Best of 2021 (With Friends!)

There’s nothing like a year’s-end roundup to help take stock of the ins and outs of the last twelve months, and boy, am I EVER needing something like that right now! I don’t know if it’s being in my mid-thirties, having had 2 babies really close together, or being on the 2-year mark of this pandemic, but time has become all mish-mashed! I needed a little push for a pause and some perspective!

So I’m very grateful Em of Em for Marvelous invited me to be a part of this year’s Best of With Friends! Be sure to check out her answers, along with Stephanie Shaul, and Lisa Kirk!

Our newborn family pics from Elizabeth Tate!

Best Adventure/Travel/Trip - Looking back, I’m actually surprised at how much traveling we actually managed last year! Out of two mountain trips, a huge trip to GA/FL, two trips to Beaufort, and our Durham babymoon, I think our first mountain trip to Boone (to celebrate Grammy’s birthday) was my favorite. It was in an extravagant mountain home, but such a simple trip just hanging out inside with family. I also felt Smith’s first kicks on that trip, which was very special and reassuring!

Best Movie - I found a little movie on Amazon Prime called This Beautiful Fantastic (starring Downton Abbey’s Jessica Brown Findlay, aka the ever-lovable Sybil) and it surprised me how much I fell in love with it! I laughed and cried and felt all dreamy throughout. It is shot beautifully and and has a very heartwarming storyline involving a quirky young lady and crotchety old man (one of my fave wholesome storyline dynamics!)

Best TV Show - The Masterpiece Little Women miniseries - honestly my favorite iteration! I loved Maya Hawke as Jo and the cinematography is absolutely stunning.

Best Album/Song - According to my Spotify 2021 Wrapped, I really played out Mat Kearney’s January Flower album. I also discovered Roo Panes, and have really enjoyed his acoustic/dreamy sound (Griffin especially loves the song I Just Love You, always dancing throughout and clapping at the end!)

Best Follow on Instagram - While I took this year off social media, I really did miss a couple of accounts, specifically @wearethehomemakers and @kellyhavensohio. When it comes to visual inspiration for my season of life with kiddos, homemaking, and a desire to go slow, these do it for me! I also really loved my vlogger discoveries, specifically Lisa from Farmhouse on Boone! Perfect to watch when you’re needing something gentle on while you’re washing dishes, doing laundry, or making meals (or to get you motivated to do those things!)

Best Kiddo Milestone - Griffin finally started walking (at 15 months, just 2 weeks before baby brother was born!), and she has just started really understanding what we are saying, and responding with her heartfelt yeah’s and dramatic noooo’s. I’m so proud of the little lady she is becoming! Full of fire and gusto and lots of love. Also, Smith is smiling and laughing like crazy!

Best Faith Grower - Life with 2 under 2, LOL! Did I wait and pray and ache for these moments? Yes! Does it make the daily reality of it any easier? I don’t think so! More thoughts on adjusting to being a family of four (and our newborn photos) here!

Best Trend You Tried - Watching Youtube - isn’t that weird?! I highly recommend finding a niche interest or desire you have and discovering the Youtube community for that. It can be very motivational and educational. There is something more enjoyable for me about consuming more limited yet long-form content (deeper, not wider) that is specific to your season of life. It feels more encouraging and helpful, like getting gas for the ol’ gas tank of life.

Best Beauty Purchase - Love Always, Liz CBD + Rosehip Oil facial serum!! It’s a pretty penny, but I don’t have many steps in my skincare routine, so I gotta make what I do use count. As a former sufferer of painful cystic acne (with the scars to prove it) this serum is the perfect treatment to soothe, reduce lines/redness, prevent breakouts, and moisturize. Also, I think I found my ideal foundation for the forseeable future — Ilia Beauty’s Super Serum Skin Tint is a fabulous form of foundation that is lightweight, offers great coverage with a bit of a glow, and also packs in skincare treatments like hyaluronic acid. Um, YES PLEASE! I’ve already purchased my second bottle, ahem, from Santa! I use the shade Bom Bom.

