Every month I share a few fun things things that happened throughout the month outside of reading. Here are 8 highlights from May including wrapping up a vacation in the Caribbean, graduations, family time, day long brunching, and a much needed reset.
8 Joys This May
1. Vacation in St. Maarten
Our St. Maarten trip started the last week in April, which I covered in last month’s off the books recap, but we stayed through the 2nd of May, so I’m putting it again here because it was truly such a good time. We had a simple routine every morning: exercise, breakfast, beach, explore … and then beach again. Can’t beat that. In January, we also went to Aruba (more here), so at this point, the Caribbean islands are our happy place. Give me a beach, turquoise water, warm sunshine and no deadlines, and I’m content.
2. Lots of Family Time
May ended up being a month full of family connections. We traveled to North Carolina for our youngest son’s graduation, briefly visited our oldest son at college in Illinois, attended a high school graduation for my husband’s cousin’s daughter in Georgia, and spent time with my husband’s brother and family as well as my cousin and her family.
Oh, and we also saw my brother at the beginning of the month. On our way home from St. Maarten, my brother and I discovered we both had layovers in Miami at the same time. We got to spend a little time together in the airport before heading our separate ways. Brief, but worth it.
3. Boozy Brunches and Long Conversations
One Sunday I had an epic all day hang out session with some friends. We started with brunch at one of our favorite spots overlooking our local beach, complete with Mimosas made just the way I like them … mostly champagne with just a splash of orage juice. From there we went to a local bookstore café with outdoor seating. A group of guitarists just happened to be having an informal jam session and they were so good. Then we wrapped up the day at a local bar, sitting outside for hours talking and laughing with friends and strangers alike.
4. A Surprise Garden Harvest
My little garden is mainly flowers, but there’s some herbs in it too, and when Spring came around, there was parsley still hanging on from last year. More than hanging on – flourishing. So I cut some of the older parts off like the internet told me to do, bunched them together and hung it in the garage. A few weeks later – dried parsley! From my own garden patch! I’m putting it in every dish we make – because … ya know – I growed it!
5. A Rest and Reset Week
This was unintentional, but it turned out to be the best thing ever. After going hard for the first 4 months of the year, I just needed a bit of a break. For one week, outside of work, I did almost nothing. No activities, no workouts (my body needed a break), no social obligations, and I deleted Instagram and Facebook from my phone. Instead, I read, watched TV, slept a little later, and gave myself permission to rest without turning it into a productivity project. At the end of the week, my body felt refreshed, my mind refocused, and I was able to re-center myself, re-dedicate myself to my priorities for the year. I might do this every 4 months or so.
6. Outsourcing to Get Ahead
Y’all I couldn’t keep up with laundry! It was stressing me out seeing all the unwashed clothes … and the piles of clean unfolded clothes too. Finally, I decided to try a wash-and-fold service from a local small business that handles pickup and delivery. 24 hrs later, everything came back washed, folded, and neatly hung on hangers. Best decision ever. I don’t know if it’ll be a forever expense, but while I’m traveling for work multiple times a month and working out twice a day, it’s absolutely worth it.
7. Running Somewhere New
One of my favorite travel traditions is finding a place to run whenever I’m in a new city. This month I ran part of the Noonday Creek Trail in Marietta, Georgia, and took a walk with my husband along the Augusta Riverwalk. And then this weekend, I was also finally to able to link up with some local runners. I almost always run solo, so when I get a chance to do it with others, it makes my day.
8. What I Watched
- Remarkably Bright Creatures ★★★★★ Loved the book and loved the adaptation.
- The Rip ★★★★ Acion packed with lots of high profile stars, but a bit light on the substance and character development.
- Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan: Ghost War ★★★ Perfectly watchable but ultimately forgettable. Not bad, just not particularly memorable.
That was May – busy but with a reset week thrown in there and a lot of little wins. What was one small joy that defined your month?
