2020 recap — knot so loud

What a year! It felt so long but was short at the same time. I know when we all say 2020, the pandemic will be the first thing that comes to our thoughts. It definitely made a lot of challenges for many of us. I tried my best to focus on positivity and cope by doing things that makes me happy. First, let’s look back at my year of 2020:

January started off by continuing to explore more Connecticut towns. I visited Madison for the first time and fell in love. I have to say RJ Julia’s Booksellers is my favorite bookstore in the state which is located in Madison. The beach also was amazing, beautiful and LONG which is perfect for a walk. My pup celebrated her 7th birthday at the end of January too with her favorite treats from Mystic Pet Shop.

*Brooklyn’s 7th birthday in Stonington.*

February brought us a lot of beach days in Watch Hill. It wasn’t bitterly cold so it was enjoyable to get a lot of walks (or runs for my pup!) in. I visited Putnam, CT for the first time for their annual Fire & Ice festival. It takes place every February which I planned a blog post for this year’s but I’m not sure if it’s happening. It was an outdoors event with ice sculptures. You could even watch people creating ice sculptures which was my favorite part. It was mesmerizing to watch! I also celebrated my birthday. I went to my favorite Irish pub in Mystic - Harp and Hound!

*Live your life like someone left the gate open! Running in Watch Hill.*

*Birthday drink at Harp and Hound Pub in Mystic, CT.*

March is one of my favorite months with St. Patrick’s Day celebrations. I was in the midst of exploring anything related to Irish heritage around the state when it came to a sudden halt with the quarantine. I am grateful I was able to visit the Ireland’s Hunger Museum in Hamden, CT. It was a very fascinating museum with an impressive collection. The lockdown started the day before St. Patrick’s Day. I remember going to Trader Joe’s to do a final stock up as the reality was really caving in. It was the first time ever that I had to wait 30 minutes in the check out line! That also was the last grocery trip with everyone not wearing masks as it wasn’t enforced then. It was unsettling to see bare shelves and people stressing out about the pandemic. We had no idea what was coming or what to expect. The events were cancelled, with some postponed to fall. I remember thinking that this will be over by the end of August.

*Ireland’s Great Hunger Museum in Hamden, CT.*

April was spent mostly at home due to the lockdown. My husband was able to work from home since March so we got more time together. I loved having my little family home every day together. My pup got daily play time in the yard, sometimes twice a day! We cooked dinner every night. I tried out many different recipes. The month brought a lot of self-reflection and appreciation. I walked around Mystic a lot. I was too nervous to walk among the main routes as there were many others out walking too, so I went deep into the neighborhoods. I saw more houses that I’ve never seen before. I enjoyed that, as I admire New England style houses. I had my first Zoom experience on Easter with my family and relatives. I usually only see my immediate family and grandparents on Easter so it was a bonus to see relatives who lived long distance.

May and June brought more of those walks deep into the neighborhoods and new territories. I expanded out to Stonington. I felt good to get the fresh air and sunshine (when it was out). I definitely exercised more than usual! At the end of June, I was able to go visit my family in Upstate NY. The number of cases were at the lowest during summer in NY and CT. The city of Corning shut down their downtown main street to cars so people had more space for outdoor restaurant seating and to walk around. I enjoyed this and wish they would keep that permanently! It was different to visit my grandparents this time. We sat 6 feet apart from each other with masks on. I had to rely more on my mom or husband to help facilitate communication. The hardest part was leaving NY without hugging any of my grandparents.

*We joined the garden bandwagon during quarantine. Got a lot of tomatoes and cukes!*

July was a busy month. I spent the last week of June in NY then my parents brought me home in the first week of July. My parents and I celebrated 4th of July with more walks around Mystic and Stonington. I showed them Essex, CT for the first time. It was fun to show them everything new that I discovered from the lockdown. My Poppop’s first anniversary of his passing was this month too. I originally planned to escape to South Carolina where he used to spend his winters. I had fond memories so I wanted to be there on his anniversary. Unfortunately, the south was in the red zone so it was hard on me to not be able to travel. I decided to explore a new lighthouse in New England as he loved them. I went to Watch Hill Light in Rhode Island. I have seen it from a distance on the beach several times but never walked up to it closely. It was a nice memorable day in his memory. There were many fun outdoor events that happened such as Mayflower ship’s departure from Mystic Seaport, Buttonwood Farms’ sunflowers for wishes, etc. I traveled to Maine and New Hampshire (first time!) for the day. I fell in love with Portsmouth, NH and plan to return again. It was difficult to fully enjoy some things due to the restrictions and wearing masks. I have expressed several times on Instagram how the mask has been a challenge for me with communication. I can’t see who is talking to me, can’t lip read them, etc. It has made me feel even MORE deaf. I can’t wait for the day when I throw all of the masks in a bonfire!

