Favourite Things: December 2023 Edition + Top Picks

I thought I’d start with a quick roundup of recent favourites and cap things off with a summary of my favourite items/moments from 2023.

Who’s ready to do this?

YOLINK WATER SENSORS

If you’ve been reading along for any length of time you know we have had some water issues. (Understatement.) Also, we’ve had friends with water issues – apparently, if you live in a home with modern plumbing OR live anywhere rain could potentially fall…you are at risk for water issues.

Enter this 4-pack of water sensors. Technically, it was one of my Christmas gift requests, but when they arrived early we went ahead and set them up. I figured it would be just my luck to request these for Christmas, wait until Christmas morning to open them…and have a massive leak on Christmas Eve.

We placed them strategically: one by the water heater (a common source of water damage in homes), one by our water main, one in the guest room closet (which also contains the water shut-off for our exterior faucet and was the site of the leaky pipe that soaked my wrapped Christmas gifts in 2021), and one in the basement bathroom (right below the main floor bathroom, so I figure if water leaks through the ceiling OR if something happens in the basement bathroom, we have it covered with this water sensor).

A demerit alert because I have not called insurance to see if this might reduce our insurance rates, so that is the next step.

SMÄCKER IKEA TRAY

This $1.49 IKEA tray is designed for silverware, but it is my new favourite organizing tool for just about anywhere. It’s hard to beat $1.49 (for very sturdy plastic), and I use them in our bathroom vanity – on the kids’ side I use one to keep a top drawer organized with dental supplies – the long slots are perfect for electric toothbrushes, the small spots hold dental flossers and A’s braces supplies. I use another one on John’s side for corralling shaving supplies and Q-tips. In the kitchen, I use them to organize things like peelers, spatulas, etc. We have 8-10 of these in use in our home and they are excellent!

PILOT JUICE UP 04 RETRACTABLE PENS

Full credit to SHU for introducing me to these amazing pens. They are, without a doubt, my new favourites! I use them daily. Highly recommend!

TWINKLE LIGHTS

They make everything about life feel cosier and more manageable. I am such a huge fan of twinkle lights this time of year.

THE BIBLE RECAP + DRY HIGHLIGHTERS

After a month of using The Bible Recap, I can confidently say it is one of my top favourites of the year. It makes reading my Bible feel luxurious (picking up a heavy faux-leather book every day with thick, smooth paper = luxury for this reader) and exciting. It is leading me on a chronological read-through from Genesis to Revelation, with a complimentary two-page summary associated with each day’s reading. Love.

And I’m using Mr. Pen dry highlighters which don’t bleed through even the thinnest of Bible pages. And yes, I colour-coded my highlighting; are you shocked?

On to my favourite things (and moments) from the year.

Favourite Meal: Admittedly, it doesn’t look like anything special, but this duck confit pasta on a little side street in Florence was one of the best meals of my life and certainly the most memorable for me in 2023.

Favourite TV Show: Drive to Survive. I could not get enough of this Netflix docuseries. The runner-up would be Quarterback (also a Netflix docuseries; are you sensing a theme?).

Favourite Movie: Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One. I loved this movie because the kids were so into it. And it was one of the few movies we saw in the theatre in 2023 which is always extra memorable (on a cheap day, obviously).

Favourite Project: A tween bedroom makeover for A; her room was dated and needed a major facelift. I am so happy with how things turned out. (Before and after here, along with a full budget breakdown.)

Favourite Song(s): For mainstream pop, it’s a tie between: teenage dream by Olivia Rodriguez and Flowers by Miley Cyrus. In terms of worship music, it’s a three-way tie between Still/PEACE by Hillsong Worship, Stained Glass Window by Cochren & Co, and Red Sea Road by Ellie Holcomb.

We had listened to over 37,000 minutes of music on Spotify by early December, so there were a lot of other songs we loved. Imagine Dragons is still a runaway favourite with the kids, closely followed by OneRepublic.

Favourite Purchase: My mug from a gift shop near the Ravenell Bridge in Charleston, SC. I’ve used it almost daily since June. I debated long and hard about buying this; I didn’t “need” another mug, and with the exchange rate it was close to $20 CAD. It was worth every penny and I smile every time I pull this mug out of the cupboard.

Favourite Decision: Another tie: starting therapy, going on a “retreat” to my parent’s home in September, and stepping down from my project management role at the start of this month! The theme is making big decisions to preserve and enhance my mental health. Go me.

Favourite Books (Fiction): Falling by T. J. Newman, The Book of Seven Truths: A Tale of Hope and Restoration by Calvin Miller, Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano, All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, The Nothing Man by Catherine Ryan Howard, The Bullet That Missed by Richard Osman

Favourite Books (Non-fiction): A Heart That Works by Bob Delaney, I Feel Bad About My Neck, And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman by Nora Ephron, Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer

*I couldn’t stop at just ONE book, so these are all the books I rated 5 stars in 2023. I’m quite stingy with my stars, so this means I really enjoyed all the books listed above. That does NOT mean I recommend them to you, my readers, because I know how vastly tastes diverge. You could read every one of these I loved and hate them. Consider yourself warned.

Favourite Experience: Visiting Rome with John.

Favourite Beauty/Health Product: Another tie: Maybelline Falsies Lash Lift mascara (recommended by Nicole) and a 3-pack of hair towels!

Top Favourite of the Year: Magic bags. I simply couldn’t (or very much wouldn’t) want to do life without my magical oat bags (how agrarian of me). I use them every single day in the winter and they bring me so much happiness. *I don’t use the name brand “Magic Bags”, just my local pharmacies’ much cheaper equivalent. I prefer square to long (but L, who loves them almost as much as I do, prefers the long!). I’ve been using the same two sets for about 10 years, so the ROI has been very high!

Your turn. Any recent favourites? In terms of 2023, how would you answer some – or all – of the following?

• Favourite Meal:
• Favourite TV Show:
• Favourite Movie:
• Favourite Song:
• Favourite Purchase:
• Favourite Decision:
• Favourite Book:
• Favourite Experience:
• Favourite Beauty Product:
• Top Favourite of the Year: