APRIL 2021 FAVORITES & REFLECTION

Hi friends! April absolutely flew by and somehow it is already May! I want to start posting on the blog my favorites from each month and then do a little reflection at the end on something I did well and something I can improve on. I hope you enjoy this post and that the reflection inspires you in some way to maybe try it for yourself!

BOOKS

One of my goals I made for 2021 is to read one book a month, and each month a different genre! I absolutely love reading and knew I wanted to make it a priority this year.

I started off January with a finance book because ya girl needed some help with her spending. I read “Love your Life, Not Theirs” by Rachel Cruze on 7 money habits for living the life you want. February I read a historical fiction novel called “All the Light we Cannot See” by Anthony Doerr. In March I read an autobiography by Matthew McConaughey called “Greenlights.”

My April book of the month was a romance novel called “28 Summers” by Erin Hilderbrand. I absolutely loved it. It was the first novel I read by her, and it definitely won’t be the last. The story follows Mallory Blessing and Jake McCloud’s love affair for 28 summers. They met through Mallory’s brother and hit it off instantly. The soon become each other’s “Same Time Next Year,” where they meet up for Labor Day Weekend every year. As they get older, life gets more complicated and it gets harder to make their weekend happen, but through it all their love remains. This is a captivating, page-turning story of a beautiful secret love affair, life and loss.

BRAND

My favorite brand from April would have to be Set Active. I have been OBSESSED with this brand for a while now. Their active wear is unique in both color and style and it is super flattering!

They recently partnered with Madelyn Cline (from Outer Banks!! Watch this show if you haven’t!) and she created her own line of beautiful pieces with fun colors. I got my hands on the purple set and it is SO COMFY. It’s sold out unfortunately, but they still have a lot of other cute pieces on their site and it is reasonably priced compared to some other fitness clothing brands!

PODCAST

Okay so I’ve been super into podcasts lately. I love to throw one on while I’m cleaning & sterilizing Blakely’s bottles (this actually can take up to 45 minutes no joke), on a walk in the park, or driving in the car. My go to as of recently is The Skinny Confidential podcast. I have been following the podcast for a while now, but recently have been listening to almost every single episode and wanting more!

The Skinny Confidential podcast is hosted by entrepreneurs Lauryn Evarts Bosstick and Michael Bosstick. They share tips about everything from health and wellness to beauty to parenting to business. They have interesting conversational interviews with doctors, celebrities, entrepreneurs and experts.

One of my favorite things about this podcast is I ALWAYS take something away from each episode I listen to. I always learn something I didn’t know before or see something through a different perspective. It truly feels like the listener is a part of the conversation with how honest, genuine, and conversational the podcast is. Go check it out if you are looking for a new podcast!!!

FAVE LIFE HACK

So as you read under my book fave, I have a bad habit of spending/shopping. I see something and I instantly want it… so I get it. WELL, no more full price for me. My life hack for April is to become an AVID user of Poshmark, Curtsy, and Depop. I found that I could expand my search for cute name brand clothing at more affordable prices.

These are sites where you can both BUY and SELL your lightly used clothing! I have used Curtsy since I started college, and have earned over $1,200 just from selling things in my closet I don’t wear anymore. I recently joined Poshmark and Depop when I was breastfeeding and would scroll through my favorite brands while I breastfed in the middle of the night. Waking up at 3am wasn’t so bad when I had this to look forward to.

I have found some serious steals on here. I got my white graduation dress that was originally from Revolve for over $80 for $30. I found a black Lululemon zip up jacket that was originally over $115 for $40! The list goes on and on…

SO the next time you’re looking for a cute new fit on your fave website, check one of these apps first because someone might be selling it for cheaper! 🙂

Something I did well:

I was SPONTANEOUS. I usually am the type of person to overthink a lot of things, which usually causes me to not do more than I would if I didn’t overthink. Does that make sense? Well, I put my fear and thought aside, and I did something super spontaneous.

I drove 8 hours to Tampa, Florida by myself to surprise my friends for the weekend. Something that has been super challenging throughout my pregnancy and having a baby so young is feeling left out. This year would have been my senior year of college and so all of my friends are living it up (as they should)! It’s easy to get into the “woe is me” mindset and throw myself a pity part (as I have), but I always come back to my bigger purpose… being a mama to Blakely.

Anyway, I felt like I was missing out on a lot of memories and trips because of the pandemic, I was postpartum and then I moved states. My friends planned a trip to Tampa for a long weekend and I originally thought I couldn’t go because of the baby. It was a Thursday night and I was seeing my friend’s Snapchat and Instagram stories complaining to Casey how I wished I was there.

And he goes, “Wait Courtney, why don’t you go? Wake up super early tomorrow morning and just go. I’ll watch Blakely for the weekend. You need this.”

I thought about it for a second. Then I stopped myself because I started to think of a million excuses of why I couldn’t go. I packed my bag, took a shower, went to bed early, and got up at 5a.m. and drove all the way to Tampa.

And the best part was that my friends had NO IDEA I was coming. I coordinated with one of their dad’s and boyfriends who were there to make it a complete surprise. I was so awesome and I’m so thankful I went and I am thankful for Casey’s extra push to convince me to just do it.

Something I can improve on: 

My mindset and comparison. I don’t know if this is normal post baby, but I often find myself comparing my new self and body to my old self and body. When I wore a bikini for the first time the other weekend, I felt an insecurity I haven’t felt since high school. I noticed that I was picking myself apart. This was mentally frustrating because I knew deep down that I am beautiful and I should give myself grace for just having a baby, but the negative thoughts still rolled in.

When I want to go to bed at 9 every night because I’m physically and mentally exhausted, my mind told me “you’re not the fun Courtney you used to be.” When I put on that bikini for the first time, my mind told me “you’re body isn’t as fit and beautiful as it used to be.” I know my mind is a liar, but it’s still hard to hear.

This is something I know I can improve on with time. I am doing tangible things like positive affirmations about my body, journaling about my insecurity to get to the root of the feelings, and discussing it with Casey and some friends who all reassure me to give myself grace.

Let me know if any of you relate to this feeling as it’s always nice to be reminded I’m not alone!! I hope you guys enjoyed this blog post, and let me know of any more favorites or reflections you’d like me to include for May 🙂

Stay Well,

Courtney