Yes, We Need to Party More in 2025!

Freshly baked cookies on platters, beautifully made table settings with name cards at every seat for every guest, and an array of cocktails and beautiful food displays were my holiday norms. My family and friends all came together, sometimes 25+ people for one holiday or gathering all sitting around laughing, eating, drinking, and just being together. Truly, it was a magical time for me! Growing up, I always felt the magic of a house party thanks to my Mom and late Grandma. Over on my Instagram (let’s be friends @_thepinkchickadee) during the December/January timeframe, I came across an Instagram Story that essentially had a headline saying “Americans need to party more.” And, simply put, I think we do too.

And, before I get into the meat of this post, I want to share my thoughts on the definition of the word “party”. To me, a party or house party is a get together at someone’s house, whatever it may look like.

Many of us over the years are less likely to be invited to a house party or social gathering of any kind at someone’s house in 2024 and into 2025. Less and less people are hosting house parties and gatherings of any kinds at their homes. Over on YouTube, I have found myself coming across several video essays on my feed about how lonely Gen Z is and how Gen Z prefers to spend more of their spare time resting at home than past generations. At the same time, the so-called “third place” is gone, e.g. the cafes, hangout spots, etc. where people would frequent and regularly interact with others beyond the home and school/the workplace. In our current state of the world, a lot of chaos is happening and we are also in the post-COVID years where the world essentially shut down and went fully remote. Nevertheless, a lot of what we are experiencing is a result of the rapid adaptation of technology, current state of our world, and the post-effects of the pandemic. Anddddd, ALL of us are feeling the effects of loneliness into the early months of 2025.

2025 has been a year of chaos and change in the world of current events. I feel like EVERY time I turn on the news, something new and pretty chaotic is happening in our world and I know I’m not alone in feeling this way. The same concept goes for social media platforms, too. There’s a lot of change and stress and uncertainty during this time for many people. Given ALL the chaos and stress and uncertainty in our world right now, a lot of us need that time to be alone to just process it all mentally. A lot of people simply want that time that they have after work to be peaceful and quiet. And guess what?!?! I truly understand the need to simply decompress and be chaos-free in a world currently full of lots of chaos. There’s SO MUCH going on in our world right now which can leave people feeling extremely overwhelmed and less likely to want to put themselves in situations where their peacefulness which can be rather limited is in jeopardy.

Humans are social beings at the end of the day. And, while we need the time to rest, rejuvenate, and recharge, we also need time with others (no matter HOW introverted you may be!). While a pretty chaotic year 2025 has been so far, I think that we need to come together now more than ever before. I am SO excited and honored to be invited to a social gathering at a friend’s house on the upcoming weekend – something that feels far and few in between since my childhood days but does happen on occasion. I think planning more house parties and social gatherings is truly a way that we can make a positive change in 2025. Not only do house parties bring people together and facilitate community, but they also bring a positive boast to our mental and physical wellbeing. And, at the end of the day, it reduces loneliness, depression, anxiety, and so much more. We need to be together more often than not, and put on a good party.

Truly, I miss the days when social gatherings that my late Grandma put on were the norm. I feel very fortunate that my Mom and Step Dad still host lovely dinners and social gatherings for our family from time to time. There is something truly so magical about a lovely table display full of delicious food and drinks to enjoy together. The time together is truly special and makes it the party of a lifetime that we can have again and again and again!

Nevertheless, I am excited to be apart of the change in bringing parties back, alongside some of my dear friends who have hosted me in the past and will continue to. It only takes one person to make a difference in somebody’s life and in these days that difference can be an invitation to a house party to meet others. The magical moments that my Mom and late Grandma gave me during my childhood are things that I am looking forward to bringing to others in my life and to the future generations. I thank them everyday for the love and magic that they showed me through their house parties and I’m excited to bring them back in 2025 (and beyond!).

XOXO – Katie <3

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My 2025 Word of the Year

Last year, I started doing a word of the year and have LOVED centering my whole world in a given year around one word. In 2024 (here), my word of the year was joy. And, truly I strived to bring SO MUCH JOY into 2024 with me and into 2025. 2024 taught me how to bring joy into all aspects of life, whether good or bad and to indeed find joy in everyday life. At the end of the 2024 year, like many of us, I found myself doing lots of reflection on how I wanted to shift my focus into 2025. Since I LOVED picking a word of the year for 2024, I decided to do the same thing again for 2025!

SO, with that all being said, my 2025 word of the year is … FORWARD!

One of the biggest themes I noticed in myself throughout 2024 was dwelling on things that happened in the past, whether great or not-so great. I found myself when tough things happened dwelling on them a lot longer than I should have. I found myself getting into my head wayyyyy too much than I should have. I found myself getting reminders of what happened in the past and thinking that what happened in the past will be a repeat trend in the future (which by the way isn’t true folks!). While it’s great to look to our past for fun memories, lessons learned, and even inspiration, we must move forward on a regular basis. In my reflections on 2024, I realized that I wanted to focus on moving forward in 2025 and decided to make it my word of the year and center my entire world around moving forward.

