More Celebrations + Wishes For This Next Year

Lots of celebrations taking place over here! My birthday is only 6 days after Emerson’s, which means we eat a lot of cake in the month of October.  Since my parents helped us eat Emerson’s cake in just 24 hours, Matt got me another one for my day on the 18th.  Em and I made an adventure out of going to pick up the cake at Clementine Bakery in Clinton Hill.  I attempted to go for a run, but there were too many stop lights and it was the first freezing day of the year. We shared a chocolate muffin once we got there and then found a local park.

In the evening, Matt and I got a sitter and had drinks at a former massage parlor that offered ‘happy endings’ that has now been turned into a cocktail bar. It’s called Barely Disfigured and has a cool vibe (and fabulous drinks) if you ever find yourself in Brooklyn.

We went to dinner at a new Mexican small plates restaurant in Gowanus called Claro. It’s no secret that modern Mexican and small plates are my two favorite types of restaurants, so this was absolutely perfect for my birthday dinner.  The mezcal drinks were amazing and the whole menu happened to be gluten free.  We ordered five things and they were all delish. Pictured above is a tuna tostada and, below, a crab empanada.

And of course, we had cake for dessert. Clementine’s carrot cake was a bit on the savory side, but the icing was super sweet and balanced out the cake perfectly (plus, they were generous with icing).

I’m in love with the bracelet Matt got me from Catbird Jewelry in Williamsburg.  It’s a very tiny chain and they actually weld it together on your wrist so that it fits perfectly and never needs to be taken off. I love how subtle it is!

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A couple of things I’m thinking about this year:

-I’m always working on being more present, and think I’ve improved on this just a little since I started staying home with Emerson. I’m hoping I can live in the present a bit more this year, especially since 33 is a reminder that I’m quickly getting old. (Not really, but kinda).

-Feeling settled – We’ve had a couple of years of unknowns (having Em, Matt job searching in multiple states, moving, wondering if/when we’d move to NC), so I’m looking forward to getting settled in Charlotte with no plans to move houses or cities any time soon.

-A professional or volunteer opportunity – I know I need to get involved in something outside of the house so that my life isn’t just diapers and toddler toys. I’m not sure what this might look like, but it will be in the back of my mind this coming year.

-Finances – This year was pretty terrible for our budget and we’ve had to dig into our savings a lot.  We knew this would happen when moving to NYC (we thought of it kinda like an opportunity for a year abroad). Still, I’m hoping we can get back on track with saving money and actually sticking to our budget.

-Mom friends – I need to meet some new people in Charlotte.  I’m a bit more introverted than I used to be and this involves actually making an effort.