Monthly review – February 2023

This review is coming a bit later than usual but February was truly a whirlwind, and these past few days have probably been the most intense in a while. I have fallen a bit behind when it comes to blogging so I hope I’ll manage to catch up a bit in the next few days!

My favourite things about this month

  • Brunches and pancakes: it was Pancake day at the beginning of February and I took the opportunity to, well, eat pancakes – or rather “crêpes”, as we call them in French (they are thinner than the American-style pancakes). I also went brunching with some friends in a nice place in Brussels called Café Winok that served delicious vegan and non-vegan crêpes. I also went out for brunch with my boyfriend at the very cute POZ, that my sister and her boyfriend recommended. The food was great but we did have to queue for quite a while!
  • Valentine’s surprise: even though we usually do not go big for Valentine’s with my boyfriend, this year was a special one as we got the keys for our new flat on 14th February, and he surprised me with a beautiful candle-lit picnic at sunset, and an amazingly funny hedgehog cake “fail”, as I have been obsessed with those lately (they just make me laugh so much!) – if you don’t know what I mean, just Google it ahah! And yes, I know, he’s just the best 🥰
  • Moving out! You might have guessed from the previous point, but I’ll be moving out and in with my boyfriend, so February was a month of packing and leaving the beautiful flat I had. I’ll be living at my boyfriend’s place for some time, and then, once our flat is ready, we’ll move in together officially!

My latest trips and adventures

  • Day trip to De Haan: my mum came to visit me and help me with all the moving and packing, so, since she came with the car, we took the opportunity to go to De Haan, a cute little town by the Belgian coast, with beautiful little houses and a beautiful beachfront. The wind was strong and the sky cloudy but it was so nice to be by the sea!
  • An afternoon in Leuven: still with my mum, we went to the town of Leuven not too far from Brussels. It has beautiful winding cobbled streets and a stunning architecture, plus some really nice and cute shops, so it’s definitely worth a visit if you’re one day in the area!

Hobbies and distractions

  • Movies: I do not watch a lot of movies in general, but in February I finally watched the award-winning Italian movie called The Great Beauty, that I had been meaning to watch for a long time. I really enjoyed it, though it was really not what I expected! I also watched Titanic at the cinema for the very first time ever, and I can finally understand why it is so famous!
  • Blogging: this month was not the best blog-wise, as I have not been very active, but I hope things will improve in March. I have also changed my WordPress theme and it has been a bit of a rollercoaster of emotions, as I have been very frustrated in trying to make the new way of customising the blog work. I have settled for something very simple at the moment but I hope I’ll manage to change it up a bit in the next few weeks!

General thoughts

This month was probably the busiest month in a long time, as I had to prepare everything to move out of my flat. But it was also somewhat of a pivotal month as it really feels like the end of a season of my life, both from a professional and personal point of view. While things are not settled yet, I can’t wait to see what the future brings!

Looking forward to…

  • Some quieter days: after this very intense month of February, I’m very excited to have quieter days ahead of me to catch up on everything that I couldn’t do while I was busy packing (like reading and blogging!)
  • Spring days: while I hope spring will not come too soon as all of my lighter clothes are all packed away, I do look forward to sunnier days and brighter mornings!
  • April: it will be the month where I will (hopefully) officially move into my new flat with my boyfriend, and I can’t wait for us to have our home!

How was February for you? What are you looking forward to?



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Responses to “Monthly review – February 2023”

  1. Rebecca Avatar

    February sounded like a hectic month! Moving is always a big change in one’s life, but it ought to be a good one for you, as you’ll be moving in with the person you love! My February was also hectic with a bunch of job interviews (and admittedly, some massive anxiety), but also plenty of good food and time spent with my partner and my friends– I had a wonderful Valentine’s Day dinner with my partner, too (although not with a beautiful sunset like yours)! I hope the springtime brings more peace and calm for you, Juliette!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Juliette Avatar

      Thanks a lot Rebecca! I hope those interview went well and I wish you a great month of March!

      Liked by 1 person

  2. leightontravels Avatar

    Thanks for sharing your February with us Juliette. I’m impressed by your Valentine’s Day celebrations, which puts us to shame ha ha. We did…. absolutely nothing out of the ordinary. We haven’t watched a movie in nearly a month but we did recently cross off a couple of short TV shows: ‘Detectorists’ and ‘Happy Valley’. Both pretty solid. I used to live in Leuven…. for several years in fact back in 2005-2006

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Juliette Avatar

      Ahahah, we usually don’t do much either, but it was a special one as we got the keys to the new appartment! I didn’t know you used to live in Leuven! How amazing! Thanks for stopping by and have a great month of March!