In practically all aspects of my daily life, I have been brainstorming ways in which I wanted to and am in the process of implementing when it comes to forward-thinking in 2025. While I won’t be sharing all of those ways here with y’all, I will note that it has been beneficial allll around for me to center the year 2025 around the word forward. For example, I am focusing on growing my newsletter over on Substack (let’s be friends @thepinkchickadee) that I created in December 2024. On all of my social media platforms aka Instagram (let’s be friends @_thepinkchickadee), Substack, Threads, and most recently YouTube (let’s be friends @thepinkchickadee) as well as my website that you are currently reading this post on, I am striving to create consistent content and build relationships with YOU aka my lovely community and friends while doing so. I am focusing on creating a structured environment for me to create and share content with y’all via this overall happy place of mine on the internet. At the same time, I am focusing on finding community locally by continuing to attend church more regularly and when able with my Mom and Papa and continuing to engage more locally with those that I already know and love, including with Daughters of the American Revolution. To tie it all up with a bow, I will also be striving to make more time to see those that I love both near and far. In 2024, I didn’t spend much time in real life with my dear college friends that have been there for me through the ups and downs of life who all reside in North Carolina and I want to make more of an effort to see them as well as other long distance friends and family members while achieving some of my both local and further away travel goals. This platform, community, and friendships are truly just a sample of the many ways that I am paving the way forward for myself into 2025 and beyond!

When 2024 ended, my mental state was not in the best of spirits and I left the year feeling severely burned out and run down. Via reflection in therapy (which I am a full supporter of EVERYONE doing at some point in their lifetime!), I realized that dwelling on the past and putting too much energy into the things that I cannot control whether they happened in the past and are wayyyyy behind me or I simply cannot control somebody else and how they act and react is simply not a productive way to move forward in 2025. I have been focusing on facing my personal fears and truly changing my mindset to not dwell on the negative but rather focus on the positive and make adjustments accordingly to focus on the positive, too. Recently, I have been applying Mel Robbins’s “let them” theory into my daily life and it has been groundbreaking for my own personal and mental wellbeing (I plan to share more about this in a future blog post, too!). All this to say, going forward into 2025, I feel so much more rejuvenated given the changes that I’ve already made!

At the end of the day, the only things that we can control are how we act and react to things and our pathway forward in this world. We cannot go backwards, but we are always going forward into 2025 (and beyond!). I wish you all the best in 2025 and moving forward from there!

XOXO – Katie <3

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When A Friend Shuts You Out

Recently over on Instagram (let’s be friends @_thepinkchickadee), I have been seeing several folks discussing some rather taboo or less discussed topics that I’m hoping to shed some light on over here in 2025 and beyond. In 2024, I shared my ramblings on loneliness (here and here) and plan to share more of my thoughts on similar taboo topics. One of those topics is something that I think many of us have experienced over the years: when a friend shuts you out. This is a super tough topic to discuss as it’s truth be told such a sucky feeling and thing to experience. We genuinely as humans and friends want to be apart of our friends’ lives, but sometimes they don’t want us to be apart of their lives anymore. It’s a rather tough pill to swallow, but is very well the truth a lot of the times when a friend shuts you out. And, trust me: I’ve been there too.

When I graduated college back in May of 2021, I was apart of a so-called sorority-like friend group and had thus felt a major sense of belonging from it and throughout my college experience. I ended up moving from North Carolina to the Washington, DC area literally a day after receiving my diploma and hence begun my next chapter into adulthood. It was terrifying at the time, but with a job already in line in the nation’s capital to start later that Summer, I knew where I needed to be. I was pretty much the ONLY person from my 400-person sorority-like all-women’s college class to move to Washington, DC. Many of my college friends including my friend group remained in North Carolina. And, after four years of memories made in our college dorms, apartments, college formals and events and celebratory occasions, distracting ourselves from studying, late night talking and drinking, and everything in between, I simply began to get shut out by many of my college friends at the time. We had literally gone from taking photos in our caps and gowns galavanting around our college campus the day before to pretty much barely texting each other. The texts and FaceTime calls from afar became far and few in between. A few months later, I came back to North Carolina to visit for a weekend. I noticed a stark difference between the friends that I made while we were in college and while we weren’t in college. It felt as if I was in one day and the next day simply shut out. All I had heard about was the gossip of the time that I had been simply shut out of. And, to my surprise and disappointment, I had been excluded from the typical friend group activities of the weekend I was in town. Which I had instead received many excited texts about how fun the outing was and how excited everyone else was to be there … without me. The pain I felt at the time was unbearable and utter shock. Essentially, I been shut out of that friend group that I once cherished and felt so much belonging in a few months prior.

At the time, I was in utter denial that I was being shut out of my friend group that had once provided me such a great feeling of belonging. I had convinced myself many times and times again that things would change and that these friends of mine from college would realize what they’re missing out on. I would continuously text these friends, hoping they’d start to respond more and more frequently. Maybe, perhaps, one of them or a few would want to come and visit me in Washington, DC for the weekend. Just MAYBE things would change. But, instead, the texts became more and more sparse.