Best Family Memory - Oh man, how can I choose? Being pregnant this year while soaking up all the amazing moments with a growing toddler, and then giving birth — there are so many sacred, beautiful moments to choose from. We’re having a lot of sweet family memories as a family of four, in a lot of the simple, normal moments of life. A specific one that comes to mind is before Smith was born. We made a special stop in Savannah on our way to a family wedding in FL. We visited the places that John and I had gone to right before Griffin was born, taking her along and telling the story of how her name was confirmed in that very place! It was so sweet. And pretty much any time Griffin and Smith look at each other and smile or laugh.

Best Habit You Created - Being off social media, and therefore being on my phone/tech way way less. It has led to habits of less comparing and judging, and more reaching out directly to spend in-person quality time with people we love. 10/10 recommend!

Favorite Blog Post Written - Y’all, I’ve published 44 blog posts this year!! Some of my personal favorites are my pregnancy announcement, this post on being the inviter, this post on the beautiful side of our limitations, the postpartum advice roundup from friends, this post about the best gifts my parents gave me, and this poem.

Best New Recipe - I couldn’t think of an exact recipe that stands out, but I will say that my rhythms with making meals have become much more consistent this year! I feel really committed to making meal plans that are within budget, and seeing that the food gets eaten. Some recipes are fails (ex: this one — bleh!! I can’t even think of it without my stomach turning!) and some are wins (my ever faithful banana bread recipe), but I do feel a sense of satisfaction being behind the helm of the stove more. Also, John’s mom got us a steak-of-the-month membership from The Butcher’s Market (SO GOOD, and what an amazing gift idea!), and I have absolutely loved learning about different cuts and types of meat and how to prepare them well! I’m much more confident in my meat skills overall!

Best Mom/Life Hack - Um… Sesame Street? Ha! I will absolutely be reading the other mom/life hacks in this roundup and taking notes! And the old classic of setting out my outfit the night before - huge time saver and frustration-bypass the next morning!

Best Mama Moment - Having our second child, Smith, was definitely a mama highlight of this year! I was able to have a completely redemptive, healthy pregnancy and very positive, empowering, unmedicated birth, and every moment of the pregnancy and birth felt like a gift to me. I’ll never forget the wash of joy and deep satisfaction seeing Smith and hearing him cry right after I pushed him out (I was on my knees on the hospital bed and they passed him through my legs, still attached to the cord — totally amazing.) Thank you Jesus!

Bringing Smith home and watching Griffin become enamored with him has also been a kind of otherworldly joy. I can’t believe I’ve been able to birth siblings. G was so sweet with S right from the get-go, and seemed to understand right away that he is hers. Griffin coming in for a kiss all on her own. Smith’s first smile and first laugh. Gosh, there have been a lot, and I love that my eyes and heart have been a bit more freed up to really savor them, to let them soak deep deep into the pages of my life.

Best Home Improvement - Not much new to report from our tiny cottage in the country, except that we are outgrowing it! Honestly, I think just faithfully living in 950sqft as a fam of 4 is a win! We haven’t changed or added much, and hope to be moving soon to support our growing family and our growing dreams! This little cottage, we hope, will become an Airbnb (which will be a bit of a part-time job for me — I can’t wait!)

Best Little Luxury You’ve Enjoyed - Facial Steams at Trellis Beauty! It has felt so nice to take a moment to steal away, not wear any makeup, get a little coffee or juice, stick on a podcast, and get my face steamed. It’s in a shopping center I go to a bunch anyway, so it’s convenient, and doesn’t take long, so it’s attainable. And my skin looks and feels amazing after.

If you’re new to my little corner of the internet (which in my mind is teeny and warm and worn-in, much like our little cottage), please say hey! I love new friends! I also have a tiny newsletter that’s pretty much like a note you’d pass to a friend in the hallway in middle school that makes you feel loved and thought of, and I’d love to send it to you once a month, too!

What a great year, y’all. There is much to be thankful for. I would love to hear your best-ofs from this year — what stands out in your 2021?? Tell me some pos-news below! And don’t forget to check out the other gals’ responses, too — Emily Thomas, Stephanie Shaul, and Lisa Kirk.

All my love, kindreds, and onward to another strong, grace-filled year,

Sam