Life Update – What’s New in 2020
Hey friends - Happy New Year! It's a new decade, and the Year of the Rat according to the Chinese lunar calendar. We've been pretty quiet lately on the blog and social media as we've been super busy with some major life changes lately. But we thought we'd check in and fill you in on what's new in 2020.
OUR BIG NEWS
First and foremost, our biggest news is that we are expecting a baby boy in April! We are super happy and excited, and praying for a smooth and healthy delivery. We also moved into a new house recently, and have spent the past few weeks unpacking and getting organized. I'm in full-blown nesting mode, and am having so much fun getting the house decorated and ready for baby.
DAY TO DAY LIFE
Work and school have also been taking up a lot of our time these days. Adam has been working extra hard lately at work as a programmer in market research and steadily getting better playing the guitar. And I've taken on a full load of classes and clinic to complete my acupuncture program at Pacific College. I'll be taking the summer off to care for the baby, and plan to graduate in December 2020. In about a year I will be a licensed acupuncturist and Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine. I love working with alternative medicine and look forward to building my acupuncture career in the future. In the meantime, if you are in the San Diego area, you can come see me for a treatment at our school clinic on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday mornings from 9AM-1PM. You can call the clinic at 619-574-6932 to make an appointment. This is me with some of my classmates and supervisor at the Pacific College clinic.
A MAJOR LIFESAVER
One thing that has been getting us through this busy season is good ol' Splendid Spoon! Click here for $50 off your first order. These plant-based soups and smoothies come ready-to-eat, and have helped us save so much time meal planning, grocery shopping and cooking these past few months. They also changed their packaging this year to reduce waste, and I'm happy to report that their packaging is now 100% recyclable.
HOT TOPICS IN SUSTAINABILITY
In sustainability news, here are a few links we recommend you check out.
- We've talked about problems with the dairy industry in the past, and in the past few years we've majorly cut back on cow's milk consumption. But there's also bad news for almond milk aficianados. Not only is the almond industry a huge water consumer, it's also wreaking havoc on the bee population. The good news is that there are plenty of other alternative milks out there. Our favorite is oat milk for its creamy, delicious flavor. Hemp milk and hazelnut milk are also great options to consider. You can read more about the pros and cons of various milk alternatives here.
- Netflix released a fascinating documentary series late last year called Broken. The episode called Recycling Sham sheds light on the sorry state of the recycling industry and the problem with single-use plastics. It's a riveting must-watch, and will inspire you to work even harder to cut back on single-use plastic consumption this year.
- You may have heard about the devastating bushfires in Australia earlier this year that killed 33 people, destroyed millions of acres of natural habitat, and took the lives of countless animals including tens of thousands of koalas. Thankfully, most of the fires are contained at this point thanks to heavy rains in recent weeks. Still, the country is absolutely devastated and will take a long time to recover. Check out this link to see how you can donate to help those affected.
ONE MORE THING
And one more fun thing before we sign off for now. We have been planning our wedding for later this year, and recently tried some cakes at one of my favorite dessert spots in San Diego Extraordinary Desserts. They have decadent, delicious, and beautifully presented cakes in so many flavors. We are thinking of doing a three layer cake with passion fruit, white chocolate raspberry, and chocolate mousse flavors. Sounds delicious, right? But I think I might need to taste a few more cakes before I'll be ready to make a final decision - you know, just to be extra certain.