I share this story to tell you that you are not alone by any means in experiencing when a friend that shuts you out. The simple reality of the matter is that we all have friends that will or have shut us out at one point or another. Guess what? It hurts. It’s painful. And, a lot of the time, we don’t truly understand why. A lot of the time, the reasoning has nothing to do with us. Rather, there can be a variety of factors our friends may be experiencing, including: personal issues, jealousy and/or insecurity, shift in priorities, physical distance, miscommunication, or different life stages. Usually though, the reasoning has nothing to do with us who simply want to keep the friendship alive.

So, to put it into context: no, you did not do anything wrong by simply wanting to check in on your friend and continue that friendship without them reciprocating. Simply put, you don’t need to feel guilty or shame for simply wanting to keep that friendship alive. However, friendships are a two-way street. We need to focus our energy more so on the friendships that choose us as we choose them and NOT the friendships that don’t choose us. It can be easier said than done, I know.

Upon graduating from college and settling into my new life and job in the nation’s capital, I kept in touch with many of my college friendships beyond that one specific friend group which provided me with the most belonging during those four years. One of my friends at the time (we’re still friends to this day!!) was appreciative that I reached out to her and continued to choose her as a friend. She thanked me! That exact text made me realize that there is SO much to be thankful for with the friendships that we do have and are able to maintain. We need to focus more on the friendships that are two-way streets. Like with dating, we need to choose those who choose us time and time again. Those that make space for us in their lives are the ones that we want and need to keep around. Those are the friendships that are of high-value and worth having.

At the end of the day though, I do feel extremely fortunate to have several friendships from my college years that I have to this day. Indeed, some of these friendships were unexpectedly formed after college and through creating this platform! But at the end of the day, I discovered that these are the friendships worth keeping. None of these friendships resulted in either person being shut out, but rather chosen to be kept in one another’s lives. We send those lengthy audio messages where we love to yap, exchange thoughts in the group chats, and slide into our Instagram DMs to share adorable content we think one another would like. We also make plans to see one another, despite many of us living in different cities and states. We may talk daily, weekly, monthly, or even periodically. But, at the end of the day, we chose one another and those are the friends worth keeping around.

And, while my highly esteemed friend group and I in college may have parted our ways after my big girl move, I will cherish the times that we did have together during our college years. The memories made will always be there to cherish. Although I may not talk to them everyday like we used to, I still am open to the possibility that we may exchange some texts here and there and remember our fun college days (like I have one a few occasions). 

Reality check: when a friend shuts you out, it sucks, but we must move forward. We need to focus our energy on those that open their doors to us, not shut them in our faces. Sometimes, the truth hurts and that’s simply apart of the evolution of adult friendships at all ages and life stages. Most importantly, we must move forward with a heart full of gratitude for those that have chosen to keep us around and keep them around especially when a friend shuts you out, too! Perhaps, another lengthy audio message of gratitude and meme of appreciation incoming over making plans for a lengthy catch up session?!?!

XOXO – Katie <3

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5 Years of The Pink Chickadee!

Five years ago, I hit “post” and posted my first-ever blog post. I was terrified, but I did it. That night, I hosted a launch party for my *very own* dream blog that I was, well, terrified to start and keep the momentum going on. In January 2020, I was scared to put myself out there, scared of what others would think of me, and simply scared of failing myself and my dream of becoming a fashion and travel blogger. Five years later, I can confidently say that I am a successful fashion and travel blogger who despite her initial fears of putting herself out there and failing at this has curated a strong community and following of likeminded people and a blog to call my own. Five years into blogging and I am proud of myself for what I have created and self-coded and what I will continue to do.

In September 2019, I suffered my first big college heartbreak. It was a situationship that lasted on and off until a few years later. September 2019 was the first of many tough heartbreaks and realizations when it comes to love and dating. At first, I was in utter denial, but I was also upset. At that time, though full of great sadness for what could have been, I knew that I wanted to do something for myself. I vividly remember posing for a photo with a cookie on a trip in college to Charleston, South Carolina (here) and excitedly revealing to somebody in college that I was starting a blog while feeling so sad on the inside due to that heartbreak. But, saying “I am starting a blog” aloud truly gave me hope that there was more to life beyond the utter heartbreak that I was experiencing via the dating world. And, that is when and how The Pink Chickadee was born.

On January 15, 2020 when I first hit “post,” I was extremely self-conscious as a person. Like I said before, I was terrified in all ways at the idea of putting myself out there and full unfortunately of self-hatred and loathing. Fear was my best friend. I even took a break from posting consistently not once but twice in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic was keeping us in lockdown. My mental health hit an all-time low. Until, I took a Summer 2020 website development course and willingly pulled a few all-nighters to re-code my entire website. I got my logo redone and re-designed. And, I started to continually post consistently over on my social media platforms. My social media, then, looked a lot different than it does now. But, The Pink Chickadee was my saving grace during the COVID-19 pandemic days and my relationship and breakup and beyond.

