life

Some random current things

April 3, 2024

Random #1: Simplified just released their new covers! I’ve never stuck with a Simplified planner but I get bizarre urges to order them anyway because they are just so PRETTY.

personally into pistachio plaid

(I am still in my Hobonichi and have not felt tempted to stray yet . . . but I could imagine a little detour at some point. . .)

Random #2: Interesting podcast episode on A.I.: Ezra Klein’s How Should I Be Using A.I. Right Now?

(I feel like every AI-related podcast focuses on the dangers and I absolutely believe there are reasons to be concerned about this rapidly emerging technology, but it was interesting to hear about actual use cases with a few practical tips thrown in!)

Random #3: I finally returned to strength training!!! I am never good about starting with lower weights (regret it now . . . ) and so my legs feel absolutely shredded right now from a 20 minute lower body session. On the plus side, the 20 minutes went by so fast. During the next ~6 weeks of marathon training, I think I can commit to at least 20 minutes 2x/week and ideally 3; I’ll stop probably 2 weeks out from the race to give my legs a break. Hopefully that is enough for at least muscle/strength maintenance and injury prevention. (No matter what, it’s got to be better than the 0 sessions I’ve been doing recently!!!)

Random #4: As I was thinking through Quintile 2, it dawned on me that this quintile includes G’s Kindergarten Graduation! And then I realized that with your last kid, there are so many “lasts” to think about and it’s really quite emotional. I am NEVER one to be like “slow down time!” but even I have to admit that the ending of some phases of life are bittersweet!

(PS: G is very mature in some ways and VERY much milks her ‘baby of the family’ role in others. It’s definitely an interesting place to be, 3rd-kid-with-a-decent-sized-age-gap!)

G wears a lot of ~6 year old hand me downs but thinking about a new dress for her graduation (this one Janie + Jack)

Random #5: Am currently obsessed with trying to get 5 Olivia Rodrigo tickets for the Philadelphia concert because all 3 kids love her and I truly enjoy her as well, and what a FUN first family concert right? They are (almost) Taylor-level pricey!!! If anyone has any ticket buying tips or hacks – please let me know. (If only I had a time machine to buy them directly!!!!)

14 Comments

  • Reply Elisabeth April 3, 2024 at 8:49 pm

    That dress is too cute! I want one in my size. The sleeve detailing is adorable! And that colour is perfect.

  • Reply Maria Higgins April 3, 2024 at 9:37 pm

    I was so excited about the Simplified cover reveal today! Will be ordering the floral pink daily planner. Hobonichi is definitely growing on me the more I listens to your podcast (recently started listening from the very first episode) but I prefer my planners to start in the summer to match with the beginning of the school year. Would love to try it out though!

  • Reply Maria Higgins April 3, 2024 at 9:43 pm

    I was so excited about the Simplified planners cover real today also! Will be getting the floral pink daily planner. Hobonichi is definitely growing on me and one day I will try it out (recently started listening to your pod from the very beginning) but as of now I still prefer my planners to start in the summer to match with the beginning of the school year.

  • Reply Coree April 4, 2024 at 3:43 am

    That dress is adorable! Weirdly, proms have caught on here, but graduations haven’t, at least until uni. I’m terrified of AI usage as I see it in the classroom… I spent the end of last term just completely demoralised in the face of rampant cheating. But am decently positive about AI in terms of saving me time… collating survey responses, writing an excel script for something, identifying tendencies in (anonymous) data.

  • Reply Joanna April 4, 2024 at 7:56 am

    Don’t have too much regret over not getting OR tickets when they first went on sale. We had multiple people get ticket codes to try to buy tickets for the Philadelphia show, and none of us got them!

    • Reply Sarah Hart-Unger April 4, 2024 at 9:30 am

      That does make me feel a bit better!

  • Reply Amy April 4, 2024 at 8:29 am

    I’ve largely moved into digital planning systems and yet … those are so pretty!

    • Reply Sarah Hart-Unger April 4, 2024 at 9:30 am

      i KNOW! There’s something very soothing about the color schemes and overall look.

  • Reply Elizabeth April 4, 2024 at 10:36 am

    I’m on year 3 of using the daily Simplified planner. I pair it with a dotted Leuchtturm A5 medium notebook so I can have yearly, monthly, and weekly lists, plus reading lists, travel ideas, etc. I love the combination of the structured daily pages plus monthly calendar page from simplified with the open concept of what’s essentially a bullet journal without any frills. I was definitely enticed by the covers initially and once I got over the size of the daily planner (it’s THICK) I haven’t turned back.

    I do use one starting in January so I have awhile to wait but am eyeing the Savannah Blooms. So pretty! I also always love the happy stripe. Can’t go wrong!

  • Reply Megan April 4, 2024 at 1:47 pm

    For kindergarten graduation, just make sure she doesn’t pack her own dress in backpack like my youngest did last year! We showed up and she had changed into a sparkly sequin dinosaur dress – so that is what she wore! Haha, classic third kid.

    • Reply Sarah Hart-Unger April 4, 2024 at 2:29 pm

      HA!! That’s so funny 🙂 🙂 🙂

  • Reply Katherine B April 5, 2024 at 10:56 am

    I am the eldest of three, with two brothers 2 and 5.5 years younger than me. Do you know the following? Child 1 “I make the Rules.” Child 2 “I’m the reason we have Rules.” Child 3 ” Rules. What Rules?”. It held true in our family and I find it resonates with so many three child families. What do you think?

    • Reply Sarah Hart-Unger April 5, 2024 at 11:00 am

      Hahahahahahahah yes. And that’s the exact spacing of our kids!!!

    • Reply Elizabeth April 5, 2024 at 11:13 am

      Oh wow, I’m the oldest of 4 kids and spacing also the same (me, 2.5 years to next brother, then 3 years to next brother…and then another 3 years to sister) and THAT IS US TOO. Youngest would maybe be “I’ll follow the rules or not, whatever you want, just please include me in what you’re doing!”

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