before. I have no idea how I’ll feel during and after (when I initially met this sister last summer, it was only for a dinner, and I was strung out and on emotional autopilot). So I enter into February with heart and mind cracked wide open, reminding myself to stay vulnerable to love, in all its forms—and as always, to value the love already, blessedly present in my life.
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