On the last day of 2013, I chose to spend the day doing the things I love with someone who means a lot to me, the boo-ski. It was strange in that I knew it was the last day of me officially having a job (found out I was getting laid off the second week in December), but at the same time I was eager and optimistic for the changes that are afoot.
Around mid-morning we took a short drive to the neighborhood record store Fingerprints and got a tasty morsel from the adjoining café. It was great to be among the stacks of crates and digging for vinyl, a favorite activity for my boo, who is a DJ, and I. Seriously, the discount bins never disappoint.
Here he is testing out some records with the handy Crosley portable turntable I got him for Christmas.
Of course I had to take a listen, too.
Let’s just say, your girl was en fuego. I helped my boo find some gems. Granted I was drawn in mostly by the album art, but I knew there was something promising about them. Some great dancey jams!
Later that night, we put on our fancy party clothes for our low-key New Year’s Eve celebration at home. Really, there was no place I’d rather be. (Stay tuned for this “Outfit of the Night” post).
We cooked together. I marinated these delicious New York strip steaks and the boo pan seared them to perfection. So good!
It was a lovely way to close out 2013. In the morning, I made a point of praising God for bringing me into 2014, and was anxious to go through my (Count Your) Blessings Jar and reflect on all the ways that He came through for me last year. To recap, throughout last year, I would make a record of the ways I felt God’s favor upon my life and place it in the jar.
And I’m so glad that I did! Things that I had completely forgotten about were brought back to remembrance, some tiny, some huge. About nine notes in, I had burst into tears, overcome by God’s faithfulness.
I stacked the notes on top of each other and, quite symbolically, they began to spill all over the place. Just like the Father’s overflowing grace, mercy, love and compassion for us all. When I was done, I clipped them together. It will be nice to go through them in tough times, gloomy days, or when I feel sad or uninspired.
And to get ahold of my fleeting thoughts and ambitions for the new year, I jotted a few of them down in my journal. I made a list for general goals for the year and composed a more defined list of targets for this current season (being a free agent and plotting my next career move) on a sticky note.
There is so much I look forward to this year. This will be my entry into my thirties (holding on tightly to what remains of 29, haha), and hopefully a time marked by new opportunities and plenty of abundance, joy, laughter and, most importantly, LOVE.
I wish you all the same for 2014!
XO,
Ashley
