The Sunday R.E.S.E.T. #11 🎄
small ways to romanticize the season, the exact outfit I'm wearing, & some last-minute gifts that still feel meaningful
Hello, hello—
As I write this, it is Friday morning before the holiday weekend. I am typing this from my cozy neighoborhood coffee shop & Nat King Cole’s “The Christmas Song” is playing over the speakers.
Usually I am a black coffee kind of girl, but today I treated myself to a ~fancy~ drink: a half-caf pistachio latte with whole milk. So delicious!
It’s a bit packed in here & the sweetest elderly lady asked if she could share my [admittedly very small] table. While things are a bit cramped, we have had the sweetest interactions. (She has said “bless your heart, dear” no less than 7 times & even offered to buy me a drink…). I love small moments of humanity like this.
Safe to say, I am writing this email with a content, peaceful heart today. Delicious coffee, nostalgic tunes, my favorite sweater, & meaningful interactions with strangers— simple magic.
And, today, I am embracing the spirit of the season and doing a holiday-focused Sunday R.E.S.E.T. ◡̈
Here’s what’s in store:
ROMANTICIZING: How I am kind of, um, forcing the spirit of the holidays. (Hear me out…)
EATING: My favorite holiday meals & traditions. The connection of food & memories. (I’d love to hear yours!)
STYLE: The specific outfits I’m wearing this Christmas & NYE ◡̈ (Plus, an update on my year without buying new clothes!)
EXPEDITED GIFTS (Lolz, I suuuure forced this topic to fit in the acronym): A quick round-up of last minute gifts that still feel meaningful & special.
TRYING: The 6 simple things I *try* to do during the holidays that ensure that I am staying present, savoring the day, enjoying my favorite treats *and* prioritizing my health along the way.
Okay, I’m just going to say it….
IT DOESN’T FEEL LIKE CHRISTMAS.
[audience gasps]
As a life-long Minnesotan, nearly every holiday of my life has been filled with snowbluffs, flurries, freezing temperature, ice skating, and sledding…
Yet right now we have… rain?! GREEN GRASS?! Temperatures in the forties?! It’s basically a tropical vacation.
The weather has been playing some tricks on my midwest-soul who is *used to* the snowy, wintery magic this time of year, but I will not be defeated!
While old man winter (ahem, ahem… climate change) isn’t cooperating, I’m still been doing my best to romanticize the time of year.
Here are some of my favorite small ways to capture the holiday magic (even if you’re feeling less than festive this year):
Put on some oldie Christmas tune on the vinyl (this is our family fav) or just play this on spotify. For me, cozy, jazzy holiday tunes will win over poppy Mariah Carey songs every day.
Drive to a pretty neighborhood & look at the lights.
Wear a festive, cozy sweater — bonus points if it’s Fair Isle Nordic-style.
Make a special holiday drink— homemade hot cocoa, a festive holiday cocktail, etc.
Do your best to not check your work email, do productive tasks, etc. Really try to use this time to truly be present & relax. (This is one of the hardest ones for me, but I am really going to make an effort to *honor* my “OOO” autoresponder over the holidays)
Eat dinner by candlelight. Mmmmm. So simple. So lovely.
Grab your favorite Christmas movie (Elf, Home Alone, etc.) and have a slumber-party-esque movie night. (All in favor of counting “The Holiday” as a Christmas movie, say aye….)
Involve my toddler in the holiday by reading holiday-centric books & showing him ornaments one-by-one. While he is still too young in many ways, it feels so magical to involve him & see his smile when we turn on the Christmas tree lights each morning.
Make a donation to a local organization, donate to a toy drive, volunteer at a food shelf, help a neighbor, etc. The season can be SO MUCH BIGGER than just you.
Ask intentional questions to your loved ones! This was my first time doing an advent calendar, and I basically just wrote simple daily prompts like “What was the best gift you ever received”, “What are 3 things you’re grateful for?”, “What is your favorite holiday tradition?” and I’ve loved hearing my husband’s perspectives. (Believe it or not, Miles didn’t have much to say…)
I’m personally am not a fan of holiday-specific clothing (like pajamas) as I hate to create waste for something I’ll only wear 1-2 times per year— but I do intentionally wear red or green in existing pieces from my closet ◡̈ Something as small as wearing a pop of holiday colors in earrings, headband, scarf can weirdly make a difference for me!
MAKING plans— instead of waiting for plans ;) It’s easy to feel like everyone else has holiday plans except for you. I know it can be easier said than done— but be the one to reach out! Be the one to coordinate! Be the one to hold a little shindig! Release your need to be a “perfect” host, and just… host!
Re-create one tradition from your childhood that you have been missing— even if you do it alone. Attend a candlelight service at church, make cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning, watch the Polar Express, etc. Whatever it is for YOU, make an effort to do it this year ◡̈
Tbh, we have not wrapped a SINGLE gift yet… and our big family Christmas is tomorrow. *Nervous laugh*
But instead of being stressed by it, I am choosing to romanticize it.
