theinbetweenismine

just a girl living the expat life

Archives for December 2018

Monthly Favorites | December

filed under: my so-called life

1. I usually don’t drink Baileys Irish Cream* (or much of any alcohol for that matter) throughout the year, but it’s a special treat I’ve come to enjoy for New Year’s Eve.

2. I made homemade Semmelknödel* (bread dumplings) for the first time (stale bread rolls are somehow hard to come by in the US, but I figured that stuffing would be a good alternative) and they turned out great. Can’t wait to make them again!

3. It’s that time of the year when J’s always hot and I’m always cold and so this fuzzy blanket* is currently my best friend and it goes where I go.

4. In an effort to use up all the makeup I have lying around (which really isn’t that much at all), I rekindled my love for the Loreal Infallible Pro-Matte Foundation*. Applied with a brush, it’s actually quite good and long-lasting.

5. I got lucky during my Christmas shopping with J and scored these new boots*! They’re actually comfortable and came at a great sales’ price.

6. I’ve tried to transition from regular (2%) milk to a milk alternative for my morning coffee, but I had a really hard time finding something that could match the creaminess of regular milk. Almond milk and coconut milk are not creamy enough and have too much of a distinct taste, but I think Trader Joe’s Unsweetened Soy milk* is the winner. I can hardly feel a difference in texture and it’s only a minor taste adjustment. Win-win.

7. Christmas cards. Do I sound like a broken record? So be it, but it’s no secret that Christmas cards make me the happiest in December.

What was one of your favorite things this month?

* #notanad, This is not a sponsored post. I have not been compensated by the brand or anyone else for linking the websites.

Currently | December

filed under: my so-called life

LOVING | the absolutely awesome Boston Red Sox mug that I got through the #secretsantamugswap2018 (and I am hoping to share all the other mugs what were exchanged soon!)

ENJOYING | all the Christmas lights and decorations in our neighborhood.

EATING | Christmas cookies. I am on a serious sugar-overload this week. (I usually don’t eat that many sweets, but I am making an exception, because hey, it’s Christmas.)

DRINKING | pots, and pots of tea. 

WATCHING | holiday movies. I have been opting for more not-so-conventional movies this year. I watched “Family Man”, “Fred Claus”, and a handful of holiday movies on the Hallmark Channel (thanks to my friend Tanja – ha!) as well as a Classic that is always played in Germany for Christmas (“Sissi”).

READING | Heart Berries by Terese Marie Mailhot. 

HOPING | that you all had some good times with your family and friends over the holidays, and

WISHING | I could have hugged some of mine.

FEELING FRUSTRATED | by the government shutdown and the fact that hard-working federal employees pay the price for the dysfunction in the White House, but also

TRYING TO BE THANKFUL | for an extended Christmas holiday and the fact that J and I will be ok through this shutdown (others are not that lucky).

What’s going on with you currently? 

December Link Love

filed under: link love

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is 15425007894_d458465398_o-e1527652256838.png

Around the Interwebs

Why you can’t forgive someone.

How to document your personal possessions in case of an emergency. If you do have homeowner’s or renter’s insurance, you do want to do this.

How I Quit Apple, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, and Amazon

I think of myself as pretty tech-savvy, but this iPhone cursor trick must be (relatively) new.

This is how Americans define their dream job.

Around the blogosphere

How to talk to someone when you suspect they have a problem

When the holidays are hard.

Craftiness

2019 new year printable planner

More 2019 printable calendars

DIY dried orange garland

For my runner friends

How to get out of your running slump. I needed to read this because I might have been in a slump recently.

Why I run even though I dread it

Best post run stretches for IT bands and hips.

Deliciousness

I’ve been meaning to make potato pancakes (aka latkes) forever.

I made (a variation of) this tortellini with sausage and kale soup and you should too.

Ham and pea soup, anyone? This looks so soothing!

Share a good link with me in the comments!

Who I am (at the moment)

filed under: about me, Who I am


I realize, I haven’t written a ‘who I am (at the moment)’ post in a long, long time. I originally stole this idea from Kerri (who is also still doing these posts occasionally!) a long time ago, because I thought it was such a good way to check in with yourself every once in a while. If you’re not letting the ball drop on it, that is. My last ‘Who I am’ post is from almost two years ago. But who cares. I am picking up where I left off.

I am …

… a little bit of a Christmas grinch this year, and you guys, I am NOT usually a Christmas grinch. I love the holidays season. I honestly don’t know what happened this year. Here we are, a week away from Christmas, and my holiday spirit is barely above ZERO on the holiday meter. Maybe it’s the fact that we had so much going on the last few weeks, or that we’re again not traveling for the holidays, or that I won’t really take much time off, or SOMETHING, but this is very unusual for me, to say the least. I am still holding out hope though this will change in the next few days or so.