Flash-forward to today and I am full of gratitude, confidence, self-love, happiness, and joy. I am fully confident to say that being the one woman show behind The Pink Chickadee is a BIG reason for my success and personal growth over the past five years. I have had the pleasure to work with several brands, including Virginia Wine Pass (now Reserve Pass), OPI, Shop Navy Bleu, and Panera Bread. I have been featured on Starbucks, Redfin, and Jack Rogers. And, I have curated an incredible follower basis and community and friends in YOU. Needless to say, I feel so thankful, grateful, and blessed to have made that decision on the evening of January 15, 2020 to hit “post” and remain consistent in doing so over the past five years.

I have fallen in love with being a blogger! I love getting to curate content that resonates with you and connect with you all. I love getting to collaborate with likeminded brands and share content with likeminded creators and communities. While my platform and my goals associated with it has evolved over the past five years, the one thing that remains the same is my love of being here. I love getting to be here!!

Through it all, THANK YOU for being here along for the ride. Cheers to five years (read past years’ blog-aversary posts here, here, and here!) and more than five more years of opportunity, growth, prosperity, confidence, and happiness. Cheers!!!

XOXO – Katie <3

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Transitioning The Life of Katie!

Hello friends! Over the past few years, I have shared a whopping 32 (!!!!) Life of Katie blog posts with y’all. These posts tend to be some of the most well-received and some of the quickest clicks y’all make whenever I share these over on my Instagram stories (let’s be friends @_thepinkchickadee). However, in recent times, I have been reflecting on my goals for this platform into 2025 and beyond and will continue to share personal updates with y’all, BUT in a different format than before!

Now, I will be sharing my Life of Katie updates over on my …

Substack called Happy Hour with Katie!

Yes, you heard me right: in September 2024, I created a Substack but didn’t publicize it a ton at the time due to my wayyyy too frequently talked about holiday season burnout (here and here). Happy Hour with Katie will share some personalized updates from me Katie and *of course* into the Life of Katie! I will be sharing my favorite things (whether or not recently purchased) on a monthly basis, a round-up of content that I share with y’all here on the blog, and a weekly happy hour where I will dig into the Life of Katie (!!!) and share a few topics that have been on my mind. There will probably be more topics and content to come over on my Substack, but for now, I will be sharing LOTS of personalized Happy Hour with Katie updates over there! Whenever I write a The Life of Katie blog post in recent times, I feel *A LOT* of pressure to make it into this super fancy blog post. And, while I LOVE writing about the ongoings and ramblings of my life during that time of which I am publishing it, it has come to be more pressure-some to me and consequentially less enjoyable. I adore sharing my ramblings and peak into the life of Katie with YOU and am excited to do so in more of a casual setting. Think of Happy Hour with Katie as a happy hour that we can have together on a weekly basis! Subscribe here!

Why Substack?! In late 2024, I have been daydreaming about starting a newsletter yet didn’t know where to start. And, at the same time, for YEARS, I have missed having the opportunity to connect with other bloggers on a regular basis via platforms that allow you to do so. Thinking on the lines of circa 2015 with Tumblr if y’all remember those days! SO, when one of my coworkers mentioned that she joined Substack, I knew I needed to check out what the hype was ALLL about! As I said before, I created a Substack in September 2024 and have been mainly procrastinating on using it until now. Soon enough, I realized that Substack would provide me what I’m looking for in terms of a place to connect with other bloggers and likeminded people in a newsletter-like setting! I could create a Substack to talk about personalized content and share things from my blog, connect with others, and share with YOU!

But Katie, I already get too many emails!! Yes, I have heard YOU all already! But, don’t worry! I will be sharing my Substack posts alongside my email newsletters to those of you that do choose to subscribe on my Instagram Stories once they are posted. I want to make Happy Hour with Katie accessible to ALL readers, regardless of if they choose to and/or have the bandwidth to subscribe or not.

What will be happening with the blog?! The Pink Chickadee blog is NOT going anywhere in 2025! In fact, I have been brainstorming LOTS of plans and ideas for 2025. Earlier this week, I published two travel posts and have several more posts to come and to be planned for the year. And, with the new content that I am aspiring to share with YOU here, there comes a time where I don’t want to publish as many Life of Katie posts within the mix, which makes Substack the perfect platform for that. And, at the end of the day, I will probably still post some personalized content here over on The Pink Chickadee! One of my goals is to share some of my local eats and activities more so on here and I’ll continue to share What I Wore to Work on a monthly basis here, too. There may be another Life of Katie post (or 32!) in the future!!

At the end of the day, I want to thank YOU for being here. To those who saw my little publicized announcement of Happy Hour with Katie and subscribed or provided feedback or how you want to receive updates, thank YOU for your support and for being here along the ride. Truly, having the community that I have in y’all is such a beautiful and amazing thing. Thank YOU!

XOXO – Katie <3

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The Life of Katie!