*Mayflower ship leaving Mystic, CT back to Massachusetts.*

*Sunflowers for Wishes at Buttonwood Farm in Griswold, CT.*

August allowed my parents to visit again. We went sailing in the Thames River in New London, CT. It was a fun adventure! I loved how we found things to do outdoors and feel some normacity, that we weren’t in mid of a pandemic. (Note: we ALWAYS maintained our safety with social distancing and wearing masks.)

September was another eventful month with another visit to Upstate New York for Labor Day weekend. I was able to introduce my husband to Watkins Glen Gorges (I know, we had been together all of this time and he’s never been there? My fault!). It was fun and beautiful sights to enjoy. I also surprised my husband with a glider ride up at Harris Hill in Elmira, NY for his birthday. My cousin’s husband is a pilot so he took my husband up in his glider! My husband and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary when we came back home to Connecticut. We enjoyed a day out in Mystic. The rest of September was spent doing everything fall. Went apple picking, watched football games on TV and drank apple cider from BF Clyde’s Cider Mill in Mystic. We drove up north of CT in the countryside for leaf peeping. One day we took our pup (who is named Brooklyn) to Brooklyn, CT and had fun with making her pose with everything with her name on it! She might’ve not enjoyed it as much as we did!

*My husband and my cousin’s husband before their glider ride.*

*Celebrated our anniversary with the dress tradition (see the blog!)*

October continued with all the fun fall activities outdoors. Pumpkin patching at Whittle’s Spring Farm in Mystic. More drives around the state to enjoy the leaf season and Halloween decor. Essex, CT and Old Wethersfield, CT had scarecrow contests. We drove to both towns and admired all the creative scarecrows we saw! Some were made by local residents, organizations, businesses, kids, etc. It was fun and a perfect outdoor activity with plenty of room to social distance. I hope this tradition will continue in the future! This month brought our biggest two purchases. A boat and camper! We originally planned to buy a power motor boat but after the sailing adventure in New London last summer, we decided to go with a sailboat. We had enough let to purchase a camper. The camper will be useful to travel with our pup, since it always was tough to find pet friendly hotels in our budget. Now we won’t have to worry about that! The camper is an A-frame that pops up from a trailer. I look forward to our adventures with both during this year.

November squeezed in some more warm days so we spent a day on the Cliff Walk in Newport, Rhode Island. Again, we went into some new neighborhoods and found some cool historical homes/buildings! One weekend we even got 70 degrees so we kayaked in the Mystic River and got some more days on the beach in Watch Hill. The end of November was hard, the numbers of cases were going back up. The neighboring states were in the red zone so we couldn’t travel around New England. Thanksgiving was my first big holiday without family in person. We ate dinner with my parents via FaceTime.

December usually would be a busy month with all holiday events. We enjoyed some outdoor activities again. Olde Mistick Village hosted their lights show. I drove up to Old Wethersfield to see the homes decked out in holiday decor. My favorite home, Silas W. Robbins Bed & Breakfast was the best! They were actually filmed in a Hallmark Christmas movie before. I walked more locally again to enjoy the holiday decor on New England homes in Mystic and Stonington. One thing I missed was seeing lobster trap trees in Maine and Rhode Island, so I investigated if Connecticut had one. My Instagram friends helped me with this, and I was able to see one in New London (who knew there was one that would be 20 minutes away from me?!). I also was proud to accomplish the goal of reading 55 books with 2 days to spare! I share all books that I’ve read on Instagram via stories. Reading has definitely helped with distraction whenever I feel stressed or need an escape. I plan to continue reading more books with a goal of 75 books for 2021.

*Holiday lights at Olde Mistick Village.*

*Lobster trap tree at Captain Scott’s in New London, CT.*

*One of my favorite nautical Christmas decorated home in CT.*

*Silas W. Robbins bed and breakfast in Old Wethersfield, CT.*

It was tough to ring in the New Year with the usual excitement of ‘starting over’. Unfortunately, we can’t leave the pandemic behind in 2020 (we wish, right?!). This year, we know more through and have hope for a better year. I tried my best to focus on the positivity of 2020 as I shared only the good memories in this recap, but there were times when it was frustrating and stressful. This year did a number on my anxiety for sure, and I got in a LOT of self reflection. I started out the year unemployed after walking away from my best job ever. I didn’t know what 2020 would bring me, but instead it put everything on hold. I couldn’t get a job during the pandemic so it really made me slow down and take the time to reset my priorities and focus on what my heart desires. I’m bringing the lessons I learned and more appreciation for what I do have in my life into 2021. Let’s do this. It will be better. We’re in this together!