10 Things I’ve Loved Lately

To say since I announced I’m moving to Chicago life has been taking off at bullet-train speed would put it lightly. Quite frankly I’ve had to decide where my energy goes and unfortunately, blogging for two weeks was so low on my radar I couldn’t post on social I was taking a break. You all are extremely sweet and have reached out and thank you so, so, so much. You are so much more than just readers, you’re part of my story and I appreciate what you have invested in me. Anyway, all of that said, let’s try to get back to a little normalcy and talk about 10 things I’ve loved lately.

Beauty & Skincare

I used to buy cute things. Now? I just buy coats. Coats, coats and more coats and pullovers. I’ve been shipping them to my office in Chicago so I’ve lost track of what I’ve actually ordered. If you want to read my favorite beauty items lately, click here!

• This wool moto jacket (I am SHOCKED where it’s from) has been in my cart since early-September and it finally went on sale. I’m very excited about this one and plan on it replacing one of my barely-hanging-on white coats.
• I LOVE THIS DRESS SO MUCH! I wear it at lease once a week. I also have this silk top which makes me feel very cool.
• I own a pair of Golden Goose shoes now. Yes, you read it right, BUT they aren’t what you think.
• I am an official Bean boot owner now, along with the pre-requisite pullover oh and another pullover (that covers your butt).
• Alice & Wonder is already one of my favorite Chicago stores and I’ve purchased this Chicago sweater, a cute dress and a Midwest Honey sweater.
• I am now the owner of a Dyson hairdryer and it is one of my favorite moments of 2020 (due to the sweet story of the person who bought it for me) and OMG I think it’s almost too much of a machine for me. I haven’t been able to truly master it yet but my hair ACTUALLY dries and my curl holds.
• And I’ve talked a million times about this leather jacket but you can’t tell me sh*t in it. I love it so much and have it in multiple colors now.

The New Job

I’ve been in my new role since the beginning of October. I love it! It’s been wonderful to get back to my marketing roots and see how much I’ve grown and approaching things differently. I’m glad my career path gave me an opportunity to learn other skills, but my at my core, I light up when I’m in a true marketing role. Brand development has always been where I’ve wanted to focus and this role allows me be to own creative and brand development for every single item within our organization. While many would find the granular detail needed for the decisions I make to be daunting, I get an adrenaline rush thinking about the impact they make.

Asking What If?

I really set myself up for a lot, without even knowing it, when I started asking what if instead of saying no. In true Alissa-fashion, we went from 0-100 really quickly on the WHAT IFs. Heck, the last time I said what if I took a new job and moved to Chicago

Letting Go and Setting Boundaries

If a global pandemic, changing jobs and moving across the country wasn’t enough to spur me to let some stuff go (literally and figuratively) and think about how I want to sort of “restart,” I don’t know what will. Like I’ve talked about before, people tell you who are they, listen to them. In the midst of a pandemic, if people can’t respect your boundaries or choices, they never will. This is literally the time you learn who will be there for you. Stand firm in your boundaries and walk away when you need to. There’s nothing wrong with just saying something doesn’t serve you anymore and not making time for it.

I feel like all of us are on edge waiting for the rest of the years events to unfold. We’ve got the election coming up and please remember to take care of yourself, wear a mask, stay home as much as you can and help us try to get to a better place. I know its exhausting. Trust me, I’m so defeated about where we are that it’s hard to be optimistic, but we can do this!