Happy 2019!
I’ve been thinking a lot about my goals for this year, and two words keep popping into my head: growth and presence. I want to grow my blog and my baking and crafting skills, but I also want to be present in my everyday life.
To be honest, the year has gotten off to a rough start. If you follow me on Instagram then you probably know that one of my cats is very sick. At this moment it’s not looking great. One of the hardest parts is that he’s only 10 years old, and his vets don’t understand why he’s this sick. I won’t go into all of the details, but currently he’s not eating or drinking on his own. I know he’s getting the best possible care (I’m lucky that my sister is a vet), but we need him to make an effort.
Update: After a few more symptoms developed it became clear that our sweet Benji had cancer. We considered all of our options but when it came down to it he was suffering and there was nothing more we could do. We were forcing him to stay alive when he just didn’t have any strength left, and we had to let him go.
I gave Benji as much love as I possibly could. Now I want to be present for my husband and my other two fur babies. They are the most important part of my life, and I don’t want to take any of them for granted, now or in the future.
Even though it’s hard to focus on much else right now, I’m excited about growing this little space and sharing more recipes and craft tutorials with you. And some more cat pictures. 🙂
This feisty little thing is Clara, our youngest cat. She’s the first pet that my husband and I adopted together and she’ll be a year old in a few weeks. Our other cat is Abby, who is 10 years old like Benji. I adopted Abby and Benji, and now so has Ian. Clara loves to be held (and climb on shoulders), and Abby loves to snuggle.
Specific baking goals this year include learning how to make macarons and honing my cake decorating skills. I want to master striping and other piping techniques, and practice drip cakes.
Specific crafting goals include buying a Cricut Maker and exploring everything that it can do, and dreaming up fun holiday-related projects that you can do at home, with or without fancy equipment. Crafting and baking can both be intimidating, but I hope that I can make both feel accessible to you.
I’ve come a long way with food photography, but that’s another area I want to focus on this year. There’s still so much to learn, and I want to present my recipes and crafts in the best light possible. (Pun absolutely intended.)
Thank you so much for following along on my baking and crafting journey. I also can’t thank you enough for the love and support for our sweet Benji. Even though we lost him way too soon, I’m grateful for the many blessings in my life, including all of you!