January Monthly Musings / From The Inspired Abode
We hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season & is having a great 2021 so far! Last year was definitely different, but it allowed us to step back & realize what’s most important to us – time with loved ones, time for ourselves & enjoying even the smallest moments of life.
It’s been awhile since we last shared an update & so we have big news!! Kelcy got engaged at the beginning of November! She & her now fiancé had a last-minute trip planned to Cabo & after a private dinner on the beach, he got down on one knee & she said yes! They had the rest of the weekend to celebrate their engagement with plenty of margaritas by the pool, chilaquiles & bloody mary’s for breakfast, and such good food/drinks/entertainment at the all-inclusive Marquis Los Cabos (highly recommend!). We couldn’t be more thrilled to be each other’s MOHs & start planning!
Take a look below to see what we’ve been loving the past few months & what we’re looking forward to – and please do share your own monthly musings with us in the comments!
Credits (clockwise from top): Fashionable Hostess; The Inspired Abode; Tulip & Sage; ShopStyle; One Kindesign; Bataille Living
WHAT WE’RE WATCHING…
This feels like old news now, but if you haven’t watched The Undoing on HBO Max yet, get ready to spend the next six hours of your life doing so. We like to think of it as a New York City version of Big Little Lies. Plus, putting together all of the theories you’ll come up with throughout are almost as much fun as watching the show.
Our fiancés (love that we can both say that now!) also got us to watch The Boys & we were actually surprised how much we got into it! There are two seasons on Prime & it basically tells the story of what life would be like if superhero movie stars à la X-Men were real. Side note: watching Jack Quaid also reminded us of the good old days when Dennis Quaid & Meg Ryan were America’s sweetheart couple.
Just like everyone on your Instagram story feed, we also hopped aboard the Schitt’s Creek bandwagon. Our mom had been telling us to watch it for years & we finally did. It’s so funny! We loved Catherine O’Hara & Eugene Levy in Best in Show, so it’s awesome to see them team up again (along with Eugene’s son in real life, Dan) in Schitt’s Creek.
WHAT WE’RE LISTENING TO…
We’ve been building out our Spotify playlists since we recently bought a SONOS Move over Black Friday & it’s been a lot of fun finding new music & adding to our playlist collections. Our obsession continues with our Dinner Party Playlist that we made for Brooke’s engagement party & the list has been growing ever since. For some feel-good soulful tunes, we love our Good for the Soul playlist & have also been loving some of Spotify’s curated playlists: Yacht Rock for smooth classics to listen to when you don’t know what else to play, Peaceful Piano for when you really need to focus while working from home, and Jazzy Dinner for feeling jazzy while cooking dinner.
WHAT WE’RE READING…
Our November book club read was A Burning by Megha Majumdar & we enjoyed it, although the story itself is quite depressing. It tells the story of a woman who experienced the change of a lifetime after being in the wrong place at the wrong time in tandem with a social media post that looks incredibly incriminating out of context.
Our December book was One Day in December by Josie Silver and oh my gosh is it just the perfect escape into a London-based love story that spans ten years. We don’t want to give too much away, but if you’re a fan of movies like The Holiday and Love Actually, you’ll love this book. It’s not only a joy to read because of how heartwarming it is, but it’s one of just a few books we’ve read that feel more like watching a movie than reading a book.
WHAT WE’RE EATING & DRINKING…
As you probably have heard, California is still under a stay-at-home order due to the increased number of cases, so we’ve been doing even more cooking than normal! We’ve also been trying to eat better – more veggies, smaller portions, gut health-conscious foods & drinks – just because & also because we have weddings approaching.
Kelcy has been loving having soups and chilis for lunch – Brocc Your Body’s Sweet Potato Quinoa Chili recipe she featured on her Instagram is definitely a favorite that’s filling & delicious. We also recently made the Potato Cauliflower Soup from the Healthyish cookbook & it was SO good and perfect for meal-planning four lunches for two people. In fact, we made that one two weeks in a row because it really hit the spot.
Brooke has been loving a tomato soup & Brie grilled cheese recipe from Half Baked Harvest’s Super Simple cookbook for a part-healthy, part-cheat meal & also our go-to lunch sandwich. She’s also been adopting more of a mediterranean lifestyle after learning about the Blue Zones, and is taking more walks throughout the day while also enjoying delicious mediterranean food. Two favorites are Half Baked Harvest’s cauliflower shawarma with halloumi & a simple “California-style” bowl with homemade tzatziki from the Healthyish cookbook.
WHAT WE’VE BEEN BUYING…
We’ve dubbed 2021 our year of prioritizing haircare. A combo of being sick of having dry hair with tons of breakage & wanting to have long, full hair without extensions for our upcoming weddings, we’re doing our best to make our hair as healthy as possible. Since we both work from home, it’s been easy to allow our hair to air dry 99% of the time, but that wasn’t enough. Our hair stylist recommended doing a hair mask at least once a week to help foster moisture! We love Briogeo’s Don’t Despair, Repair hair mask. It’s full of super clean ingredients & we’ve noticed such a difference already. We also love the founder, Nancy Twine’s story & loved listening to her on the How I Built This & Second Life podcasts.
On the house front, we’ve been making a LOT of purchases. We’re anxiously anticipating the Carmel Sideboard from France & Son (also available at Pottery Barn – it’s called the “Dolores” Cane Buffet there). It was a Black Friday purchase that Kelcy has been wanting for years, and it should (hopefully) arrive next month. It was originally estimated for a January arrival, but everyone seems to be dealing with the same furniture delays due to COVID… It will be well worth the wait!
WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FORWARD TO…
We have SO much to look forward to not only this month, but also this year! Kelcy is heading to Minnesota to spend some quality time with her fiancé’s family – first time since a year ago this time last year – this weekend & while weird to travel right now, we believe it can be done safely as long as you get tested before, stay careful while visiting, and quarantine/get tested once you’re back home. A Costa Rica trip is also on the horizon after getting postponed time & time again, so we’re excited to share more details once that actually happens!
Besides that, we’re just so excited to be planning our weddings together. Brooke & her fiancé picked a venue and a date – so now is the time for all of the fun stuff!
We’d love to know what you’ve enjoyed watching, listening to, eating, drinking & what you’ve been eyeing and are looking forward to. Let us know in the comments section or send us a DM on Instagram!
Don’t forget to follow us on Pinterest to see what inspires us daily! Also, be sure to check out our e-design packages if you’re looking to update any rooms in your home for the new year!