The end of January is here, which means it’s the perfect time to look back on the month and all the moments—big and small—that made it memorable. One of the biggest tricks we play on ourselves is thinking we’ll remember everything. No need to write it down, right? But let’s be real… does that even work for a grocery list? Exactly! Your memories matter, so don’t let them slip away.

I mentioned in my last post that I would be having surgery and I’m happy to say that I’m on the other side of that now. I had a diastasis recti repair done on January 13th. My split was considered to be severe, so it couldn’t be fixed through physical therapy. In order to be a candidate for diastasis recti surgery, a patient must have separation of abdominal muscles that is greater than two finger widths. My split was 4 finger widths, so it definitely needed to be done.

Do you pick a word for the year? I’ve been doing this every year since 2008, thanks to Ali Edwards’ "One Little Word" project. It’s a tradition I’ve grown to love—a simple way to set intentions and stay focused throughout the year. What makes it even more fun is that my whole family gets involved. Everyone picks their own word, and it’s something we talk about and cheer each other on for all year long. This year, we all “unveiled” our words as part of our family New Year’s Eve celebration.

Before diving into 2025, I want to take some time to wrap up 2024 officially. Year-end reviews are one of my favorite ways to gather meaningful material for documenting the year’s memories.

Here we are at the end of the month and the end of the year! Even if you haven’t done any other roundups this year, I highly recommend you do one for December. It’s a great month to document!

Roundups. Recaps. Reviews. You can call them whatever you like, but the general idea is the same. Just take some time to write down what has happened recently, add some pictures, and call it good! That’s what I do at the end of each month, and I plan to keep going strong with this practice as long as possible.

I will be celebrating with my family for the rest of the year. I will be back here on December 31st to share the December roundup prompts. If you are looking to catch up on some of my other content, please visit these links:

I have to admit, one of my favorite parts of the holiday season is all the treats and goodies. As a cookie lover, I find this time of year full of temptations. As a young mom, I hosted a neighborhood cookie exchange every year—it was a fun tradition.

Over the years, my baking has evolved, especially since I went gluten-free in 2021. Even so, I’m excited to whip up some of my favorite recipes with a few tweaks to fit my diet. I’m also constantly searching for new recipes to try, so I’m using this post as the perfect excuse to share some festive foods that look absolutely delicious!

Some years, I’ve been on top of my game and remembered to buy festive, fun tags to make gifts extra special. But more often than not, I forget about tags until it’s time to wrap. That’s when I turn to my digital scrapbooking supplies or a program like Canva to quickly create my own. It’s a lifesaver when you need tags at the last minute! So consider this a reminder to shop for or make some gift tags. Here are some creative ideas for inspiration:

I shared this collage on Instagram earlier this month, but I wanted to include it here as an example of a creative way to document holiday music favorites.