I have found myself trying to soak up the moods of the holiday season more so than in the past. At the same time though, I have experienced a lot of stress and fatigue with everything going on … being transparent over here. The holiday season can definitely be a difficult one to navigate when it comes to ALLL of the social events atop of the ongoings of day-to-day life. Needless to say, December has been a busy month for sure and I am striving to savor it all! Now, for some life updates!

  • Join me over on Substack! – I am excited to say that I have created a newsletter over on Substack (here)! While I am still navigating the format of my newsletter, I am SO excited to be able to use Substack as another outlet to connect with y’all and others who are like-minded. Substack reminds me a smidge of Tumbler from circa 2015?!?! But, make it 2024! At the same time though, I want to note that I HEAR some of YOU: newsletters can be overwhelming, so I will be sharing my newsletters with y’all over on my Instagram (let’s be friends @_thepinkchickadee) for those of you who still want to follow along with a less full email inbox. But, for now, stay tuned!!!!
  • Exciting trips for 2025!! – I have ALSO shared over on my Instagram that I am in the process of planning not one but TWO trips to Europe for early 2025. One of those trips involves some time in … PARIS! I was SO EXCITED to get so many excited messages from many of YOU who are planning to/are looking to visit Paris in 2025 as well and am SO EXCITED to share ALLL of my tips and pointers and recommendations with YOU once I visit. Honored is seriously an understatement! Thank YOU!
  • Holiday Fun! – Blessed is an understatement this year! While 2024 has been a tough one, I am also SOOOO blessed to be able to have made memories with loved ones this holiday season. Some of my many activities include: wreath making with my Aunts, Mom, and cousins, Sunday evening dinners at my Moms side of the family, an After Hours museum party at Planet Word, hosted my annual Christmas Party for the 2nd year, a trip to the Old Lucketts Store Holiday House (here), a trip to Marshall Pond Christmas Village (which I write about more in-depth via a previous year’s visit here), multiple dinners in Washington, DC with the girls at Sequoia in Georgetown and Cafe Riggs in Penn Quarter, a brand-new tradition participating in Wreaths Across America at Arlington National Cemetery with friends, and a Christmas-y evening to the DAR Holiday Open House, National Christmas Tree, and the iconic historic Willard Intercontinental Hotel. WHEW! It has been a GREAT TIME, despite a busy time!!!
  • A lovely Thanksgiving weekend! – Thanksgiving 2024 was such a blessing. We had a bigger group than usual: 12 people to be exact! The more the merrier provided such beauty this Thanksgiving, too, alongside the delicious food and even more incredible company. That weekend, my friend Haley and I visited the Gaylord National Hotel at National Harbor aka an annual Christmas tradition of mine that I wrote a post on how to avoid the crowds at (here) and I also took a much-needed solo date to Washington, DC to enjoy the National Gallery of Art’s special exhibit: Paris 1874. And, on my way back, I got to catch a glimpse of the lovely sunset over the National Mall (!!!!). Needless to say, I had an incredible weekend and I feel VERRRYYY blessed to have been able to have a great long holiday weekend.
  • Gift Guides! – My first-ever newsletter on Substack is … a round-up of my 2024 Gift Guides (here)!!!!! I LOVE curating gift guides year after year. And, at the same time, I LOVE how excited y’all were at seeing them, too. To those of you who have used my links to shop for gifts for others (or yourself!), thank YOU for your support. Your support has meant the world to me during the holiday season and also in every season!
  • Holiday burnout – Yepppppp you heard me right holiday burnout has hit me a bit harder this year than in years’ past. I wrote a whole blog post (here) about it because what else would I do?! Typical Katie fashion I guess – LOLLL!
Adorable display at the Marshall Pond Christmas Village
Olaf!!!!
Marshall Pond!
The lovely Marshall Pond Christmas Village – Part 2
Rose sipping at my annual Christmas Party
Rose toast at my annual Christmas Party
Dinner with the girls at Cafe Riggs
The Riggs Hotel Christmas Tree 2024
Wreaths Across America at Arlington National Cemetery
The Willard Intercontinental Hotel + a not pictured group of carolers!
The state trees at the National Christmas Tree + the White House
The National Christmas Tree
Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) Constitution Hall decked out!
Underneath the tree!
A beautiful Christmas stroll at Nalls Produce
My OOTD to visit the Lucketts Holiday House
Dinner at Sequoia!!
Planet Word’s After Hours Party with Andrea
A midday pick-me-up!
The beautiful Christmas floral display at the National Gallery of Art
A beautiful sunset over the Washington Monument
Thanksgiving OOTD!
My only photo taken at Thanksgiving dinner – haha!!!

Happy Holidays to you and yours! Thank YOU for being here <3

XOXO – Katie <3

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Experiencing Holiday Burnout? Same.

Tis the season to … be experiencing holiday burnout. Yep. There, I said it. I am going to get a bit real here, but I am currently dealing with a heavy dose of holiday burnout, and, it is NOT FUN. The holidays are a favorite time of year for me. I love seeing people come together to spread Christmas cheer while singing loud for all to hear (if you know that movie, you know!!!) and simply enjoy the magic of it all (regardless of if they choose to celebrate Christmas or not!). The holidays are such a beautiful time of year! And, sadly, they are also such a frequent time of year for many of us to … be experiencing holiday burnout.

