Life Lately | Galentine's Day, Cousins, + Me Time

Galentine's Day + Always and Forever

Alexa and I had our monthly bestie date this past Saturday and coincidentally, it happened to fall on Galentine's Day! We had to keep it on the shorter side since it was freezing out and because I had to take my dad to get his second vaccine shot in the afternoon (so relieved!). But it was still a lot of fun! We met up early to grab breakfast at Angelina and ate in Bryant Park so we could talk and watch the ice skaters. From there we went to Barnes & Noble to roam the aisles (and warm up!) and somehow I ended up walking out with 6 books. Granted, most of my book shopping money goes toward our hangouts so I wasn't too surprised. Then we saved the best for last and headed to Kinokuniya Books. I really do love that bookstore! We always end up buying a mix of manga, books, stationery, and kitschy little things. 

But that technically wasn't the end of my Galentine's Day. Later that night, Alexa, Kristin and I had a virtual movie night! We had to keep up with our tradition of watching To All the Boys movies together and even though we had to be apart for it, I had a great time watching it with them. I had snacks on the ready and we all hit "play" at the same time. We just texted all our thoughts and feelings and let me tell you, we had a lot of them. Always & Forever was simply perfect! We cried, laughed, and swooned. I was not prepared for all the tears, nostalgia, and just overall cuteness! I mean this was peak Lara Jean and Peter K and I loved every moment of it. In fact, I ended up rewatching all three movies the next day because I just wanted to relive it.

Cousins

My cousins and I had a much-needed hangout! Even though we do lunches together with our parents regularly, it's nice to hang out when it's just us and we can talk a bit more freely. Two Saturdays ago, they called me up asking if I'd want to go to the mall and I could not get ready fast enough. I actually don't mind the mall since we all have to wear masks and if you go right when it opens, there's hardly anyone around -- which is exactly what we did. I do miss shopping in person and just walking around. And after the mall, we weren't quite ready for our day to be done so we went to the Asian supermarket (for groceries and bubble tea) and Paris Baguette to bring home snacks. So much of my day is planned and/or routine these days that it was nice to do something so impromptu! Plus I'll take any extra time with baby Ian! I got to see him again on Valentine's Day too since my youngest cousin, aunt, and uncle were babysitting him. We had lunch and I didn't waste anytime snuggling with my nephew, playing with him, and eventually putting him down for a nap. 

Me Time

I know this sounds crazy, but one of the best things about the three day weekend was getting some me time yesterday! So much of my week is dedicated to work and dreading the next day but then the weekend goes by so fast that between the fun stuff and the adulting (aka the never-ending cleaning), that I sometimes feel like I don't have time to slow down and take a breather. Granted, yesterday still went by too fast but it was the recharge I needed. I had a long, deep sleep and when I woke up, I stayed in bed playing Animal Crossing and just really let myself be lazy all morning. After that, since I finally dug out my car after two weeks of letting it sit there (I hate shoveling), I went to Whole Foods because my coworker told me they sold Levain cookies and Van Leeuwen ice cream! I couldn't resist. Then the rest of my day was spent at home (ok, I did do some cleaning but I didn't mind it) and watching Heartland, a horse show that I'm loving. 

My next three-day weekend cannot come soon enough. Maybe I should take a random day off next month to make that happen? (I think I will.)

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