My Favorite Memories of My 24th Year

Even though my 24th year didn’t exactly come to the end that I was expecting (i.e. we are currently on lockdown here in California for the foreseeable future due to COVID-19), this past year was a pretty good one overall. There definitely were some low-points, but there were also a lot of really high highs, and I know that those moments are the ones I will remember. I can’t wait to see what 25 has in store and since we spent my birthday in lockdown, it’s definitely made me take stock and feel a lot of gratitude for what I have at this moment in time.

Going Climbing Outside for the First Time ~ 24 was the year that Brad and I got really into climbing. I had climbed a little bit in high school and it was something I was always exposed to since I have quite a few family members who are really into rock climbing, but I had never taken a huge interest in it till this last year. Brad and I started going to the gym about 3-4 times per week and started to get really antsy to finally climb outside a bit. Luckily my uncle, who is a really experienced climber, took us out one afternoon to a local crag and I had my first go at climbing outside. To say it’s more difficult than climbing in a gym would be an understatement, but the rush you get being 30+ feet off the ground, standing on the tiniest footholds, and crimping like there’s no tomorrow is absolutely unmatched. More than anything, it’s felt really rewarding to find a lifelong sport in climbing, which is something I honestly never guessed would happen at this age.

Dinner Parties with Friends ~ We really leaned into having a lot of dinner parties with friends this year. I’ve definitely reached an age, along with my friends, that going over to each other’s houses, drinking wine, and cooking dinner is so much more fun than going out to the club. My group of friends decided that we would do both Friendsgiving and Friendsmas, which were so much fun and I think we will continue this tradition for years to come. I absolutely love hosting and cooking and it’s so much more fun when you get to share it with your best friends.

Our Trip to Alaska ~ This past September we took a cruise through the Inside Passage in Alaska with Brad’s family and it was an incredible trip! I’ve been to Alaska twice prior to this past trip, however I had never been to that part of Alaska. The scenery was absolutely incredible and we were lucky enough to see the Northern Lights, which is pretty rare for the time of year we were visiting and how far south we were. Brad and I also got a lot of great quality time together and we were both able to really switch off from work (which is rare for us) because our cell service was so minimal throughout the trip.

Getting Engaged! ~ I think this is pretty obvious, but getting engaged was the highlight of my 24th year. The day that Brad proposed was easily the best and happiest day of my life thus far. The proposal itself was such a surprise and I am so happy he involved my sister and her boyfriend to document the whole thing so we can look back on the video and the photos year after year. Brad and I have been together for 3.5 years and lived together for almost two years and honestly I didn’t think being engaged would change our relationship too much, but it definitely has for the better. I definitely feel a whole new level of commitment, even though we were obviously very committed before he proposed, and having our wedding to look forward to is so fun and exciting.

Budget-Friendly Self-Care Ideas

Right now, more than ever, the majority of us are in need of some serious self-care. While indulging in a pampering routine and using luxury products can feel nice, I wanted to talk about self-care activities that truly help my mental health and that don’t break the bank. A lot of these things cost very little to no money to do and I’ve found help me get out of my head when life gets stressful. I hope these suggestions help you to feel a little less anxious and help to lift your mood.

Reading ~ This is something I’ve been talking a lot about recently, but honestly reading is one of the best self-care activities I can rely on during stressful times like these. In order to keep reading affordable for myself, I have mainly been using my Kindle and renting ebooks from my local library (most libraries have this sort of system, so make sure you research it). I really only purchase physical books when I have a gift card to my favorite local bookstores or when I am really excited about a book and expect to reread or pass it on to a loved one after I’m done reading it. Not only does reading offer a really nice and much needed break from screens, but it also allows you to immerse yourself in another world, which is honestly the thing I love most about reading. I especially try to allocate time to read before bed, because it helps me to not think about the stresses of the day and it helps me fall asleep easier.

Yoga ~ I used to do yoga all the time when I was in college and then I fell off the wagon for awhile. I recently got back into yoga this past January through doing the Yoga With Adriene 30 Day Yoga challenge. Doing yoga for thirty days consecutively made me rediscover my love for the practice and made me realize how much I missed it in my every day life. While we’ve been practicing social distancing through all of this COVID-19 craziness, I’ve been doing yoga every day through the Yoga With Adriene YouTube channel and it’s honestly one of the best things I’ve ever done for both my physical and mental health. Most of the practices are very beginner-friendly and aren’t particularly long.

Give Yourself A Manicure ~ Out of all of the pampering-type self-care activities, doing a manicure on myself is one of the most relaxing things I can think of doing. Unlike other pampering things like taking a bath or doing a face mask, doing a manicure actually requires a lot of focus, which I find much more useful when I am feeling really anxious or stressed about other things. In being really focused on painting my nails, even though it’s a superfluous task, I am distracted from all of the other craziness going on in the world and even if that lasts for just a quick 30 minutes, it helps me find center again.