I am going to be transparent with y’all: I have not had the easiest year. 2024 has been a great year for me in some ways, but it has also been a pretty tough year for me too and tougher than some years’ past I will say. I have previously mentioned this a bit over on my Instagram (let’s be friends @_thepinkchickadee) about how 2024 has not been the easiest walk in the park for me which I know many of y’all reading this now have experienced as well. And it is important to remember that in life some years are tougher than others and that is simply OKAY. Since 2024 has been pretty tough for me, I have mentally felt extremely exhausted and burned out by a lot of things going on in my life as the holiday season approaches and takes over our lives. As much as I LOVE this holiday season and adore ALLLL the Christmas things to do and ALLLL of the holiday cheer, I am also just simply tired and well burned out.

Social media IS a highlight reel folks! I will continue to share this here and over on my social media pages, too. There are real people behind every social media page being ran (well, we need to exclude the bots from this one!). But, when it comes to many of my fellow bloggers and content creators on social media, we are real people behind those screens. We are the ones out there hustling to create loads of content for y’all to be inspired by, be humored by, be informed by, or simply enjoy. Holiday season or not, we are curating content. And, most importantly, we all our human beings with lives. Our lives may look picture perfect on the outside, but day in and day out, we are simply humans with lives. Some of us have had GREAT years and some of us have had not so great years, too. Many of us may be feeling burned out this holiday season, too. Whether or not we have had a great 2024, we are all probably a little burned out.

PHEW! 2024 has been A LOT of a year for sure. However, I am striving to enjoy all of the moments that come with the holiday season and be selective in how I spend my time moving forward as Christmas is *literally* right around the corner as I write this which is literal insanity!!!

SO, with that all being said, I wanted to share a few ways that I have tried to curb some of my holiday burnout this season which have helped (Some of which I know will help YOU too!):

  • Prioritizing plans with others based on professional and family obligations as well as those that are more likely to bring us an extra dose of joy
  • Asking for support from loved ones and talking to them about what you’re experiencing
  • Partaking in self care activities
  • Being selective in doing activities (and with whom) that are going to refill our cups rather than drain them
  • Seeing where tasks can be automated (e.g. using ChatGPT to generate ideas or maybe buying store bought goods over baking them)
  • Doing activities that minimize screen time
  • Utilizing the help of others where needed
  • Removing/delaying tasks from our list that can wait for a rainy day to be completed

Above all else, if you are currently struggling with holiday burnout, just know that you are not alone this holiday season. There are SOOO many people in your shoes (me included!) who are experiencing the same exact thing as you. Remember to call or text a loved one who may be experiencing the same thing. Needless to say, experiencing holiday burnout SUCKS! None of us are alone. We are all in this together!

Happy Holidays!!!!

XOXO – Katie <3

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The Old Lucketts Store Holiday House 2024

I started going to the Old Lucketts Store Holiday House in 2022 and, needless to say, I fell *IN LOVE* with the year-after-year changes of the interiors of this Holiday House and have since made it an annual tradition to go! Truly, going to the Holiday House is SOOO special and I’m excited to take YOU on a tour of this year’s Holiday House!

Please note that this content is apart of my exploring the Washington, DC area series. For more information on planning your own trip to Washington DC (here), Northern Virginia (here), the Virginia Wine Country (here), Maryland (here), and beyond (here), please use the corresponding links for some recommendations and inspiration.

In case you didn’t know, the Holiday House is open only a few weeks each year (around Christmas time!) to the public at the Old Lucketts Store located in Lucketts, Virginia just outside of Lessburg, Virginia. The Holiday House’s interiors change each year, which makes it SOOOO exciting and enticing to returning visitors (like myself!). Merchandise is available for purchase inside the Holiday House alongside admiring the home’s beautiful Christmas decorations that transport you into a literal Hallmark Christmas fairytale. It is worth noting that the Holiday House IS a ticketed only entry until December 15 for the 2024 year. Murals, vendors, and food trucks are also open to the public, too, alongside *of course* the Old Lucketts Store. I highly recommend visiting the Old Lucketts Store at ANYTIME of the year, as it is definitely worth visiting whether for browsing or shopping or a bit of both!

Before I get into sharing my virtual Holiday House 2024 tour, I think it is worth noting that the staff of the Old Lucketts Store put in countless hours during an already busy time of year and love into making this happen. Without their hard work and dedication, the Holiday House wouldn’t be able to spread Christmas cheer for ALLL to hear. Hence, the Holiday House’s last day open to guests is December 15, 2024 so that staff can also enjoy the holiday season. If you ever make it out to the Old Lucketts Store, be sure thank a staff member!

While I won’t get into detail about the Holiday House, you can find my post from 2022 (and relive a past Holiday House while at it!!) where I do AND take a tour of 2023’s Holiday House, too! Now, let’s get into the 2024 Holiday House tour!

