This year felt really hard in a lot of ways.
And I don’t know about you but the hard things overshadow the good things a lot of the time.
And the daily joys, the little things get forgotten quickly when we move through the months and the seasons that it all just feels like a blur of life with only the big dips and highs being the things we remember.
So I did an exercise for myself
Instead of just making a recap of all the clients I worked with and things I did this year (a literal highlight reel), I opened my calendar starting in January and scanned through each month to remind myself of the good, hard, and in between. The life that I lived.
I scrolled through each month and jotted down anything that stood out to me that had an emotion tied to it.
It honestly didn’t even take that long and it felt really good to recognize both the ups and downs. To see all the good things that happened while also acknowledging the not so easy things that I made it through. Some might call that balance.
So if you’re looking for a new way to look back on your year maybe this is it! Do it in the medium that feels good to you. Digitally like this, or in a notebook, or scrapbook style, or do it with a friend and take turns sharing your months. There’s no wrong way.
Here we go… my 2025 in ups and downs, the good and the hard, the lived life.
My bestie came to visit me for my birthday and we did all the best things! Spa, coffees, indoor gardens
Our washer and dryer died
We got to go to Mexico with the whole family!
I got a virus there and was incredibly sick for the next 2+ months (check your travel vaccines , friends)
I had a busy spring for photo shoots and new clients!
I decided to shut down my Wonder & Co dreams and went through the emotions and grieving that came with that
Put on my first photography workshops!
Matt dislocated his elbow
Did a dream shoot with a dream client at a dream location (check it out here!)
My 8 year old got dental surgery and my mom-heart broke watching it
Went to PEI for a family vacation!
Had to buy a new car… unexpectedly
Did solo trips to Toronto and Montreal to see friends
Officially closed down more Wonder & Co things which reopened up a lot of feelings
Another trip to see a friend
Had to cancel a workshop I was excited to put on, but realized it wasn’t the right timing
Did family photos after having to reschedule them 3 times since June
Realized I had let some fears grow over the year and that it had been draining me mentally… but recognizing it actually felt good.
Hosted my first Gathering in over a year!
Look a mini trip to Montreal with my family and it was so good.
First Christmas that Matt is home… ever!
If you were to ask me what I did in 2025 I would've said something like, "Not much", while internally spiralling that it was a blur and not many good things happened.
But this has reminded me that there was SO much joy! I took way more trips then I thought, grew my business in new and different ways, checked things off my life list, and grew as a person (because through the hard things there is always learning).
So here's to 2026.
May it be a year filled with joy, purpose, growth and ease.
I read a LOT as a kid and teen. And somewhere along the way in my 20’s and beyond I guess I stopped?Except for the Twilight trilogy - for some reason I squeezed that one into my life and will stand by it being the masterpiece that it is.
Eventually motherhood came along and there definitely was zero thought given to reading for a bunch of those years.
But when my kiddos were 4 and 5 we moved to a new part of town and while we were walking around and exploring the neighbourhood I discovered a Free Little Library tucked away on someone’s yard. I opened it up and browsed the books, grabbing one that looked had a good cover. In that split second moment I decided I was going to read ONE book that year.
We continued walking and found our way to a playground so while the kids played I opened the book and started reading.
I probably only read a page or two that day, but it was more than I had read in years. And I needed that.
(The book was The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner if you’re wondering)
After that book, and rediscovering the magic of reading, I gave myself a very Amy-type-goal the following year:
Read four books
I read ten.
Nineteen the year after that. And twenty-three the year after that (although by then I wasn’t keep track of the number and just adding them to my GoodReads as I went).
Now it’s just a part of life. My favorite pastime and what I will choose nine times out of ten over scrolling my phone.
And it all started with an in-the-moment decision five years ago that, if I want to really go deeper, was me choosing myself. Something I hadn’t done in a long time.
Sometimes when you need a shift in life it doesn’t have to be this huge thing with goals and overthinking. Sometimes it’s just a choice you make and it unlocks something bigger.
You’re allowed to follow that.
Some of my couldn't-put-down books since my (re)discovering of reading:
I’m experiencing a space in motherhood that I haven’t heard anyone talk about before.
I keep saying that it feels like when we hear empty-nesters talk about when the kids are grown and move out there’s a rediscovery of who you are and what you do without them there.
I’m far from that moment. But yet.
