The year has been going by too fast. Maybe if I sit and consider what’s happened each month, I’ll be able to process these experiences rather than having an ephemeral blur of memories.

I turned 38 at the beginning of July. It’s not a milestone birthday, and I’ve honestly passed all the “fun” milestone birthdays – now each one will remind me that aging is inevitable. But I’m trying to embrace getting to know myself more with each passing year and feeling more comfortable in my skin. I like myself more now at 38, even with the wrinkles and graying hair, than I did when I was in my baby-faced early 20s.

I spent a pretty quiet birthday working, eating takeout with Husband, and watching Netflix.

The following week, Husband and I took a quick trip to Amsterdam.

We had a wonderful time! It’s such a vibrant, charming city. We spent a lot of time walking, dodging bikes, and visiting museums. I’ll write a blog post about it at some point.

Once we returned from Amsterdam, crunch time! August is the busiest month of the year, and I have deadlines that will take me through the end of September. So while (most) of my traveling is done for now, I’ve been enjoying the quieter pleasures of home:

Writing this blog post a month behind is kind of weird, because I actually haven’t seen the kittens in weeks (womp) BUT they were still living under our deck in July. Seeing their sweet little faces always brings me so much joy.

My tomato plants exploded. I love being able to walk outside into the backyard and pick fresh tomatoes for a pasta lunch or to add to my salad.

The best part of returning home from vacation is hanging out with this little chicken. Every day he heads into my office and lays in his sunny spot to start his day.

I am so terribly behind on baby blankets. I had several friends with babies born during the pandemic and they never got blankets. I decided to start with my friend who was pregnant this year. Her baby was born in May, but I should be finishing the blanket this month (this blanket will be lovingly washed and blocked before sending to its new home).

So many books to read! I bought a book of short stories at a bookstore in Amsterdam. I’ve been wanting to read Crying in H Mart for a long time – and I just realized a couple of months ago that Michelle Zauner is the lead singer of Japanese Breakfast! Ahhh! The book was so heartbreaking and she’s a really good writer. I read it in a couple of days and listened to a lot of her music after reading the book.

I hope July treated you well, and maybe I won’t wait until the end of September to write about my August.