TGIF: Things I Like Right Now (December)

Hello and happy Friday, patrons! I hope you're all doing as best you can going into what looks like a beautiful weekend here in LA. I'm in the bizarre liminal space of pre-surgery time, where there's nothing pressing going on (phfew!) and all I really have to do is stay healthy, pass the time, and remind myself that this in fact real life and not a dream. Check, check, check. So far, so good! I realize it's been a second since we listed some likable things so why not throw some out there today. Here are a few things I like, some of which might make fun gift ideas too!

2024 Many Moons Lunar Calendar: A friend of mine sent me an amazing write up about what to expect from a recent new moon back in November and it was so beautifully written I immediately responded "what book is that from????" Turns out it was from the 2023 Many Moons Lunar Planner. CLICK CLICK CLICK. And just like that my 2024 Many Moons Lunar Planner was purchased. This planner is gooorgeous and is full of astrological goodies all year long. Here's a little snippet from their site:

Channel the Moon's magic with every Moon phase and lunar sign for 2024, alongside gentle reminders and prompts that pertain to each lunar phase. The Many Moons Lunar Planner also includes every major astrological transit, along with an in-depth 2024 astrological overview!

I recently had an incredible birth chart reading with an amazing astrologer (a sweet, early Christmas gift from Elliott) and one of the things he encouraged me to do next year was to connect with the moon and explore/nurture the "luna" energy (luna...looney...looney bin...looney tunes, it's all connected). I know that might sound whacky, but it made sense in the scheme of the reading. Anyway, this planner felt like a great start. Literally, as we start into 2024. It could also make a great gift if you have any astrology-minded friends or family members.

Personalized Wire Stocking Name Tags: Look how freaking cute these personalized wire name tags are on our stockings!!! Sorry for screaming, I just think they're so damn cute. I don't know how, but somehow I came across these on Amazon during one of my I'm-chained-to-the-couch-so-I'm-gonna-take-out-my-anxiety-on-my-laptop-by-shopping-for-an-overwhelming-amount-of-Christmas-shit benders. If you're crafty you could probably make these yourself, but they're not too expensive and they showed up pretty quickly and in great condition. 10 outta 10, unique, elegant, and CUTE AS SHIT.

Rubbermaid Tupperware: If I needed a sign that I'm in my late 30s here it is. Recommending tupperware to my internet friends. Hear me out, tupperware is not sexy. But, somehow, this tupperware is. Look, I don't decide these things, I can just appreciate these things. I initially bought these at Target and brought them home and liked them so much I ordered more on Amazon. Again, I don't know exactly what it is, but it's the best tupperware I've used in a while. It's sturdy, it doesn't get a weird film on it if you put a red pasta sauce in it, and the side handles are so much more secure, in my opinion, than the normal press tops. I can't believe I have this strong of an opinion about tupperware but here we are!

EyeBuyDirect Frames with Blue Light Filtering Lenses: You might have seen these in recent videos, but these are my recent favorite blue blocker glasses. I got them on sale during Black Friday and I will say, in terms of blue blockers, they're not exactly cheap when they're not on sale. But, I love the quality of EyeBuyDirect frames, and these have been wonderful so far. My eyes have been extra sensitive to screens so having a pair of blue blockers that take up half of my face has been a real treat. Also, that site seems to do a lot of different sales and discount codes and buy 2 get one free kinda things so it's worth keeping an EYE on it if you find a pair you like.

The BEST Easy Healthy Lasagna Recipe: At least that's the name of the recipe. And honestly, I made this the other night and it was great. I wanted something comforting, dense, and slightly less riddled with guilt than normal comforting/dense dishes. When I googled the oxymoron "healthy lasagna" this recipe came up. It's basically a lasagna with cottage cheese substituted for ricotta cheese. I was a little apprehensive, but damn it delivered. Then I put what was left in my SEXY TUPPERWARE and had it the next day and it was, dare I say, even better. And! My tastebuds are still slightly skewed so I can't wait to try this when they're back to normal!

Matcha Latte Powder: I bought this matcha latte mix when we went on our first chaotic excursion to Costco the day before Thanksgiving. It's a big boy value bag and today I finished it. I love it. It's been such a pleasant replacement for coffee in the morning and such a fun little ritual to mix it up with a little handheld milk frother after I wake up. Maybe I'm already doing Cafecore?? Also, I don't have much matcha experience to compare it to, so if you know better mixes out there by all means let a girl know!

Scrabble Vintage Bookshelf Edition: If any of you see Elliott between now and Christmas do NOT tell him about this. This is a gift for him. It's the game of Scrabble but it's nestled inside of this vintage looking book that you can put on your bookshelf as decoration. HOW FREAKING CUTE IS THAT?! This company does this with a bunch of other classic games too, so if Scrabble isn't your thing, check out their plethora of other games! They're tucked into a beautiful color range of vintage looking books and they're just so aesthetically pleasing. I feel like a home decor girlie, and now Elliott will too!

Govee Smart Humidifier: Initially I was just gonna add this to the list as a regular humidifier, but when I went back to find the link for it I realized it was a smart humidifier and connects to the Govee app. I've used it for months now without realizing that. But I just connected it to the app before posting this and the first notification that popped up said "It appears you've been using your humidifier for some time now. You need to clean it." Drag me, app! And yes, upon further inspection the app was absolutely correct and I very much needed to clean it. Helpful! Anyway, I get a very sore throat when I sleep without this humidifier because our bed is situated directly under our AC vent, so this lil device has been great in that department. There's apparently a bunch of other features (it can be used as an essential oil diffuser too) but I use it for the bare minimum and it's been great. And now I have an app that will remind me to be on top of my humidifier filth. Fun!

Okay that wraps up this installment of the things I've been liking lately. I hope you enjoyed it. I gotta get back to my trifecta of staying healthy, passing the time, and remembering this is real life. Enjoy your weekends! And thanks, as always, for being here! 💚G