Doing A Puzzle ~ Brad and I love doing puzzles together. I think like painting my nails, doing a puzzle is a somewhat mindless task that takes a lot of focus. It’s so easy to get lost in a 1000 piece puzzle for the entire day and it’s so fun and rewarding to see the final result. I feel like getting your mind stimulated is such an under-rated way of practicing self-care, and I cannot recommend it enough (especially if it means spending less time in front of screens).

Brain Dump In Your Journal ~ I tend to journal a lot when I’m in a funk or if I’m going through a particularly anxious period. I love the ritual of getting up early in the morning, sitting at my desk with a cup of tea and taking a solid 15-20 minutes to just get all of my thoughts out of my head and onto paper. Using that time to release all of my feelings is incredibly therapeutic and even if you don’t make any huge breakthroughs during your time writing, it’s nice at the very least to just have some quiet time to sit with your thoughts and think about how you’re feeling on any given day.

FaceTime or Call A Loved One ~ I’ll be honest, I don’t use FaceTime all that much, but since we’ve been under shelter-in-place here in California for the last few weeks, I’ve been using it so much more to talk to friends and family. Of course it can never replace the feeling of seeing someone in person but it does lift your mood to reach out and talk to someone. I feel like when people talk about self-care, it’s usually a solitary practice, but I think there’s just as much to be said for self-care that involves talking to your loved ones.

Bake Some Treats ~ Baking is my ultimate stress relief and it has been since I was little. I love the concentration and precision it takes to bake something, but also that it’s a full sensory experience. Some recipes also take up the better part of a day so it’s a nice thing to do when you have a lot of time to kill and you don’t want to spend that time parked in front of a screen. One of the best things about baking is that you get to enjoy the fruits of your labor for days to come and there’s nothing like indulging in a cookie before bed as another little act of self-care.

My Go-To Easy Recipes

I want to start out today’s post by acknowledging that this last week has been difficult and worrying for pretty much everyone, and if I can provide a bit of a respite from the noise and the scariness with a bit of positivity and ease, I will do everything I can to provide that. With that, since I am practicing social distancing, I will be using my extra time at home to be creating more content for you all and hopefully I can do even a small part to distract you from all the craziness, even if it’s just for 10 minutes. Since many of us will be home for the foreseeable future and will be made to cook at home, I thought I would share some of my favorite recipes that I use consistently and are easy, satisfying, and relatively cheap to make!

Buttermilk Marinated Roast Chicken ~ If you don’t already own the cookbook, Salt Fat Acid Heat, or haven’t seen the Netflix show by the same name, I highly recommend you do so! This chicken is the recipe I use the most out of that cookbook and it is both the best and easiest way to roast an entire chicken. The ingredients are also super minimal (it’s basically just buttermilk, chicken and salt) and the recipe basically requires zero skill so it’s great if you are a bit intimidated by roasting a whole bird. Because the meat gets so tender and juicy, it also makes for great leftovers and can last you for awhile after it’s initial preparation.

Spiced Chickpea Stew with Coconut and Turmeric ~ I know that everyone and their mother talked about this recipe last year, but that’s because it’s so darn good (it’s also completely vegan and gluten-free)! I love how much this recipe leans on pantry staples and it’s component parts are not only hearty but cheap as well! This recipe makes quite a bit, but luckily because it’s a stew, it just gets better with time so you can happily eat it a few days after you initially made it.

Simple Ribollita ~ My mom has always been an ardent supporter of a great minestrone soup when you’re feeling under the weather, and while I love minestrone, Ribollita is my preferred homey italian soup because it is slightly more indulgent and hearty. Like the Chickpea stew, Ribollita is mainly comprised of pantry staples like canned tomatoes, parmesan, bread, and root veggies such as carrots, celery, garlic and onions. This soup also comes together super quickly so you don’t have to prep hours in advance like a lot of other soup recipes require. It’s also vegetarian (not gluten-free though, unless you were able to find a really good crusty loaf of gluten-free bread).

Pasta Al Limone ~ Pasta is always my go-to easy weeknight dinner recipe. I am a self-professed carb queen and would happily eat pasta every single day if I was able to. I absolutely love a creamy pasta dish, but sometimes it just feels so heavy. I love how the lemon in this dish adds a nice hint of acidity without feeling too overtly lemony. There’s also a video on how to make this on the BA youtube channel if you’re more of a visual learner!

Caramelized Shallot Pasta ~ Like I said, I love pasta! This recipe is great for those of you who prefer more of a tomato-y sauce over a creamy sauce. One of the things I love about this recipe is it actually makes enough sauce for eight people, so unless you’re having a large gathering, you save the other half of the sauce for later to use with more pasta, or you can use it to fry eggs, spread on toast, really the world is your oyster! It’s easily one of the most deeply flavored tomato sauces I’ve ever made thanks to the tomato paste and the addition of a lot of shallots and anchovies (however if you don’t like anchovies don’t be too put off, it’s not a fishy-tasting pasta).

