2020 RECAP

For the past years I’ve been sharing a yearly recap and for some reason, I didn’t think of making one for 2020. Not because I think 2020 wasn’t a good year, I have just been busy with other things and wanted to enjoy the holidays not creating content or worrying about deadlines. So for the past two weeks, I’ve been letting myself watch all the Korean dramas that I can, eating good food, cuddling with Luna, nourishing my plants, and sleeping really late at night.

Today, I sat in front of my laptop to write about our 2021 goals only to change my mind. My yearly recaps have been a great way for me to reflect on my year, think of what worked and what didn’t, and helps me set my goals for the coming year. So here I am, bringing you my 2020 highlights.

JANUARY

We were off to a great start. My whole family flew to Australia for my cousin’s wedding. On our way, we purposefully hit up Manila, Seoul, and Kuala Lumpur, on long layovers. It was super tiring, plus Johnrick and I were sick, but it was fun to show our family around even just for a bit. We had so much fun in Australia although we only stayed in Perth. Johnrick and I have been talking about going back ever since.

After my cousin’s wedding, Johnrick and I had to fly straight to Paris for a work trip with ALL. It was four days of staying in luxurious hotels, attending concerts, lots of eating, helicopter ride, and a side of meeting friends and relatives. After our work, we decided to extend our trip by taking buses to Brussels then to Amsterdam, then flying to Budapest and Prague. And then flying back to Paris to catch our flight back home. It was one of the coldest trips we ever had but we still had a very good time.

FEBRUARY

We went to Tahoe with friends for some snow and cabin relaxation. I also got to meet some Instagram friends in SF.

This month was also our much awaited trip to Seychelles, UAE and Oman. It’s one of my favorite trips and I really loved all of our experiences in these beautiful countries.

MARCH

We flew to the Philippines from Dubai since we like going home whenever we plan on being in Asia. During that time, we were planning to go to Japan and I was scheduled to meet my good friend, Jules, in Bali. Jules and I still made it to Bali and I think we were only there for three days before the lockdown started and we had to cut our trip short to go back to US.

APRIL

We were supposed to fly from the Philippines to New York then to Costa Rica. But we went straight back to San Francisco to quarantine and then I went back to working in the hospital.

MAY

Got more into TikTok and even did some creative photo trends. Being a travel creator, it was a learning curve to stay creative without going anywhere.

JUNE

June was a busy month. So many things happened and I tried to educate myself and support the BLM movement. It was an eye-opener and to this day, I am still learning.

JULY

We tried to explore our own backyard as safely and as much as we could. SF never gets old.

AUGUST

WE BECAME HOMEOWNERS! I can’t emphasize enough the joy and relief we felt after our offer finally got accepted. This is one of the best moments of our year and possibly our lives. Home projects easily became our favorite.

SEPTEMBER

We went to our first staycation after the pandemic. I have never heard of Hope Valley till that moment but I am so glad we went because it truly is a gem. I loved this trip because the property was dog-friendly so we were able to bring Luna with us.

OCTOBER

I had an amazing opportunity to work with Shell on a campaign that brought Shem and I to Joshua Tree. I loved JT but it’s been 3 years since I last went so it was nice to go back. I had an amazing time with great company and it was a pretty safe trip.

NOVEMBER

Lots of home projects for November and a dream partnership with West Elm. We are slowly working on our home and trying not to feel pressured about buying furniture if it can wait. I published our four-month progress on my previous blog if you want to check out some before and after’s.

DECEMBER

Bought our first Christmas tree and celebrated our first ever Christmas in our new home. Can’t ask for anything more than this.

It’s been a rollercoaster ride this year but it taught us so many things. It taught us to slow down and appreciate every little thing that we used to take for granted. I am excited to see what 2021 holds for us.

xo,

Cherrie