2018 was a year. I struggle to find adjectives to describe it. There were some not great things about this year, but I’m wanting to share the good stuff. Today, I’m going to share some favorites that you could go and check out.

Books

I accomplished my reading goal this year of 40 books. By next weekend, I’ll probably actually be 2 ahead of that. It was over 14,000 pages. I think the main reason this happened was the front porch. Having a comfortable place to sit with no distractions was wonderful. Looking back at the year, I wanted to share the five books that I’ve recommended to others the most or that stick with me. They are in no order:

  1. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
  2. Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
  3. The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah
  4. Educated by Tara Westover
  5. Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown

Screen Stuff

As far as things on the screen this year, I didn’t do as much watching this year. I definitely have a few favorites though. We actually saw a couple movies in the theater which was a fun treat. My three favorite movies that came out this year were:

  1. A Star is Born
  2. Crazy Rich Asians
  3. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before

With TV, we rewatched some old favorites like Family Matters and so many episodes of the Office, but we did watch some new shows as well. We have about a million things on our “to watch” list, but these moved to the top this year and I would highly recommend them if you haven’t watched yet.

  1. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
  2. The Good Place
  3. Ozark

Ear Candy

I’ve shared my favorite podcasts in the past in 2016 and 2017, but I’ve found some great new ones in the last year. I still listen to a lot of the ones in the past and I usually read the episode description before diving in. Podcasts definitely help me get through the day in the office if I need to have my headphones in, plus they are great for any long travel days.

  1. Armchair Expert
  2. Hysteria
  3. Keep It
  4. Skimm’d from the Couch
  5. Last Name Basis

Topping my Spotify playlists this year were Bastille, Cardi B, Dispatch and Kasey Musgraves. I realize that those are all a bit different, but who listens to just one kind of music?? How boring.

Other Recommendations

And lastly, my favorite purchases of the year. We really tried to focus on getting rid of things this year, but there are few items I feel obligated to share with you.

  1. Frozen cookie dough already balled into single cookies. We use Sweet Martha’s dough, but we keep them in the freezer and put one on a pan anytime we want a warm cookie.
  2. Plaine Products Shampoo & Conditioner. This company is awesome because you get your first set (I just did mine on Amazon) and then when it’s done, you order from their website and they will send you a package to send your previous empty containers back so they can be reused. No wasted plastic, plus the scent is wonderful.
  3. The Overnight Resurfacing Peel. This stuff makes my skin glow. I’m way too cheap to ever get a facial, plus I like to self care from my own home. You just rub this peel into your skin, wait 5 minutes and then put on moisturizer. No peeling or scrubbing anything off. It’s amazing.
  4. The Classic Boat Neck Sweater from Old Navy. I bought this in 3 colors and I wear them all the time. They are long, inexpensive and not to clingy. I’m a big fan.

That about rounds out my favorites post. I’ll be sharing some favorite moments of the year later this week, but I wanted to get this post written to join the annual link up on Steph’s blog – check it out here. Hope you had a very Merry Christmas.

Tell me what shows, books, pods or purchases were your favorites this year so I can add some things to my 2019 list.