XOXO – Katie <3

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My Additional Ramblings on Loneliness in 2024

About 6 weeks ago, I shared a bit about my thoughts on loneliness in 2024 (here). Whilst, today, I have come to y’all again with some additional ramblings on loneliness in 2024. I will note that today’s additional words of mine have been apart of some ongoing conversations and content seen/watched on social media that have since become reflections in my head that I’ll be sharing today.

Before I get into the meat of my own ramblings on loneliness in 2024, I wanted to preface that I do see some potential solutions and hope to come from the ongoing loneliness that many of us feel these days. Even *yes, even* if we are getting out and about and find community with our friends and family, I still think that today’s world and climate of wanting to keep to ourselves more than embracing the company of others triggers a sort of feeling of loneliness that each of us feels at least to some extent. This post may come across as my own thoughts and reflections on what I find to cause major negative impacts to all of our mental and physical wellbeing’s. Yet, I still do firmly believe that there IS hope for our future I see. But, I think that it will take some collective effort on all of our parts to make it happen. In the next couple of weeks/months, I will begin to share more ways that I think we can embrace community into 2025 and beyond.

Like I said in my previous ramblings on loneliness in 2024 blog post, I think that the COVID-19 pandemic has ignited this loneliness epidemic which many of us are affected by (whether or not we realize it). Specifically speaking, I feel that younger generations who were students during the pandemic have lost a lot of social interactions which in turn has made them more prone to being severely impacted by the loneliness epidemic (not saying that other older generations haven’t felt the impact either though). For instance, I have seen multiple YouTube videos and Instagram Reels and TikTok’s emphasizing how GenZ specifically is super uncomfortable in social situations, doesn’t want to socialize/be around people, and is rather “doomed” when it comes to dating and making friends. GenZers themselves have also expressed that they feel as if they have a hard time making friends, no friends at all, and have experienced loneliness in high doses. Speaking from personal experience as someone apart of GenZ, I spent a quarter of my Junior year of college and the entirety of my Senior year of college cooped up in my bedroom at my desk as a fellow student  of “Zoom University”. Luckily, I had friends established before COVID-19 began that I would hang out with in my college apartment, over FaceTime and Zoom calls, and even doing outdoor activities to lessen the screen time and increase my personal time. However, if I had started college in the Fall of 2019 or the Fall of 2020 or even the Fall of 2018, I would have been in a much different situation when it came to college friendships. Now, as the classes of 2018-2020 have mostly graduated from college and entered into the workforce, many recent graduates are leaving college with little to no friendships and consequentially entering the workforce feeling lonely and fearful to socialize.

COVID-19 drastically affected the socialization of younger generations for the worse. Many “Zoom University” students have had a few years under their belt without socializing with others. Hence, the lack of comfortability that many of us feel with talking to others and feeling much more comfortable tending to ourselves. Alongside spending time at home tied to our desks and without face-to-face time, loneliness has become some sort of a rather comfort. The comfort of staying at home feels better than striving to put ourselves out there and face the fears we may have of being rejected, awkward conversations, and simply putting ourselves out there.

Like the younger generations, I feel that all generations feel less likely to put themselves out there beyond their daily duties and responsibilities. Even as I’ve previously stated in my last blog post, when walking my dog Rosie, other dog owners are less likely to embrace socializing with others dogs and their owners. In fact, I’ve become happily surprised whenever somebody does socialize with me and Rosie while we’re walking. And, I feel this same lack of socialization has contributed to the lack of community that we feel on a daily basis. We’re less likely to smile when passing by people on the streets, to greet and strike up a conversation with the baristas at our local cafes, and take part in little side conversations with those around us.

At the same time though, I think it’s vital to our mental and physical wellbeing’s to socialize with people, but also have some time to recharge on our own. Sometimes, we’re not in a social mood and that is OKAY. There needs to be a balance to the time we spend with others but also with ourselves and perhaps our pets who need socialization too. I do also find a major benefit to the world that we live in technologically to stay connected to and make friends with people from all across the world. My blogging platform via Instagram has brought me some of my best friends whom I have since met in real life. I have seen the same type of friendships happen for some of my friends in fandoms for an artist, brand, etc. Virtual connections can lead to some of THE BEST in real life connections whom become long distance best friends (like some of my many college and childhood friends, too!). ALSO, virtual connections can become great friendships that remain virtual, too. Through it all though, down time and virtual connections are beneficial in the long run, regardless of if we feel loneliness at an all-time high.

At the end of the day, I firmly believe that while there are some not so great affects of the COVID-19 pandemic to our social lives hence igniting the loneliness in 2024 (and beyond) epidemic on a whole other level, there is also a major shift in our communities. Rather, there are some struggles that many of us face as it pertains to loneliness day in and day out, but these struggles will furthermore lead into a cultural shift in how we view community and how community is viewed. And, hopefully moving forward, we can perhaps establish more connections with our neighbors and those around us and maybe give some homemade chicken noodle soup when others need it most alongside some welcome baked goods to the newbie around town. I remain hopeful through it all that we’ll come out stronger than ever before and find new ways to bring communities to ourselves and with those around us, too.

