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A busy summer
This summer was busy! It didn’t really feel like it at first, but looking back at it, I have actually done quite a lot in and around the house! Obviously I had the best time this summer catching up and hanging out with my friends and family over brunch, lunch or dinner. It’s always fun to see friends again after they have been away on holiday for a while. I love hearing their holiday stories and just having deep, meaningful chats over food. It’s really all about good food and good company in my life.But it wasn’t all pleasure this summer as I also had work to do. Not only did I work hard this summer on rewriting my dissertation, I also had to do some work for some clients while keeping a semi-regular schedule on the blog. I love being busy, but some days it definitely felt like a bit much for me. It still feels weird for me to be busy during the summer, as it’s usually my time to relax and recharge. This is something I slowly need to get out of my system though. It felt weird though to spend a lot of time behind my desk when I could be outside enjoying gorgeous summer weather instead.
The busy-ness is only just finally settling down a bit. I recently changed my blog design and feel like I am up-to-date on my blog work. My dissertation is pretty much ready to be handed in again and most of the work for the clients I had over the summer has been crossed off my to-do list now. It means I can slowly start to look forward to my holiday in September without having too much on my head, which I am very much looking forward to.
Childhood nostalgia at its finest
Childhood nostalgia is the best kind of nostalgia in my opinion. In July, a week after it came out, I went to see the Lion King and it was such a nostalgic feeling. When I came home after watching the film I was getting so excited for all the remakes they are now making for all the Disney films. It was actually feeling so nostalgic that I took a little trip down memory lane when watching films at night this past month. I watched the original The Lion King, which is obviously still my favourite, but also ventured out and watched those corny Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen films and some other Dutch childhood programmes. This summer was very nostalgic to my childhood by how I spent my evenings. Instead of going for my usual dose of Yummy Mummies of Netflix, I preferred watching childhood films.Summer self-care actions
At the beginning of summer I already told you I was feeling quite run down by everything I had going on back then. It’s why I made self-care a number one priority this summer. It was hard for me to find the right balance between staying busy and finding time for myself this summer, but I feel like I had a pretty good balance. I made sure to not do any work for clients, my dissertation or my blog this summer. This left me with lots of time on my hands during the evening, so I had a lot of time to read my books and to plan in some face mask time.Since getting back into the gym since April I have found a love for exercise too. I find exercise to really help with my mental health and getting my stress-levels under control, so it’s no surprise that I also have spent time taking care of myself by going to the gym with my friend. Additionally to going to the gym, I also went on a couple of walks with friends, family or just on my own. My favourite walk I took was a super long walk of nearly 8 kilometres near the beach. Walks near the beach are my favourite kind of walks to do, as the sound of the sea and the wind has such calming effect on me. Walks near the beach are the practice of self-care I can look forward to during the warmer days of the year.
Making my staycation count
This was my first summer of staying home for the actual summer. We’re obviously going away on holiday in September, but I had never gone away on holiday so late in the year. Spending my summer at home was what inspired me to write a staycation blog post in July in the first place. Although I didn’t get around to doing everything I had initially planned on doing this summer, I still made my staycation a nice one. This summer I really wanted to go to a couple of local markets, so this year I did just that. I went to take photographs for a client of mine at a in The Hague that takes place every first weekend of the month. I also went to the farmers market in town and got lots of really nice fruit, veg and super tasty bread. I also went to another market in town with my mum to get some more good bits.It’s obviously nowhere near being on a French farmers market, but I definitely made my staycation count by visiting multiple markets in my hometown. This made me realise how lovely it is to support local initiatives. The markets I went to are markets that are there on a weekly basis, so I am definitely hoping to also visit the markets throughout the rest of the year.
I will stop rambling now on my favourite memories of summer now. I cannot believe how fast summer went by. Tell me, what are your favourite summer memories? I would love to hear yours too!
What I'm wearing
I love this outfit! The burnt orange and pink look fantastic together, and the skirt is incredible on you. Happy end of summer!
BeantwoordenVerwijderenThank you so much Rachel, hope you had a wonderful summer! xx
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