So, tonight, Adam & I have plans for a date night in— we are going to have a Christmas cocktail, play Home Alone, & do our wrapping together after Miles goes to bed ◡̈ It may be last-minute, but we’re making the most of it! I’m honestly really looking forward to it.
I think the biggest part of “romanticizing” the holidays is allowing yourself to feel what you’re feeling & taking the space you need— while also doing your best to do small “extra” things that make you feel peaceful, safe, & connected.
One of my favorite parts of the holidays is the nostalgia that comes through the meals we eat.
Food has always been (and will always be) a love language for me.
And, it’s funny— because the foods I crave this time of year are somewhat random and not traditionally “holiday” centric.
Instead of hot cocoa, the cookies, or a prime rib dinner— it’s shrimp cocktail & egg bake & cheesy potatoes.
They instantly remind me of my Grandma Pat (I miss you always).
And, now— as an adult— I have a deeper appreciation for the feat it was for her to host 40+ people year-after-year. The thing I most admire is that she made it look (and feel) easy.
The food was delicious, she didn’t seem overly stressed. The day felt relaxed & savored. (Of course, I recognize there was likely a lot more prep, logistics, & stress happened behind-the-scenes than I realized).
Due to our large family size, the meals were all about simplicity & efficiency— Christmas brunch would consist of pans & pans of egg bake & cheesy potatoes. As a kiddo, the egg bake freaked me out— but, with time, it became one favorite, most meaningful meals of the year.
(PSA: eggbake may be one of the few things better gluten-free. I feel subbing for the dryer, more dense GF bread creates a better texture)
As for the shrimp…. that’s a slightly less picturesque story. The moral of the story is that I ABSOLUTELY LOVED SHRIMP as a kid, but rarely got it any other time of year. It was an app I could always looked forward to, and my cousin, Luke, and I would sneak all the shrimp cocktail to the kids play area and devour it. To this day, whenever I have shrimp cocktail, I feel like 7-years-old, wearing uncomfortably Christmas dress, itchy tights, & playing in the basement with my cousins. And happy. Oh, so happy.
For me, the meal on a plate is (and always will be) about soooooo much more than “just” food— especially around the holidays.
It’s memories. It’s nostalgia. It’s tradition. It’s an event.
Because an intentional meal really can represent a source of connection & LOVE & comfort & joy & legacy & celebration & community & fuel & creativity & allllll sorts of other beautiful things 💛
So, just a random ramble that I am so damn grateful for the gift of food & nourishment & the LOVE that can be found on a plate— especially this time of year 🥰
So that’s what *I* want to eat this holiday season— egg bake & shrimp 😂 What foods remind YOU of Christmas? Is it a specific dinner? A certain breakfast? A dessert or beverage? Write it in the comments— I genuinely want to know!
I love hearing how much it varies from family-to-family, from culture-to-culture, from life stage-to-life stage. Despite the differences, food is so universally meaningful.
Now, let’s eat!
Well, I did it! I went an entire year without buying ANY new clothing ◡̈ I am honestly really proud of myself.
Entering 2023, I felt called to simplify my wardrobe, better utilize what I already own, and cut down on unnecessary consumption.
While, I have always loved clothing & style, buying unnecessary new items that I didn’t need was a habit I wanted to kick. And I did it!
…12 months into this experiment, and I have a LOT of thoughts!
Let me know if you want a FULL post on my year without buying new clothing— what I learned, what was difficult, what I was tempted by, what I bent the rules for, my biggest takeaways, etc.
My rules for this venture? While I couldn’t buy any new items, I did allow myself thrifting & secondhand purchases (I honestly didn’t utilize this caveat as much as I expected to!), and allotted myself 3 nuuly boxes throughout the year to rent a few items for special events, weddings, vacations, etc.
As we entered December, I realized that I have one more nuuly box that I was “allowed” to use so I went for it. I split my 6 items between cozy Christmas/holiday outfits and a few cute warm-weather pieces for our trip to Arizona in early January.
Here’s a peek at what I rented & will be wearing this holiday season:
Not sponsored of course, but I love renting from nuuly a few times a year for specific events or just simply to try some new pieces ◡̈
I think it’s such a cool, circular way to try on-trend pieces more sustainably. I’ve used them for years on my own dollar— I love them, and I have a refer-a-friend coupon for for $20 off your first box!
You get to totally customize your box, pick WHATEVER items you want, and it ships right to your door. Then you get beautiful, fun, new clothes that you can use for the month and then you send it back where it can be re-used, re-worn, and re-loved by others. I especially love it for holidays, vacations, weddings, special events, etc.
Picture it: one dress being worn by seven different people instead of each of us buying our own dress? SO much better.
I am super excited for my special holiday outfits ◡̈ After a year of not buying any new clothes, this rental feels especially exciting. I am looking forward to put these outfits together!
Alright, alright, we’ve all been there…
It’s a few days (or, um, the DAY) before Christmas, and there’s still a few gifts you need to get.
You don’t want to do the cop out of a generic target giftcard, but also feel pressed for time…