There’s a space in between. When your kids shift from little kid to just kid.
When they still need you, but not for every thing.
They still say “mom, mom, mooooom” a million and a half times a day, but it’s not because they can’t do something themselves. It’s because you’ve always been there.
Being their source for everything, being needed all the time, being that expectation.
Then one day they walk home from the school bus without you (because they’ve requested to do it by themselves now).
They burst in the front door with shoutouts of whatever chaos they ended their day with. Backpacks tossed in the hall, lunches emptied out on the kitchen counter.
They have their own end-of-day routine that you watch unfold from your corner of the couch where you’ve been reading for the past 20 minutes.
Last year your day would’ve ended here too. There wouldn't have been a couch and reading time, just a mad rush to finish things up before the "pick up kids" alarm blasts from your phone.
You’d be the one emptying the backpacks, comforting the meltdowns, taking care of all the things. No time for sitting, reading, you.
But now. Now you’re in the in between.
You still need to make the dinners, but you don’t have to worry about crying, overtired kids while you do it.
The survive-until-their-bedtime days are no longer.
Now in the in between everyone puts their dishes away (or at least closer to the dishwasher than before). Everyone goes to do their own things and you pick up your book again.
You actually read a chapter.. two… three before someone asks you for something. And when they do you can decide if it’s something you actually need to do or if it’s a parenting moment of “do it yourself, kiddo”.
They watch their own shows, but still cuddle with you.
They want to go for a walk around the block with you, hold your hand, and tell you all about their video games in a language you only half understand.
They still want you to put them to bed, but not read stories and sing anymore.
I wish I knew that the last time I sang the bedtime song was the last time. There’s a bittersweetness in not knowing when it happened.
I’m sure there are more in between stages to come. Ones I won’t know about until I’m living it. Ones no one else seems to talk about.
But in this one, at this very moment, I’m grateful to know I'm in it.
I stand in my house, when everyone is home, and wonder ‘what am I supposed to be doing?’.
No, not supposed to.
Not what the internet tells me is self-care and that I ‘should' do xyz to be whole and balanced.
Strip all that away and get to the real questions that sit in my mind as I stand there not knowing what to do.
What is it that I want to be doing?
What feels soul-filling to me now - as the person I am today?
What do I even like doing?
The space in between starts with unsuspecting moments where these questions find me.
Then it happens more often and more often and in longer moments.
That’s when I start looking for the answers.
I think I'll find them in the in between.
xo Amy
If that doesn’t sound like a blog name from 2010 I don’t know what does.
The other day my 7 year old came home from school telling me that they had to list their favorite things and he said his favorite food was cinnamon buns. Something we rarely buy and I usually only make at Christmas. Which doesn’t sound right because they’re one of my favorite foods too so why don't we have them more often?
In that moment my belief that we shouldn’t save things for special occasions flared brightly and I told him I’d make them soon.
Long story
Years ago, before babies, a friend and I were talking and she said how she wanted to learn how to make cinnamon buns from scratch. I had never done it either so we got together and learned! They were delicious as all sugar and cinnamon infused bread is, and also surprisingly not that hard to make even for people that had never made any bread-yeast type thing before.
A while later my husband got into the homemade sourdough thing (*he would like noted it was before the 2020 craze of everyone doing it. We were mostly done with it by then haha) so eventually I started making sourdough cinnamon buns which were next level.
This is the sourdough cinnamon bun recipe I used to use. You obviously need to have sourdough starter for it and it does take longer to make.
But since we don't have starter anymore I tried out a new recipe and give it 10/10 for ease of making it and the end result. Will be doing this one from now on!
Soft and Gooey Homemade Cinnamon Buns (I did the overnight steps and it worked perfect. Baked for 30 minutes the next morning)
So pour yourself a coffee and get that flour out. Make sure it’s a random day and not just a special occasion. They'll taste even better then 😉
What does joy look like?
Joy is a quiet moment all alone. Just me and my thoughts.
Joy is a chaotic house when the kids burst in the front door after school with so much to say.
Joy is a sweet, hot latte with caramel-y foam and long, slow sips.
Joy is fizzy lime water in a fancy cup with the bubbles sprinkling your nose as you drink it.
Joy is thinking about a book when you're not reading it because it's that good.
Joy is finding a new series to watch and seeing it wraps up after three seasons.
