August was a long month. Watching the news is difficult (yet I can’t tear myself away) and September seems to be more of the same. I have to remind myself to step away and disconnect for a bit. My friend Dana and I made time this holiday weekend to take Arya and Zamboni to the Wissahickon Valley Park in Philadelphia. It’s a really popular (and huge!) urban park, and we had never been. It was so nice to get some fresh air and not hear city buses for a couple hours. And of course, the pups loved it and were exhausted by the time we got home (Zamboni doesn’t live with me full-time, so I always try to do something special when we’re reunited). Definitely adding a return to the Wissahickon to my fall bucket list. Hope you enjoy the photos!
Well, it’s April now. I guess this whole 2016 thing is actually happening?
Since we’re somehow a quarter through the year, I thought I’d check in with myself (and you guys, I guess) and see how I was doing on my resolutions. And it’s pretty hit or miss.
♦ Eat more veggies: Well, I at least (usually) have frozen broccoli on hand, so that’s a start. The hardest part about this is that I have the taste buds of an elementary school kid, and just do not like vegetables. I do what I can with broccoli and zucchini but meh. Why can’t fruit just cover all the nutrients I need?
♦ Save $30/month: Check! In some personal news, I started a new job earlier this year and while I’m still adjusting, I am much happier! I also finally have direct deposit, which makes meeting my savings goals a lot easier since I’m not tempted to keep extra money in my checking account. Direct deposit is such a game changer.
♦ Evaluate my shopping habits: I’ll touch on this a bit more in my March shopping budget (post coming next week!), but this is a work in progress for sure (it’s a vague goal for a reason). The local Big Brothers/Big Sisters did pick up some donations from me this morning, and it’s increasingly obvious that I have enough stuff. I just don’t know if it’s stuff I really enjoy enough.
♦ Less lunch breaks at the computer: This is a big fat fail. That new job? My office is closer to home, but I’m no longer in Center City, which is super walkable. Maybe now that it’s warming up I’ll be more motivated to at least step outside and walk around the block.
♦ Volunteer at least once a month: So far so good! I walk dogs at my local PAWS, which is the same rescue where we adopted Arya, our second pittie, from.
I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday weekend! I just wanted to pop in and share some snapshots from the holiday weekend. No one does Christmas lights like New York, but I still love the lights in Philadelphia. There’s actually a lot to do in the city, winter-wise, and I still have a lot to do! It’s been unseasonably warm but the colder weather will eventually be here, so I’m not worried. I just wish we could keep the lights up for a few more weeks.
In related news, we have a new member of our family — Arya! We adopted her from PAWS right around Thanksgiving (she was an early Christmas gift to me!). I grew up in single-dog households — having two is a whole new adventure! Slowly but surely, Arya and Zamboni are getting more comfortable with each other and she’s making herself at home. You can get to know her more on Instagram too.
