January truly felt like the longest month, and while I had the feeling that I basically didn’t do anything, I realised when I looked at my “One Line a Day” journal that it was actually incredibly busy! I hope this first month of 2023 was amazing for you. It was definitely all ups and downs for me! Anyway, here’s what I’ve been up to!
My favourite things about this month:
- Going back to a routine: after some time away from my place here in Brussels, I came back home and was delighted to go back to the routine I had found before the holidays, and while I loved spending time with family, going back to my little life in Belgium’s capital felt great. My new year’s goals include some changes in my routine and I’m slowly easing into it, taking my time to find my bearings first!
- Playing board games: from a board game night with my boyfriend’s friends to some two-player-games I played with my boyfriend, I have played many more board games this month than usual! I really love playing board games even though I don’t have a lot, so it felt like such a nice way to enjoy quality time with friends! If you have any recommendations, let me know!
- Sorting and organising: well, it’s not so much the process of going through everything that I have accumulated over the years that I love, but the result. My “teenage” room back at my mum’s place had to be completely cleared, so I took the opportunity to sort everything out, and while it was quite stressful at times, I felt so much better afterwards!
- Mamma Mia musical: my mum got me and my boyfriend tickets to see the Mamma Mia musical for Christmas, and we went at the end of the month to see this show that was adapted from the very famous movie. Being a huge fan of the film, I was very excited to check it out, especially since it had been adapted for a French-speaking Belgian audience. The show was really amazing, the actors/singers/dancers were fantastic and the songs, even though they had been translated to French, kept the same meaning and catchy-ness as the original Abba ones. We had a wonderful time, and it was such a fun experience!
My latest trips and adventures
- A first week in the South of France: I spent the first week of the year in Provence, at my mum’s place, and it felt like a refreshing break from the busy and polluted air of Brussels. We didn’t do much, but just reading by the fireplace or going on walks on the hill nearby to get wood seemed like the perfect way to start the year slowly.
- Visiting the Château La Coste: in the South of France, this “wine estate” is a huge property with beautiful vineyards located in the heart of Provence. It is originally an organic winery, but it slowly became more of an art centre, with many sculptures scattered around the hills and vineyards. I went there with my mum and loved it! It made for such an enjoyable walk and we saw so many amazing artworks!
- IKEA trips: much less sophisticated than the above-mentioned adventure, I have been to Ikea several times this month, and I loved it just as I usually do ahah! I don’t know why but I just find it so much fun to walk around the shop, try all the sofas and beds, and see all the possibilities for décor!
Hobbies and distractions:
- Reading: this month has not been the best in terms of reading, even though I am currently reading four books at the same time – I thought this would mean that I would finish at least one, but that has not been the case ahah! While I do enjoy all of them, I found it hard to take the time with so many busy things going on, so hopefully I’ll be able to finish them all in February!
- Movies: I feel like I watched a lot more movies than I usually do this month. Two of my favourites were Ennio, a movie/documentary that tells the life of the famous Italian composer Ennio Morricone, and The Swimmers, that talks about the true story of two swimmers that dream of going to the Olympics but have to escape the war in their home country. If you haven’t seen those movie, I highly recommend them!
- Blogging: this month, for the first time in several months, I didn’t manage to publish a post on Sunday and I found it quite hard to go back to my blogging routine with many stressful things going on, but hopefully I’ll manage to go back to some more balance in February and for the rest of the year!
General thoughts:
January had its load of highs and lows, starting with some bad pretty bad news and ending on quite a stressful note, but it was also a month of preparing for what’s to come, for some exciting projects and hopefully a great year ahead. It was also a month of fun nights with friends, coffee dates, hot chocolate and peaceful evenings at home, that were perfect to compensate for the cold weather of the season.
Looking forward to:
- Big projects to come: I have some amazing things planned for the next few months in my personal life, and while for now I mostly see the stressful part of it, I can’t wait for everything to fall nicely into place to allow me to relax a bit more!
- A more balanced routine: I hope I can go back to a nice routine before the end of February, especially regarding blogging, reading and exercising!
How was January for you? What are you looking forward to?
In case you missed it this month:
My little guide to seeing the Northern Lights in Iceland
– 2022 Review – A Bucket List Year
– For 2023 adopt a sea turtle nest
Sunny Days with Juliette 
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