Joy is going into nature, crunching leaves, sun on your face, smell of trees, birds singing, water rushing.
Joy is being cozy on the couch with sweatpants and a big fluffy blanket.
Joy is being wanted - not needed.
Joy is being needed and loved.
Joy is endless summer.
Joy is cool days, leaves changing color and starry lights.
Joy getting a text that makes you laugh and reply with too many emojis.
Joy is not getting any messages all day.
Joy is connecting deeply with someone and conversations that light you soul on fire.
Joy is bonding with someone over something small and silly when you both get it.
Joy is watching your kids become independent and their own selves.
Joy is your kids still wanting to share it all with you.
Joy is knowing yourself.
Joy is discovering something new about yourself and recognizing that it's okay to change and evolve.
Joy is seeing your plant get a new leaf and that you had a part in that happening.
Joy is getting rid of a plant that just needs to go. Release it.
Joy is getting a new planner for the year and writing your name in the front page.
Joy is finishing a planner and knowing it's a diary of how much you've been through this year.
Joy is long talks in the dark at bedtime.
Joy is uninterrupted sleep and waking up on your own.
Joy is the color yellow. And blue. And pink. And purple.
Joy is the color black at just the right place and time.
Joy is scents connected to memories that give you flashbacks.
Joy is songs that transport you back to certain places.
Joy is personal. It's yours. It doesn't need to be justified.
Joy is _________.
I used to have a lifestyle blog.
It was 2014 I was newly married, living in a new city and craving a creative outlet for myself.
Ironically I was already a “creative” - I'm a photographer! But at that time I was mostly photographing big events and conferences. Corporate dudes in suits in big office towers and assisting other photographers on their jobs.
I loved it, but I wasn’t doing a lot on my own yet. When people asked me what I wanted to take pictures of I’d say some version of “people with businesses doing what they love” and “pretty things”. I desperately wanted to find people who loved what they did and help them share that with the world through photos. I wanted to create pictures that were inspiring and encouraging to not only the person in the photos, but to everyone that would see them too.Yes, nowadays this sounds a lot like branding photography.
But back then that term didn’t exist yet.
I emailed so.many.businesses and tried to explain to them how this kind of photography could help them and what it would do for their businesses. No one got it.
So I decided to do it to myself. I started a blog called, The Lovely Things, where I would share the lovely things in my life. Things I loved, things I made, things I did. I would write about it all, but I would also take photos for every post. And these photos? They were what lit me up.
Slowly, unintentionally, the blog grew. I did some sponsored posts, had products sent to me and was given some fun opportunities (I did love this part!), but at the core I was doing it for the love of it. For creating. For discovering things that I enjoyed making, eating, doing. Looking at common places as adventures and documenting them along the way.
Doing all this at a slower pace that wasn’t about instant posts and realtime social media was also a big part of it. Yes, I did use Instagram for it too eventually but at the beginning it was a thrill to do the thing, make the post, and publish the post. No ‘likes’ or comments. Just me sharing what I wanted for anyone who wanted to follow along.
I did this for a while and then near the end of 2016 I had my first baby. I tried to keep up with the blog, the baby and the business, but quickly realized that I couldn’t do it all so I hit pause on the blog.
A year or so later I made the decision to let go of the domain name (I felt guilty paying for something I didn’t use anymore) and just like in one of those time travel movies where someone accidentally does something that changes the future I felt like I could see it fade away into nonexistence. Like it had never been there at all. *sigh *
Anyway, dramatic moments aside I’ve let it lie for the past 9 years. But then:
I felt a pull.
Quietly at first.
“Remember when I had that blog. That was so fun”
What do I want now. What does the me today need?
“To create pretty things just for the sake of it. No pressure.”
Little moments of this had been sprinkling through my thoughts.
“Why are you waiting?”
I should be spending my time on more important things. Business things. Real life things.
And then one August day when the wild heat had finally broken, the kids were watching tv inside, I crept out to our patio. Armed with a stack of notebooks, my favorite pens, a glass of something sparkling and Folklore playing out of my back pocket… I started to journal.
It didn’t take long. I once again felt the pull, but this time I didn’t push it away. I didn’t stack all the reasons of “shouldn’t” on top of it. I let the idea flow… and decided it was time to start again.
Without pressure.
With discovery.
Unhurried.
Joyful.
Welcome to the Unhurried Joy
x Amy