Instant Pot Pork Carnitas ~ Nothing says easy weeknight dinner like Instant Pot recipes! It took me a while to learn how to use our Instant Pot, but it has definitely become a staple in our kitchen arsenal. Since both Brad and I work all day, we don’t have tons of time to cook in the evenings and this recipe is great because it takes a process that would usually take over four hours and condenses it into about 45 minutes. We both love carnitas and will usually do taco night when we make this recipe and it makes enough to have leftovers fr the next day!

Little Things I Do To Save Money

As I mentioned in my post all about my goals for 2020, I am working really hard in the next year to save money. Part of the reason I’m really focused on saving, is because I’ve reached the point in my twenties where I’m just generally turning into more of a saver than a spender. I’m not that interested in buying things just for the sake of buying them, and it brings me far more joy to see my savings account increase than to have more material things in my life. I also have a lot of larger expenses approaching in the next few years that I am working towards, such as paying for our wedding and hopefully being able to buy a house in the next few years, both of which require a pretty regimented approach to saving! Here is a run-down of all the small things that I’ve done to cut back my spending and grow my savings.

Weekly Auto-Transfer to Savings Account ~ This might seem like an obvious one, but setting up auto-transfer every week from your checking to your savings, is one of the easiest ways to save consistently and substantially over long periods of time. I have a running auto-transfer from my checking to my savings that runs every single Monday morning to ensure that I am saving a minimum amount of money. Of course I make other, larger transfers to my savings on a regular basis as well, but having a recurring transfer helps to stay on track with saving a certain amount every month no matter what!

Keep Track Monthly of Your Recurring Expenses ~ It’s so easy now-a-days that everything is a subscription to lose track of everything you are paying for on a monthly basis. Between Spotify, Netflix, those random app purchases, and utility bills, it can be really easy for your monthly expenses to add up even though they might seem small when you sign up for them. I like to go through my monthly statement every month to keep track of my monthly subscription costs and make sure I’m actually using all the things I’m paying for, and if I’m no longer using them, they get cancelled immediately!

Think About Large Purchases for Over One Month ~ One of the things that can absolutely ruin your savings is spontaneous purchases. Something might seem really appealing and it might offer some instant gratification having a #treatyoself moment, and while I’m all for treating yourself, I think there’s a way to go about it in a more responsible and conscious way. Whenever I want something that costs more than $50 I try to think about it for over a month before purchasing (of course this mainly goes for superfluous things and not necessities like food and other expenses). Most of the time, if I let several weeks pass, I’ve forgotten all about the item that I had previously been dying to purchase, and if I truly have not gotten it out of my head, done proper research on the item, and have visualized using whatever item it is in my daily life, then it is likely that it will be a purchase worth making!

Spend Time Taking Care of Yourself ~ Ok this one may sound like a weird one, but I find when I am taking care of myself best, i.e. getting good sleep, exercising regularly, spending time outdoors and seeing friends and family I am less likely to spend emotionally. The periods of my life where I have been the least fulfilled and the least happy are the times where I spend superfluously. This might not be the case for everyone, but I have found that when I am taking care of myself, which often requires spending little to no money, I am less likely to seek out short-term happiness in the form of buying things unnecessarily.

My Goals for 2020

I’m not usually one for making New Year’s resolutions, because I don’t love the idea of setting a year time limit to accomplish some task or form some habit. However, I do like setting long-term goals for myself (but I’m not necessarily limiting myself to achieving them within a year). While some of these goals are a bit more on the long-term end of the goal-setting spectrum, I also try not to set goals that are unrealistic or downright unachievable. So without further ado, here are my 20 goals for 2020:

1. Read 40 books in 2020 (I read 35 in 2019)!

2. Continue climbing at least once a week.

3. Pass my lead climbing test at my gym.

4. Cook dinner at home at least 5 nights per week.

5. Bring my lunch to work at least 4 times per week.

6. Spend more time outside on a daily basis, whether that’s going on a walk before work, or taking time to journal on our back porch.

7. Work on organizing our apartment on a regular basis!

8. Declutter my closet and really pare back my wardrobe.

9. Start investing and saving more of my money! (I’ve worked very hard on paring back my spending in 2019)

10. Continue to put my physical and mental well-being first and use more productive coping mechanisms to deal with stress.

11. Blog and write more!

12. Begin doing more freelance writing for local publications.

13. Discover more music in 2020!

14. Keep wedding planning stress to a minimum.

15. Find a way to stay informed going into this election year without getting stressed or overwhelmed (hey a girl can dream)!

16. Get involved in whichever candidate’s campaign speaks to me most and volunteer!

17. Try more new restaurants and explore more San Francisco neighborhoods that I haven’t spent much time in.

18. Go on more date nights with Brad!

19. Journal more as a way to chart my mood and my emotions and remind me to stay present.

20. Move to another state! Eeep, I can’t believe I’m writing this one down, but Brad and I have a big move out of California planned for this summer and I am simultaneously incredibly excited and extremely nervous. I will be sharing a lot more about this process in the coming months once more things are finalized but a new adventure awaits us in the middle of 2020!