Sundaze 289: Dublin, home tweaks and the everyday mundane

Happy Sundaze, my loves!

If there was one thing I learned last year, it was to make time to do nothing. Because, as much as I am a homebody at heart, there’ll be plenty of ‘things’ to add to the diary and then, before you know it, you’re frazzled, stretched too thin, you haven’t got enough me-time to recharge yourself. And that’s exactly the mantra I’ve kept in mind so far this February. Between Lunar New Year, celebrating my boyfriend’s Mum’s 60th birthday and moving, I’ve been giving myself grace for not doing anything elsewhere in the month.

Do you often struggle with the balance?

I recommend reframing downtime so it isn’t ‘just’ at weekends, or reframing weekends so they’re not ‘just’ for the bigger plans.

Galentine’s Day

This month of love has felt so very sweet to me.

I’ve had a rough few months in friendships lately, so it was really special to celebrate Galentine’s Day with my girlfriends and spend some time lifting each other up – not that we don’t already. My girls and I had a mid-week dinner date where we exchanged cards and roses and other such treasures, and it was such a tonic to see them all on a random Wednesday, especially since I’d had a bad day at work. We laughed, chatted and smiled ear to ear all night, then made more plans to do this way, way more often.

And, in the same week, two of my colleagues and I ventured out for a girls’ dinner after work. We quickly realised a few weeks into working together that we not only had the same taste in food, but we had the same interests and attitude to life. So began our mini supper club! It was another really heartwarming evening, and I left feeling so content.

A weekend in Dublin (and Valentine’s Day!)

I’m sharing a ’48 Hours in Dublin’ blog post tomorrow morning, but, yes, we went to Dublin last weekend! We surprised my boyfriend’s Mum for her birthday and had a wet and windy time celebrating over in Ireland. It was a lovely mini city break and I was struck by how literature-focused the city was! Since it was Valentine’s Day, too, my boyfriend whisked us away – just the two of us – for an incredible meal at Glas, a twice-Michelin starred vegetarian and vegan restaurant. The food was so good, and I’m planning a standalone review post for it too.

Little home updates

Aside from girls’ dinners and a long weekend away, we’re enjoying quiet evenings at home, pottering away at house projects. At the moment, that looks like organising the kitchen, clearing out the cupboard under the stairs, painting my office room, and measuring up for new carpets. I’m trying to be patient because I know that homes take a long time to come together, but I’m equally really excited to get things done. This week, our coffee table arrived and my office/library room was painted!

Links I’ve Loved

Making these ‘Marry Me’ chickpeas immediately.
Our very own Gem has joined Substack! Subscribe to The Mother Cooker for food musings and delicious recipes (albeit non-vegan, FYI!).
Adored this ‘Devotion to a beautiful life’ piece I read on Substack recently.