… missing our house a bit (not going to lie), but also trying to make this first Christmas at our new place something special.

… cold a lot. J thinks I have a circulation problem. I think it’s just damn freakin’ cold. Where is floor heating when you need it?

… happy that I got almost all of my Christmas organizing out of the way this weekend. I know I can get shit done when I buckle down, but I definitely have done better in previous years and there is still a bit more stuff I need to do, but I guess we’ll all live.

… still running regularly, (or should I say, again running regularly) but I am not sticking to a training plan right now and so I am winging it a bit when it comes to distance and effort. I am just making sure that I keep showing up, however unorganized it might be right now. I’ll soon have to pick a new goal to train for, for sure. At least I have some new running trails to explore.

… obsessed with some of the new recipes I’ve been trying. I am planning to share couple of them in the coming weeks, because if I print them out and  they make it into my permanent recipe folder, that’s always a good sign. On that note, what are you making for Christmas dinner?

… annoyed and digusted by politics (what else is new?) and I am once again not-so-patiently waiting for what will happen when the federal funding deadline runs out at the end of the week. Government shutdown over Christmas, anyone?

Who are you at the moment?

A wish list

filed under: holidays, lists!, love

I love all the gift guides and wish lists that are popping up around the blogosphere around this time. I love browsing for ideas and seeing what’s on other people’s wish list.

I’ve never officially done a Holiday Gift Guide on this blog before, but I have shared Christmas wish lists in the past and I thought I’d do that again this year.

J and I haven’t really exchanged gifts in the past, or it’s something that we both wanted (like new iPhones) or an experience that we decided to “give each other for Christmas”. In all honesty, we would have done it either way, but for some reason declaring it Christmas gifts always has a bit more magic to it, doesn’t it?

Christmas is by no means all about the gifts (although it might often seem that way), and I feel that the most important thing about the holidays is spending time with family and friends (if that’s possible), but I personally also love the gift-giving. I wish I was someone who would completely forego the Christmas shopping madness, but I also have to admit that I love shopping for small gifts for my family and friends around this time of year and I equally enjoy putting a little wish list together for myself.

Although for me, it is more about the gesture and thoughtfulness behind the gift than the actual monetary value.

My biggest wish – as always – would be to go home for the holidays, but since this won’t be happening (for the fifth year in a row – womp, womp!), I am going to fill my holiday season with all the holiday cheer I can get my hands on. Sharing a little wish list of pretty (and functional!) things that would be lovely to have is one way to do this. Some of them are totally reasonable and maybe in my future budget, some are just things that caught my eye, but  which I probably won’t get (right now or ever). Some might be a gift inspiration for you. Who knows?

1. Ogio Purse // 2. Food Storage Containers // 3. Seafoam Letterboard //
4. Running hoodie // 5.  Herschel coin purse // 6. Resistence bands //
7. Lotta from Stockholm Pandora Black Chelsea Boots // 8. Giftcards //
9. Kitchenaid Glas Bowl // 10. Hydro Flask //

 

1. I randomly came across this Ogio Purse online and it had really good reviews and I’ve been looking for a casual, yet nice looking cross-body bag. 

2. I’ve been looking to replace some of my plastic containers with glass container and these food storage containers have great reviews and are air-tight and leak-proof. 

3. Can you believe I am one of the few (?) people who don’t have a letterboard yet? Well, this seafoam letterboard caught my eye, because it’s such a pretty color.

4. Baby, it’s cold outside and I think I could use another warm running hoodie.

5. I have a small coin purse that holds some cards and cash, which I use for travel, but it’s slowly but surely falling apart and this Herschel coin purse looks like a great replacement.

6. I’ve been thinking about investing in some resistence bands to use for some strength training at home.

7. These Lotta from Stockholm Pandora Black Chelsea Boots caught my eye on Instagram and since I had to sadly return the boots that I got last year in Germany (the sole came off prematurely), I’ve been looking for a replacement.

8. Giftcards are always a good idea if you don’t know what to get someone for Christmas. I used to think that gift cards are a cop-out, but they actually beat any random gift that was bought just in order to have something in hand.

9. There is a new Kitchenaid model that comes with a hobnail bowl and I am so in love. Unfortunately, the hobnail bowl doesn’t seem to be available by iteself (and I already own the Kitchenaid mixer), so I am opting for a glass bowl for my wish list instead.

10. I’ve been thinking about replacing some of my Nalgene bottles with a stainless steel bottles and the Hydro Flask looks like it would be a great choice.

What’s on your wish list? Did you publish your own? (Leave me a link to it in the comments!)