Hi from quarantine land friends.
COVID Update
Like millions of Americans, we’ve been stuck in quarantine with COVID since Sunday. Mr. Hungry became symptomatic on Sunday, tested positive on a home test that night. He hasn’t been out of bed since (except to get checked out at urgent care.) Kal had major fatigue and a slight cough on Wednesday, his energy is back up, but a dry cough lingers. It’s bizarre because he doesn’t have any other typical cold symptoms like a snotty nose. The pediatrician said it’s reasonable to assume he has it. We only have one at-home test left, and you can’t get any more in the state of Arizona right now, so we’re saving it.
Kaiden took a couple of really long naps and had a few coughs, but otherwise seems okay. I’ve been feeling run down, but I couldn’t tell you if that’s from being the caretaker of a sick husband and two kids while trying to get some work done or if I have it too. If I start to get sick, I’ll take the test, but we are saving that last test for now.
At least I get to put our new slow juicer to work!
How about you, friends? Have you evaded Omicron, or are you going through it too?
Side note – I’m so thankful that we so far seem to have a mild illness even though Mr. Hungry was very sick he is improving, and I’m praying for those who need hospital care, vaccinated, boosted, or not.
2021 in Review Most Popular
I didn’t do an official, most popular round up this year, so I thought I’d share my ten highest traffic posts here:
- Chocolate Protein Mug Cake
- Oat Flour Banana Bread
- Savory Oat Flour Bread
- Oat Flour Banana Muffins
- Oat Flour Pumpkin Muffins
- Healthy Trader Joes Meal Plan and Shopping List
- One Pan Creamy Trader Joe’s Cauliflower Gnocchi & Sausage Skillet
- 35+ Healthy Trader Joe’s Recipes
- 1 Minute Peanut Butter Mug Cake
- Baby Meatloaf Muffins
It’s always so fun to go through and see what was the most popular! Sometimes these take off on Pinterest, sometimes they are SEO google wins, and sometimes they are shared by all of you! Have you guys tried one of these recipes? What was your favorite HH post of the year?
If I had to pick the recipe or post, I’m most proud of this year. It would be my oat flour blueberry scones or oat flour carrot cake. I was so happy with the way those turned out. I made them a ton! These posts got a lot of traffic last spring, and many of you told me how much you loved them.
2021 Word Of The Year Review: Strength
I had to look back to see my word of the year for 2021. 2020 I remember because it was my first word of the year, and it was ironically relationships, if you can believe that.
My word of the year last year was strength. I wrote, “I want physical and mental strength in my body. I want physical and mental strength in labor because I don’t want an epidural again (I had some complications last time). And I definitely want it post-partum with breastfeeding and sleepless nights. I want strength in my business, especially when I’m on maternity leave. I want strength in my marriage as we continue to navigate these crazy times together and welcome another son.”
After reading that, I had to smile.
- I was able to give birth to Kaiden unmedicated. I freaking did it, just barely, but I did it.
- Kaiden was able to nurse exclusively for five months with adequate weight gain, and then we added food and a 4-ounce supplement at night to make sure he was getting enough.
- Hungry Hobby’s traffic stayed level and even saw a little growth, despite maternity leave. Same for my overall income this year, I had my best year yet despite being on maternity leave.
- With a second child, I believe our marriage strengthened. As I expected, I found the tasks split more evenly since there is a kid for each set of hands. While this was a HUGE shake-up in terms of never having time to ourselves (thanks to KJ dropping his nap two months after KK’s arrival), we’ve become more of a team, and we communicate better than ever before.
My Word for 2022: Growth
I thought that maybe my word for this year would be productivity because I’m yearning to be productive after being pregnant and then having a newborn. But, that isn’t the right word because I have been productive. I grew a freaking human and then kept a toddler and baby alive. That is productive.
I think the word I’m looking for to describe my hopes for 2022 is growth. I want to see a real, measurable growth in Hungry Hobby’s metrics and my capabilities. Since May, when Kaiden was born, I’ve only posted less than ten new recipes. Yet, I feel the itch to get back in the kitchen and create more regularly. So, I’m setting the goal of 100 new HH recipes this year. Not for some arbitrary goal, but because I freaking love recipe development, cooking, and photography. I just need to prioritize it.
I’d also like to invest in myself in 2022, both professionally, spiritually, and physically. I want to see growth in my professional capabilities, relationship with God, and physical/athletic abilities. After being pregnant and then having a young baby, I’m starting on the foundation, and the only way is to go is up. I just have to prioritize myself and my goals. I thought the word should be “prioritize,” but growth feels more my truth. After a year of “surviving” (with strength but still), I want to thrive and grow instead of just making it by. As I said, this will take some prioritizing what’s most important to me, but I’m excited for 2022!
Do you do a word of the year? If you do please share!
Leave a Reply