Catch Up With Christina 2.11
a weird work dream + neighbor competition + vday party plans
CURRENTLY INTO
Watching: Cannot wait to binge the new season of Love Is Blind while I work today. Nothing like background reality TV while knocking out my taxes.
Shopping: Party prep for our 3rd annual neighborhood food competition this weekend. This year’s theme is Apps & Desserts, and I’m way too excited about it. You can check out our previous Soup Competition and Chili Cook Off parties.
Eating: Recipe testing for my entries in this year’s competition. Hosting on Valentine’s Day felt like the perfect excuse to lean into fun appetizers and desserts.
Reading: I have about 40 pages left of All The Little Raindrops and it’s definitely my favorite book of the year so far!
Listening to: Currently looking for my next audiobook…
Loving: These Willie’s Remedy+ Seltzers as a fun alcohol alternative option lately. They give a light, happy, euphoric buzz without the hangover. I have a code if you want to try them. Use CHRISTINA15 for 15% off.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Put these banana pancake bites on your weekend breakfast list!
A round-up of stunning resort recommendations along Florida’s shores.
If you’re a fan of the classic French 75, you’re going to LOVE this Raspberry French 75!
PSA – Valentine candy on sale at Target! Added these to my pick-up order for both kids.
I just finished Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage and gave it 4 stars! This story about the unraveling of a 20 year marriage pulled me in right away and is honest, messy, thought-provoking, and beautifully written.
Our Valentine’s Day breakfast tradition plus some festive Valentine’s Day decor.
A great movie rec for watching with your tween daughter.
10 Valentine’s Day Recipes…including the BEST STEAK recipe ever.
Your most clicked links last week: The book I shared about finding comfort in little reminders that loved ones who have passed are still close in a different way, my go-to tween boy gift I purchased twice last week for birthday parties, this soothing muscle lotion helping my sore muscles and achy joints (use CHRISTINA15 for 15% off), and the plate bowl that really is the perfect hybrid dish for anything and everything.
THOUGHT DROP
Earlier this week I had a dream I returned to my career in Big Law…and quit at the end of my first day. I woke up laughing because it felt so real, and also because it made me realize how much life has changed since then.
This month marks 4 years since I left the corporate world and started working on Carolina Charm full time. When people used to ask me how I managed a corporate job, this business, a husband with a demanding job, and two busy kids at the same time, I always shrugged it off and said we just made it work. Now when I look back, I honestly ask myself the same question. I do not know how we did it. I just know I felt stressed and anxious most of the time, and I did not love that version of myself as a mom. Not because I was working, but because I had zero margin. Everything felt rushed, reactive, and like I was always just slightly behind.
Leaving corporate was never about escaping work. I still work a lot. If anything, running your own business has its own kind of pressure. But the biggest change has been flexibility and timing. Our mornings feel calmer. Evenings feel less like a race. And now that we are in the middle school years, I can see even more clearly how valuable that shift has been. While this stage is still heavy on logistics, it requires more presence now too. The conversations are bigger. The emotions are bigger. And being available when the kids hop off the bus has been a part of this season that I did not realize I would value so much.
Four years later, what I feel most is perspective. Every season of life asks something different from us, and this season has been about slowing down just enough to be more present for it. I do not think there is one right way to do any of this. I just know that this version of life feels more aligned for our family right now, and I am grateful to recognize that while we are in it.
XO