XOXO – Katie <3

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The Life of Katie!

It’s been a HOTTTT minute since I last did a Life of Katie post. And, that is all for good reason, too! I have been on not one, not two, but THREE trips (more on that below!). When it comes to blogging while traveling, awhile back I made the executive decision to not post much on the blog and even on social media for that matter while I’m on the road. I like to truly be in the moment when not at home and have even added the same value to my weekends and other social outings, too, which is an additional time off for me. Rather, through it all, I’m preferring to share ALL types of content afterwards rather than while I am there. Now, enough of me rambling about my timing of posting content – LOL!!!! – and let’s get into some recent life updates.

*Disclaimer: Please note that this post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase through one of my links, then I will receive a small commission. This commission is at no extra cost to you. Additionally, this post is sponsored, and all opinions are my own.*

  • Trips to West Virginia, New York City, & Toronto – Over the November weeks, I have been on the go from wonderful Harpers Ferry, West Virginia (here) to the Big Apple (more on that coming soon!) and allll the way to Toronto to see Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour (more on that coming soon as well!). I had an amazing time on each trip, too! Needless to say, I have LOVED getting to visit several places both close to home and either a train or plane ride away. HOWEVER, I am SOOO glad to be able to be at home to ring in the holidays!
  • Decorating for Christmas – A few days after my final big travel hurrah of 2024, I decked the halls for Christmas 2024! Let’s just say that from now until January, I will be *very* reluctant to leave my cozy little Christmas pad!!!

  • Six The Musical + Additional Outings Around Town – Right after I got back from Toronto, I made my way into downtown Washington, DC to see Six The Musical at National Theatre. Six has been on my bucket list of shows to see ever since it came to Washington, DC in Summer 2022 (sadly I couldn’t score a ticket then) and discovered that it was about the 6 wives of Prince Henry the 8th. The musical is 100000% about women’s empowerment, which was truly felt through the audience. I am SO excited to see it again (perhaps in New York City’s Broadway next?!?!). In addition to seeing Six, I also enjoyed some dinner and drinks with my friend Celeste at Brass Rabbit Pub – an adorable bar in Clarendon in Arlington – alongside an adorable cafe outing with my friend Maggie to the super cute Rare Birds Coffee Roasters in Falls Church.

Rare Birds Coffee Roasters
Brass Rabbit Pub
  • Friendsgiving 2024 – Over the most recent weekend, I hosted Friendsgiving for the 2nd year (!!!!!) and enjoyed having many of my friends over. Everyone brought a lovely dish to share and I cooked a ton, too. It was such a great time to enjoy with one another and simply be thankful for our friendships over the past year (and beyond!). I also enjoyed getting to model my gorgeous Ritera – aka a plus-sized fashion brand that sells adorable pieces at an affordable price point – dress (here) for the occasion, too!

  • Planning for the Actual Holidays – As the holidays approach, the planning for the actual holidays also comes as well. I am planning to spend the actual holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years) close to home in the Washington, DC area with family and friends with an additional post-Christmas trip to Maryland + Pennsylvania + New Jersey to see my family who resides in those states, too. I have proudly solidified all of my dates for where I will be and when (which is a MAJOR accomplishment for me to have done before Thanksgiving approaches!!!!). I am definitely celebrating that I have awareness of where I’ll be and when early on and excited for what’s to come.
  • Navigating ALLL the Upcoming Holiday Parties + Events – Alongside planning for the actual holidays and where I’ll be + when, I am also trying to navigate ALLL of the holiday-related plans, too. Whether it be a holiday dinner with friends, a holiday party, a work celebration, a family gathering, or an activity on my holiday bucket list, there is seriously SO MUCH GOING ON. It is tough to navigate at times, too, as I want to limit the amount of burnout I may experience from the heavier than usual social calendar. However, at the same time, I know that I will regret missing out on certain holiday gatherings as this time only comes once a year (and, I’m also super grateful that I am spending the weeks leading up to this crazy social time at home on my couch!!!).
  • A Beautiful Sunset Walk – Right before Halloween, my Mom and I went on a walk in her new neighborhood near the Potomac River. We *just* so happened to catch the sunset at the right time when we did (!!!!!). Luckily, I had brought my camera to capture the AMAZING sunset in ALLLL its glory, too!

  • Remember, It’s ONLY a Highlight Reel – Throughout the months of October and into November, I have been struggling mentally with some things in my personal life. While I won’t get into the details of it all, a lot of what has occurred has taken a toll on me. Stress and uncertainty can take A LOT out of any person! Needless to say, I am going to leave y’all with a reminder that social media (and most of this blog for that matter) is a ONLY highlight reel. Next time you go through something tough or less social media like, remember that all of us are going through similar things, too.

Happy Holiday season folks!!!

XOXO – Katie <3

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