      Liked by 1 person

  3. ourcrossings Avatar

    I had to Google Hedgehog Cake fail – some of them are hilariously funny and some of them are so creepy, they might give you nightmares. I didn’t know that after it was first aired 25 years ago, they are showing Titanic at the cinema again. We actually watched it last night on Netflix. I’ve seen it a few times and didn’t plan on watching it once more, but yesterday I read an article about the reopening of the Titanic Museum in Belfast and how they managed to get a good few new artefacts from the ship to put on display and it got me in the mood for the movie. I have to say that James Cameron’s film was, at the time, an undeniable achievement. The scale and accuracy of the titular ship were mind-blowing to audiences at the time, and its mix of practical and computer-animated effects was revolutionary in 1997. Thanks for sharing and have a good day 🙂 Aiva xx

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Juliette Avatar

      Ahahah, yes, some hedgehog cakes are very creepy – which kinda makes them funny too 😁 as for Titanic, they made this version in 3D so it was aired in cinemas, which was the perfect opportunity for me to go! While the 3D was not amazing, seeing the movie on a huge screen was fantastic and I’m really glad I finally saw it! The museum in Belfast must be so interesting! Have a wonderful day!

      Liked by 1 person

  4. Lyssy In The City Avatar

    Busy month for you! That is so exciting to be moving into a new flat. The moving and packing is always hard, but so worth it! I’m looking forward to spring too 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Juliette Avatar

      Thanks a lot! I’m definitely looking forward to the decorating part of having the new flat, rather than taking care of all of the works!

      Like

  5. Travels Through My Lens Avatar

    I got a chuckle out of Hedgehog Cake Fail; so entertaining! You had a busy month; I hope April settles down for you. Our February was lovely; our daughter and son-in-law came to France and we had a great time together. Thanks for sharing, Juliette, and I hope your move goes smoothly!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Juliette Avatar

      March is already a bit less hectic than February was, so it’s already an improvement! I just read your post about your daughter and son-in-law visiting you last month – how great that you got to see them! Thanks for reading and have a lovely month!

      Liked by 1 person

  6. Pooja G Avatar

    Changing your theme on WordPress is such a mission so I understand your frustration. Glad you had a fun month and all the best with moving in with your bf, I’m sure you two will have a great time living together!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Juliette Avatar

      Oh yes, that was such a stressful day, and I still haven’t managed to have exactly the appearance that I want for my blog but I’m getting there! Thanks for stopping by and have a great month!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Pooja G Avatar

        Yes, it takes time but I’m sure you’ll get there. You’re welcome and you too!

        Liked by 1 person

  7. Lookoom Avatar

    Moving to a new place is certainly structuring for one’s life, one remembers events according to where one lived them. And packing is a good opportunity to revisit everything that was left in a drawer and sometimes forgotten for real. To keep, to throw away, too often this question to be settled. All the best!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Juliette Avatar

      Thank you! Indeed I’ve had to sort out a lot of stuff to avoid bringing unnecessary clutter to the new appartment! It’s a great feeling once you’ve accomplished it, but the task itself is not so fun!

      Liked by 1 person

  8. Bama Avatar

    Moving to a new place is both exciting and exhausting. I can imagine how hectic you must have been the past few weeks! Now you have days and weeks and many years ahead in the new apartment to be filled with great memories.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Juliette Avatar

      Yes, you are absolutely right, and I can’t wait for exactly this! I hope you had a lovely February!

      Liked by 1 person

  9. Lashaan Balasingam @ Roars and Echoes Avatar

    You should really avoid putting too much pressure on yourself for the upcoming days! Especially with how chaotic the moving situation is. Focus on those things and then on breathing and you’re sure to enjoy everything you do achieve in March! 😀 Glad you guys finally went to POZ though! I still remember our visit there and it was such a cozy experience and some delicious/original twists to pancakes! 😀

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Juliette Avatar

      Absolutely! I actually had a few days off of work where I could relax a bit, so that was great after those hectic weeks! And thanks for recommending POZ to us! The food was really amazing! 😁

      Like

  10. travelling_han Avatar

    Aww your boyfriend is too cute 🙂 I’m also really looking forward to longer days and a bit of sunshine, roll on Spring 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Juliette Avatar

      He really is! 🥰 I also can’t wait for spring to come! I feel like it’s been ages!

      Like

  11. Srishty Avatar

    all the best for the new beginning! ❤️ i believe it would bring new and amazing things. also De Haan sounds lovely 😃

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Juliette Avatar

      Thank you !!

      Like

  12. Stuart Danker Avatar

    Oh my, crepes are wonderful. Even next level are the crepe cakes, where they’re just layers of crepes over each other, lol.

    And I totally get you on that changing theme thing. I played around with a second website for a bit, and for such a minimal design, I took two entire days to get it just right. Gah.

    p.s. speaking of movies, have you been following The Last Of Us series?

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Juliette Avatar

      Oh, I think I had a crepe cake in Russia and it was amazing! I should try making one ahah!
      Yes, I was expecting something quite easy and manageable when I changed the theme, but I’ve been working on it for weeks (granted, not all day every day) and it’s still not how I would like it, but I’m getting there!

      No, I haven’t seen the Last of Us but I’ve heard so much about it so I really want to give it a try!!

      Like

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