I’m back with another seasonal round up, sharing some favorites from March, April, and May 🙂 At the end of winter we came up with our “wish list” for spring which included finding a spring drink, going to the circus, checking out the new Flyover Experience in Chicago, visiting family on the west coast, trying a new restaurant that opened in Valparaiso, and seeing some spring flowers. We also went on a huge adventure in a new-to-us-both state that I can’t wait to write about more. We accomplished so much this spring and managed to check off everything on our list except trying the new restaurant. I’ve already got so many fun plans lined up for summer– I am living for these seasonal wish lists!
Podcasts
The Money with Katie Show
I feel like I’m kind of set in my podcast ways and don’t come across too many new shows these days. I heard about the Money with Katie podcast on one of my regulars and proceeded to binge a bunch of her episodes. Money conversations can be very boring (and scary) to listen to, but I’ve loved so many of the topics and have found a lot of value in Katie’s takes. There are a handful that have stuck with me, but I wanted to shout out one episode that inspired me to make a change right away after listening.
Beauty is $$$: How to Hop Off The “Hot Girl Hamster Wheel”
I’m on a money journey of my own right now, but I would have never thought I’d be able to stop splurging in the skin care department. I’ve always had skin issues, and in 2023, I started paying for regular facials. My esthetician also recommended products for me to use at home, so I bought those, too. I felt like my skin greatly improved, and it was money I was happy to spend. However, between the cost of the monthly treatments and the cost of the products, I don’t even want to know how much I was spending on skin care!
After I listened to this episode, it reinforced so many things about the beauty industry that I know intellectually but still get caught up in. “Hot girl hamster wheel” is the perfect way to describe it. I was very interested in the part where her guest shared what she actually does for her skin care routine, because it’s not something you can really skip altogether. Plus, taking care of my skin is important to me. I’ll never be that person to do just a splash of water and nothing else. The guest also shared some good information about how our skin actually works and the best “products” to use to complement our skin’s natural functions.
So what was her secret skin care routine? Cleansing with honey and moisturizing with jojoba oil. (And using a daily sunscreen.) That’s it. I was intrigued by the simplicity but skeptical. I assumed that since my skin doesn’t always cooperate, it would start freaking out once I stopped using all my other products (that I did truly like). But I’m happy to report, it’s been responding really well. It’s crazy to think of all the money I’ll be able to save now that I just have to spend about $7 on a jar of honey every so often as my cleanser and about $20 on a massive bottle of jojoba oil that will probably last the whole year.
I highly recommend checking out the Money with Katie feed if there’s a money issue you’ve been curious about! Her episodes share so much factual information while still being very approachable and entertaining.
The Lady Vanishes
I started listening to The Lady Vanishes back in 2019 when episode one first aired. Five years later, they just released the last episode. If you like true crime, I think you’d really like this podcast. It starts with the mystery of a missing woman from Australia in the 1990s. Her daughter has little to no information to go on because law enforcement totally botched the whole situation, but she knows something happened and won’t stop until she finds out where her mom is.
It’s a wild ride, in real time, of incredible investigative journalism. To think about where they started and what information they’ve been able to uncover is amazing. I’m sad that the podcast has come to an end, especially when it feels like just the beginning in some ways.
The Lady Vanishes on Apple Podcasts
Crime Analyst
On that note, I’d also like to recommend 15 episodes about the Marion Barter case on the Crime Analyst podcast. Since I listened to every single episode of The Lady Vanishes, I wasn’t sure how much I’d learn from these episodes. But I was fascinated enough by the case to listen anyways, and I’m so glad I did. The host, Laura, is a former analyst for New Scotland Yard, an expert on coercive control, and has an extensive background in the police.
Her guest for most of these episodes was someone whose name gets brought up a lot in The Lady Vanishes podcast but isn’t interviewed much on that show. It was so amazing to hear more details from her about the main suspect and to hear Laura’s expert profiling of this man. I absolutely binged these 15 episodes. If you don’t want to listen to 5 years of the back catalogue from The Lady Vanishes, I think you’d really enjoy this mini series about the “finale” of the case.
Shows
I’ve been trying to cut back on video content this year just because of how time consuming it is, and I’ve been trying to focus more on reading and writing instead. But I do love a good nature documentary, and I have to shout out this new one on Hulu called Queens. It’s narrated by Angela Bassett and has an epic soundtrack–so good! Highly recommend if you like any of the David Attenborough-type shows.
Wild Females: National Geographic’s Stunning New Show ‘Queens’ Dazzles
A Weekend in Seattle
My mom and I went to visit my brother in Seattle, and I got to visit one of my travel besties who lives there, too! I wanted to share some photo highlights of what we got up to. I’m trying to stay off Instagram as much as possible these days, so if I have photos I do want to share, I’ll be putting them on the blog instead 🙂
Kuhl
I was kindly gifted a pair of leggings from this company in 2022, which have since become a staple in my “outdoorsy/hiking” wardrobe. You can find those *here.* They kindly sent me a couple more items this year which was so nice, and I was so excited to put them to the travel test this spring!
I tried this pair of joggers which I thought would be perfect for days on the go but also hiking. Then I got this zip up hoodie because I felt like that was an area of my hiking wardrobe that was lacking. A staple layering piece is a must for an outdoorsy wardrobe!
I tried both during our big National Park trip in May. So far I am loving the versatility and style of the joggers. I really like the hoodie, too, but I feel like I need to wear it more to fully get my thoughts on it. Thanks Kuhl!
In Case You Missed It
The Chicago Flyover Experience is now open! Here are my thoughts on Navy Pier’s newest attraction. (We checked out the new Flyover Experience in Chicago and had a blast! I wrote about it here. If you live in the area, it’s totally worth planning a visit ASAP.)
Walking Stage 1 of the Camino de Santiago (Possibly my longest post to date? I wrote about my time walking the Camino last spring… it gets personal while also being very informative. Proud I finally got this one up!)
notes on social media (and travel content) (Something I’ve been thinking about for over 2 years… how social media was affecting my life and travels, what I’ve learned along the way, and what I’ve done about it.)
How BookTok is Reinvigorating This Travel Trend (Had so much fun writing about book tourism! Have you ever “booked” a trip based on this travel trend?)