Making, Loving, Thinking About, The Current Moment, and More
Roundup | February
Welcome to my monthly roundup post — a behind the scenes glimpse into what I’ve been up to.
🥨 Making
For someone who feels like she’s constantly thinking too much and not doing enough, I’ve created quite a lot. I guess that’s why I included “Celebrate or at least acknowledge every bit of progress.” on my list.
Messy art! My daughter and her classmates loved the invitation to make messy art! We learned about Jean Michel Basquiat who gave us permission to color outside the lines, add scribbles, cross out words, and notice what happens when we’re a bit more messy with our art making. It was a huge hit with the students and it was fascinating to see their personalities and styles shine through. I think oil pastels are my new favorite.
Our elementary school hosts a Global Community Night every year where families share their culture — with food, music, performances, art, conversation, and information. This year, I decided to learn how to bake pretzel bites — a bit of a mess, but so so good!
We’ve also been baking our own bread in a bread machine! It’s just plain white bread so far, but it tastes so much better (and is cheaper!) than store bought bread. I am starting to dream of making German bread in the oven, maybe one day. For now, I love that you can just dump all ingredients into the bread machine and let it do its thing.
I outlined sessions for my group coaching program, created slides, and came up with creative prompts & visualizations. I am really proud of myself for how thoughtful I’ve been. It will be a space for deep thinkers to gather and reflect together; to learn with and from one another; to experience what it can be like in a group. It will probably feel awkward at first, but a) I have activities planned that aren’t just “so, tell us a little bit about yourself” (cringe) to help build connection, and b) I already look forward to the moment in session #4 when we look back at how we’ve come together as a group.
I finished my first crochet sweater! And also I have plans to unravel it all again. I’m a bit disappointed that it doesn’t fit well, but my pride in having finished such a big project is greater. I used my leftover yarn to make a doll version for my daughter’s friend and already started one for my daughter.
💞 Loving
Some of you will be excited to hear that I started re-watching the Gilmore Girls!
💙💚 The Seahawks won the Super Bowl!! 💙💚 I knew next to nothing about American Football when I moved to the US in 2009. In 2013, our oldest son was born and the three of us spent many evenings on our basement couch watching Football together (well, he was my first, so actually, my husband and I watched while we propped up pillows to shield our precious baby boy from any screens! Oh how the times have changed.). My dear husband helped me understand the game, patiently answering all of my many questions. And then we ended up winning the Super Bowl that season, thanks to the Legion of Boom. Now, 12 years later, our kids have all played flag football, understand the game, and were able to sit through the first half of the Super Bowl + Bad Bunny’s amazing (AMAZING!) performance.
Rollerblading has been bringing me so much joy — whether on my own, with a friend, or with my children. Every once in a while we meet another rollerblader on the trail and the excitement is so special, I’m not sure how to put it into words.
We had two bobcats in our backyard! I was driving home with my kids and their friends one day when I looked over and saw an unfamiliar cat. My first reaction was: that’s a bobcat! And then I immediately doubted myself. It’s not that big! Maybe it’s just a cat with a short tail! And then a second one jumped upon a tree stump — with that same identical tail. After I sent a text to our neighborhood group chat, everyone checked their game cameras and found pictures of them. It was quite an exciting time! (not so much for our cat and chickens who weren’t allowed to go outside for a while).
Thinking About
Over the last few months, I’ve been experimenting with different spaces — as a participant and a host: Discord, live meetings, Signal chat, Substack chat, comments on posts, email… I keep thinking about how to strengthen this community here and foster closer bonds and I’m wondering: Should we experiment with a low key signal chat for a few months to see how that might feel?
I already asked my group of paid subscribers and let’s just say they weren’t exactly enthusiastic. I’m curious what ya’ll think!
📚 Reading
Since my last reading update I finished Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros (meh), James by Percival Everett (amazing! Book club discussion made it even better!), Filthy Animals by Brandon Taylor (weird + uncomfortable + strange and also tender + full of love + humanness), Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid (truly enjoyed but didn’t LOVE), and Book Lovers by Emily Henry (good). Now I’m reading To the Moon and Back by Eliana Ramage (thanks Sarah Teresa Cook for the tip!). I’m also excited to start The Fire This Time by Jesmyn Ward & The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin.
I do have a book recommendation request: I want to read more fiction by Black female writers. Share your recs in the comments or hit reply, please and thank you.
✊🏼 The Current Moment
Many places offer free training at the moment. I haven’t seen Right to Be mentioned much. I attended a free Bystander Intervention to Support the Immigrant Community last month and recommend it! Check out their training here: https://righttobe.org
I loved this interview with a Minneapolis organizer and resident: How to block ICE in your city
Our pretzel bites weren’t the only hit at our Global Community Night. Together, my children and I learned about resistance against the Nazis and created a poster board. Many parents thanked me for what I decided to share about my home country this year
🔗 Miscellaneous
27 Things I Don’t Know popped up in my inbox just I was finishing up You Know More Than You Think You Know. Creative prompt: make two lists. One of 27 things you know; and one of 27 things you don’t know.
So relatable: The 25 Stages of “WTF, I think I may be Autistic!”
How to disconnect from tech: Lots of practical ideas.
Design Your Creative House! Rachel Connor is hosting a free 3-day challenge to map the architecture of our creative lives (Friday 2/27-3/1). I’ll be participating. Want to join me?
The most challenging but also rewarding piece I write every month is my coaching column, Between the Lines. It’s a way for you to get a new perspective on a topic you’re navigating / feeling stuck on. I’d love to receive more questions / submissions. You can submit your topic here (or just reply to this email)
Curious about coaching with me? I have openings for new clients! We always start with an honest no-pressure connection call to see if we’re a good fit.
Learn more here: https://www.purposefulconnectioncoaching.com
“Coaching with you feels like having someone creative look at my brain and make me see the joy, curiosity, and playfulness at every opportunity. I suddenly see patterns and options that I may have known were there, but didn’t have access to. It’s fun looking at hard stuff with you.” —Sophie O’Sullivan, Management Consultant
Until next week!
With love,
Hanna
So many great shares! Thanks for all that. :)
My daughter and I are also watching Gilmore Girls ... but *gasp!* for the FIRST time. We're a little late to the party, but totally enjoying it. We are HUGE fans of Supernatural, so it's fun to see Jared Padalecki in a different role. ;)
Happy Ystävänpäivä