Favorite Memories of 2018 + A Reflection of 2018

Favorite Memories of 2018

I remember sitting down one year ago today to write my favorite memories of 2017 and it’s weird to think that it’s already time to write my favorite memories of 2018. This year flew by SO quickly!! I sat down today to scroll through my camera roll to pick out the best moments and while I have been dealt with a lot of bad cards the last few months, I’m quickly coming to realize that this year was indeed filled with many amazing memories. It was a great reminder that as this year comes to a close, it’s time to start afresh and leave behind the bad and carry forward with the good. These moments have been so fun to look through and I hope you enjoy looking forward my favorite memories of 2018!

January

I spent majority of January at home enjoying my last winter break, surrounded by my family while ringing in the new year and celebrating both of my parents’ birthdays (they are only separated by a few weeks).

February

As I looked through my photos from February, food was a central theme! Alex and I went back home to celebrate Chinese New Year with my family (minus my sister since she was at college), went to our great friend’s Olivia’s place for some delicious home-cooked dishes and participate in NYC’s Restaurant Week! And to top it all off, crazy to think that Alex and I spent our FOURTH valentine’s day together!

March

March 2018 contained my one-year blogging anniversary and it was so exciting to look back at all that I’ve done with my blog and all the friends I’ve made this year through it – THANK YOU FOR BEING A PART OF MY COMMUNITY. As Alex and mine’s last spring break approached, we just wanted a place to relax so home we went. It was a snow globe!

So many of you love updates on my dad’s chickens that he treats as his new children ahaha but it was only this past March that he got them! 

April

Three main events happened in April: I turned 22 (whoop whoop), (I chopped off my hair (all 12+ inches ahhh) and Alex and i celebrated our ~official~ 3 year anniversary!! While celebrating my birthday, i was able to also see my sister!!

May

First, my sister’s birthday is in May – she is finally 19!!

ANDDD AAHHHHH I graduated college! It was such a bittersweet day seeing all of the people I had met on the first day of college accomplish one of their goals. Everyone was radiating and it was so amazing to see all the proud parents and family members. 

June

I took the least amount of photo during this month, probably because I was so busy looking up jobs while relaxing ahaha. But my brother graduated from high school and we were all able to attend. 

July

This was such a fun month! I saw one of my favorite people, Chance, who came into the city for the day. I went bike-riding with Chloe and Alex on Governor’s Island – it was my first time there and a chance to learn how to ride ahah. My family came into the city and we spent the weekend together celebrating their wedding anniversary! 

August

Biggest event of August was my brother moving into his dorm at New York University. It felt like a deja-vu-moment! It was so fun being in the city and also having my parents try out my favorite spots!

September

September was also one of the best months! I started my new job!! We celebrated my brother’s 18th birthday wooo!! I was able to attend a Lulu’s event during New York Fashion Week and met my favorite blogger, Negin! I saw my sister for the last time before she had to leave for college. And finally, we were able to try out a coveted pizza place, Lucali’s, in Brooklyn with our good friends!

October

Time started going by so fast starting this month I felt like ahah. Alex and I were able to attend a goat cheese blogger event that made me fall in love with cheese even more, especially goat cheese! Alex also got his beloved chair – he is obsessed with his chair! My favorite day has to be the weekend we took out to visit all the decorated areas of the city such as Rockefeller center and this house on the Upper West Side!

November

Thanksgiving month!! We went home to celebrate and be with my family for the holiday. As you can tell, my dad really embraced the chickens as his family, requesting that they have to be in our family photo. And this was Alex’s birthday month! He turned 23 (old man!!) and his best friend, Mark, was able to come into the city. It was such a fun weekend of celebrating!

December

This month went by SO FAST! The highlights had to be celebrating one of my favorite’s birthday, Sundy. Alex and I had to say goodbye to one of our best friends, Jackie, as she embarks on a new journey. We got to try out a new Italian place with our friends Paulina and Chloe. And finally, I got to take time off of work to come home and spend the holidays with my family!

A Reflection of 2018

If I had to describe 2018 in a few words it would be the following: full of uncertainty, unpredictable and lots of self-discovery. I started the year entering into my final semester of college and it was a nerve-wrecking one. I didn’t place too much emphasis or thought into a job after gradation (thanks mom and dad for always reminding me this year to enjoy myself instead), instead I focused on school as much as I could. The classes I took were amongst my most favorite! So I was completely uncertain about what was going to happen after graduation and I embraced it – but by no means was I completely happy with my position. It was so scary to step away from the academic world into the professional one, but it was a process that taught me so much about resilience and self-worth.

There were so many moments this year that I was engulfed in self-doubts and questions. I thought back to how I envisioned my life at this point in my life and I was so paranoid over how drastically different it was to how I imagined. A large part of this year was getting over that hurdle of constantly questioning myself and my place in life. Rather, I needed to embrace uncertainty to really understand life and what it had to give back to me. I placed my best self forward on social media and was really afraid to tell you all my failures – something I am going to work on in the new year. So, in summary, this year dealt me a lot of failures, some that I was able to get over and and some that I am still trying to overcome. 

And lastly, 2018 was a year full of self-discovery. I became more independent and outspoken in who I am and what I stand for. And a large part of this has to be credited back to a lot of the people around me who are constantly pushing me to always better myself. My self-growth this year meant learning how to say “no” when I don’t want to do something and to practice selfishness in my decisions. This year, I also took time to focus on my mental health, an area I rarely talk about, but definitely want to open up to you guys more on. I have never felt happier being me!

I really hope you enjoyed looking through my favorite memories of 2018 and a personal reflection of this year. It has been a year full of ups and downs! Some of my life’s most significant memories have been made this year so it’s definitely one for the books! 

A million and one thoughts for reading — until my next lil’ thought then!

xx Jen