Summer Reflection 2018

Summer 2018 was one to remember.

I always feel that I haven’t actually done much over the summer compared to ~everyone~ else, due to the time I have to spend dedicated to living that chronic illness life. While my peers were globetrotting or working a 9-5 internship, I was working on relaxing and taking care of myself. But looking back, I actually did quite a lot this summer! Let’s get into my summer reflection.

At the start of my summer break (I took my last final on May fourth, and moved out of my first year residence hall on May eighth) I shared a summer bucket list post, with a bunch of plans and “goals” for the summer. I say “goals” because they were less in the way of traditional goals and more in the way of ideas or potential achievements that I wouldn’t beat myself up about if I didn’t reach them, or my mindset changed.

But that’s besides the point.

Below are the main three things I had wanted to do this summer, followed by some smaller hopes and plans:

1. Visit a friend.
2. Go in the ocean.
3. Clean my room.

• I’m taking two online classes and fully intend to pass both with flying colors. Fingers crossed!
• I’m hoping to spiffy up the blog, and make sure all my old posts have the same bells and whistles as my new ones!
• Going through my clothes and handing off the things I no longer wear.
• Eat a snowball whenever there’s the opportunity. I love snowballs!
• Include more photos in blog posts! We’ll see how this goes, I make no promises.
• Finish watching the Mindy Project. I’m so close to being done!
• Do a couple of DIYs. I have a few in mind that I think would be perfect for my room when I move back to college in August. Of course, if they go well I’ll share them on here too!

Did I do everything I set out to do at the start of the summer? Absolutely not!

But some magical things I never could have expected happened this summer.

Some things that were both unexpected and out of my control kept me from being able to accomplish some of my goals.

That’s okay. Because hey, what is life if there’s not a little magic and mystery? I couldn’t do everything I wanted to do. But that makes the things I did accomplish feel that much more satisfying.

Overview of my big three goals:

1. Visit a friend.

If you follow me on Instagram, then you know that I visited Julia (the amazing woman behind the blogs Julia Does and The Empathy Collective) in August before heading back to my university for the fall semester. This trip was everything I needed and more, and I cannot be more grateful to have such amazing people in my life to call my friends. This was an adventure so good, it will be requiring a part two. Hey Julia, how’s a road trip sound?

2. Go in the ocean.

I did manage to go to the beach and get in the ocean, it was magical. I love the beach so much, yet I hadn’t been able to go for a few years now. It was really hot when I was there, so we only would go out late in the evenings or in the early mornings. Most people probably aren’t getting up on vacation with plans to be back inside by 8:00 am, but that was how we managed with my heat intolerance and temperatures in the triple digits.

3. Clean my room.

I sorta did this one. Not to the scale I would have liked but I did manage to clean out some things and rearrange/organize a few nooks and crannies that desperately needed it. My new goal is to sort out my desk when I’m home over winter break because that surface needs to be cleared desperately. Slow and steady is winning this race, but such is life with chronic illness.

What about the small goals?

Great question. Here are how those played out:

I passed both of my online classes! I’m so glad I took them online over the summer at my local community college instead of at my university, where they would have been much harder and much more stressful.

The blog was definitely made spiffier, courtesy of the new theme and design I put together over the summer! Getting it to be just as I wanted wasn’t easy, but totally worth it. The way it is now, I will more easily be able to implement small changes in the future if I so choose.

Sorting my clothes was a big part of the work I did in my room this summer and it was so worth it. I was able to pre-pack for my return to my university over the summer, and prepare for what I would be needing as things got colder, as well as take out all the things I didn’t need anymore. It felt so good to free up some space in my drawers!

Yes, I definitely took advantage of any and every snowball opportunity. Check, check, and check.

If you’ve been following along on the blog, for a while, you may have noticed I’ve been including more photos lately! It’s a bit difficult for some posts and can make them take longer to put together, but in the end I do quite like the look of my posts when they’ve got some photos throughout.

I did not finish the Mindy Project, but now that I’ve been reminded of it, I may just get back into it and finish it up! This was definitely a good summer for TV shows for me, but that’s a discussion for another post…

I don’t think I did any DIYs this summer. Honestly, I don’t remember, so probably not. But I still had a blast, rested up, and accomplished so much more than I expected!

What else happened this summer?

Summer by Numbers:

• Used my eno: 9 times
• Blog posts published: 21
• Flights: 2
• Walks around the block: 23
• Snowballs eaten: 11
• Beach days: 4
• Doctors appointments: 21
• Classes taken: 2

Exciting happenings this summer:

• I learned I can pull off long earrings.
• I accidentally sent a direct message to one of my favorite entrepreneurs I follow on Instagram. She responded.
• I tried brownies again for the first time in four years! Fun fact: when it’s gluten and dairy free, dark chocolate DOESN’T make me sick. It wasn’t the cocoa after all!
• I got to see my sister’s first race of the season at a swim meet.
• My service dog got to experience the beach for the first time!

• I drove through a drive through for the first time.
• I smashed my summer Twitter and Pinterest goals. Both before it was even June!
• I made a super ambitious summer blogging plan after a night where inspiration struck.
• I attempted a spending freeze! It went really well.
• I read two books! This is a really big deal for me. You can read all about my reading goals and a bit on my struggles with reading in this post.

• My mom and I drove all the way home from vacation in one day. It took us 11 1/2 hours and we stopped at Chick-Fil-A twice. That’s why we don’t travel on Sunday’s.
• I had my first medical testing that required fasting.
• I was nominated for a WEGO Health award! Thank you to all who supported me.
• I started listening to Spotify again and found some playlists I really like to wake up to in the morning.
• Patience and Pajamas turned two!
• I voted for the first time!

• I published five blog posts in one week! This was quite a big deal for me, as I put a lot of time and energy into putting together blog posts, and never thought I could manage five in just a week!
• I got my license!
• I made pasta sauce from scratch! It was really fun and I’m hoping to get the opportunity to do it again when I’m home over the next long break.

I published 21 blog posts!

• May Holidays and April Wrap-Up 2018
• The 7 Most Helpful Gifts I Received for High School Graduation
• Second Semester Reflection
• June Holidays and May Wrap-Up 2018
• Summer Bucket List
• What’s in My Hospital Bag? Infusion Edition
• Everything I Bought for my College Dorm
• 5 College Necessities Worth Splurging On
• Everything You Need for Your Bed in College
• 3 Ways to Help Save Hundreds Shopping for Your College Dorm
• July Holidays and June Wrap-Up 2018
• I’ve Been Nominated for a WEGO Health Award!
• My College Reading List
• Patience and Pajamas Turns Two!
• Flying with POTS: How I Prepare and What I Bring
• August Holidays and July Wrap-Up 2018
• 4 Hours in Charleston, South Carolina
• Charleston, South Carolina Photo Diary
• 9 (Unexpected) Things that Might Happen When You Go to College
• Third Semester Goals
• 7 Mistakes I Made My First Year of College

Wow. That’s a lot! I was at first disappointed in the amount of blogging I got to over the summer break, but looking back I’m actually quite proud of the material I published! Some of the above blog posts very quickly sky-rocketed to being amongst the top posts I’ve ever shared on Patience and Pajamas, which was totally unexpected!

Overall, it was an amazing summer. I feel like there’s more I should include in this summer reflection, but this is all I can think of!

The bar has been set for next summer. Some exciting plans are already in the works and I have tons of blogging ideas! Maybe if I can catch a break this semester I’ll get to do some blogging and get things prepped ahead of time. Then again, perhaps I should focus on fall and winter content first!