Bits & Bobs

as my 5yo says

Wallace & Gromit, the source of Luke’s affinity for “bits & bobs.”

Truth be told, I’m feeling somewhat uninspired today (and the last few days). I don’t have anything particularly quippy or witty or fun to share, but I am doing my best to create some form of routine for myself during this time of transition and as such, have been trying to post/write here ~2x a week.

I find long weekends to be longgg with small children. Plus, my husband works every Saturday and many holidays — he’s in the grocery business, so holidays are prime time! This leaves me with a good deal of solo parenting overstimulation on long weekends, in contrast to others who may have extra time to relax, have family time, or just generally enjoy themselves.

Add in several weeks of uncertainty and an open schedule, and this Type A, Virgo rising has not been feeling particularly inspired as of late. But, there are a few things I’ve been thinking about, digesting, and sitting with. Sharing them in no particular order, here:

• Ben Christensen’s video of his daughter’s dance team dancing in the desert. I grew up dancing and found so much power in learning how to move my body in a creative way. I love seeing these pre-teen girls feeling empowered in their bodies, coming together as a group, and having FUN. More dancing like this please, especially for young girls.

  _benchristensen

  

  A post shared by @_benchristensen

• Pia Baroncini
  ’s very raw and open conversation about navigating her beautiful daughter Carmela’s autism diagnosis on her Everything is the Best podcast. Pia, what a lucky girl Carmela is to have you as her mom!

• I’ve been listening to Marrying the Ketchups via my Libby app. It came out a few years ago and takes place in Chicago in 2016 after Trump’s first presidency win. It’s not my favorite, but it’s enjoyable and I love a book that’s told from multiple perspectives. It’s fun, beach-ish read, while thought provoking at the same time. (Ps. If you don’t use Libby to virtually “check out” books and audiobooks from your library, what are you doing?!)

• My friend Elin’s Substack post this week. With our family having found ourselves somewhat unexpectedly on one income, at least for now, it was really interesting to hear how Elin thinks about budgeting in a realistic, sustainable, and fun way! Budgeting doesn’t have to feel restrictive — it can feel empowering. Thank you, Elin, for reminding me of that!

• This stack by

  Carmen Van Kerckhove
  on the future of work in a world of AI and the importance of finding an identity outside of your work. Similarly, I’ve also been reading The Power Pause by
  Neha Ruch
  to help me answer the inevitable, “So what do you do?” this summer.

• I shared this sentiment on here on Sunday and it seemed to resonate. Somehow, some way, I managed to come out on the other side of the weekend without buying anything. This is not to brag — I thought about it many times, I just got overwhelmed with my kids’ demands and gave up!

  

  Such a predicament.

• My husband and I binged The Four Seasons on Netflix this past week and both enjoyed it. I felt like it was a true testament to the saying “marriage takes work” and also just a reminder that we’re all human. We also rented The Ballad of Wallis Island — an endearing feel-good movie and who doesn’t love Carey Mulligan? Recommend. And, I’ve been lovinggg Your Friends & Neighbors. Jon Hamm and Amanda Peet are perfection. I’m going to be sad after this week’s season finale.

• A lame thing taking up much of my current brain power: my daughter’s nap schedule. I’ve been thinking about this A LOT because…she’s not doing it lol. Maybe it’s time to switch from two naps down to one?

Good thing she’s cute!!

• As a naturally anxious person, I’ve been working to channel the wise advise a close friend recently gave me: “Trust is the opposite of anxiety.”

• The power of community and how grateful I am for mine, both in-person and virtually! My friend and former co-worker Courtney Wall and I have been talking about how post-layoff, we’ve both sought to create more community for ourselves by expanding digitally: her with dabbling more on Instagram, me with Substack. (Ps. If you’re looking for an amazing creative who’s open for projects, look no further than Courtney — I’ve linked her website above!)

court_creates

A post shared by @court_creates

Alright! I did it! A Substack post for you, but also for me.

Oh and I am very excited for this week’s girl crush. Hint: She’s a Substack and Internet darling + kind, cool girl with a knack for bringing people together. You won’t want to miss it ;)

See ya Thursday.

xx Ariane