Historically I’ve been the kind of person who approaches each new year with a fresh planner in one hand and a stack of to-do lists in the other, ready to start tackling resolutions with an iron-clad will. The beginning of 2019, however, has been a little different for me. Call it January blues or maybe post-Christmas funk but I’m just not feeling as energetic as usual–even the idea of setting resolutions makes me want to crawl back under the duvet.
I’ve even had trouble writing this post, the first of 2019, because I’ve felt idea-less and bored which is more than a little discouraging. Maybe it’s because I ended 2018 on such a high note for the blog; My gingerbread “Rose Hill Cottage” received a totally unexpected amount of attention on Instagram (the [absolutely legendary] director, Nancy Meyers, shared it on her account) and I spent the three day period before Christmas responding to and engaging with incredible and lovely comments from people who liked the house. It was a pretty surreal experience and I’m so grateful that I got to share my project with so many people. But, after all that attention, I guess I’m actually not surprised to feel a little slump-y and uninspired.
Which I suppose leads me to my one resolution, were I forced to make it. It’s a little new-age, hippy-dippy but bear with me. I’m going to try not to be defined by my fleeting thoughts. I could work myself into a panic thinking ‘this is it for the blog’, ‘Maybe I don’t want to do this anymore’, ‘I can’t’, etc., but I’m trying my best to keep calm because I know they will pass in time. I know well enough that probably, in a couple weeks time, my hand will be cramping from all the to-do lists that I’m catching up on and I will, yet again, be chipping cake batter off of my camera. In the mean time, though, I’m trying to just let myself feel this discouragement on the understanding that it will pass. No panic, no bad thoughts.
I’ll end on a slightly more uplifting and exciting piece of newness (just what I need right about now). My wonderful and insanely talented friend, Mike Holloway, designed a new logo for me based on….me! The logo that I chose last March was kind of always intended to be a placeholder until I found something better and I don’t know what could be better than this. I think, in the beginning, I was so nervous and self conscious about starting a blog that I just kind of wanted everything to be generic and anonymous. Almost a year on, though, and I feel better about owning it now, which is why this logo feels so right. Mike played around a lot with the design and color and really patiently put up with my requests for artistic plastic surgery. I’m so happy with the end result and grateful for his generosity and talent. He also calls me to give me suggestions for the blog, in general, and talked to me for an hour on the phone when I was freaking out over the gingerbread frenzy so he’s a full-on, OG La Retro team player. Love him.
Happy New Year but remember, if you’re not feeling like your best self just yet, that’s okay too.
XO,
Hannah
La Retro Recipe 