The Optimistic Musings of a Pessimist

Christmas 2025 Debrief: What Worked and What I Want to Change for Next Year

Is it too late to post about Christmas? This is clearly a rhetorical question, since this is my blog and I get to choose what I post and I AM going to post about…

Christmas, Holidays
Jan, 21, 2026
25 Comments

Frugal Things Lately: 20 January 2026 Edition

Every few weeks, I scroll through my pictures (and my brain) to come up with some frugal wins. Here’s what I came up with this time:

Before my sister arrived, I needed to stock up…

Frugality, Money
Jan, 20, 2026
38 Comments

A Four-Day Family Visit to Nova Scotia: What We Did (and What We Ate)!

Every day I keep reaching for my phone to scroll through the photos of my sister’s visit! There’s something unique about hosting family that feels both wonderfully full and fleeting—especially when the visit is…

Happy Things Friday: 16 January

I know I say this at some point every single month, but I literally cannot believe we’re already past the halfway point of January. Anyone else? Between the nebulous start to the new year…

It’s Time For a 2025 Financial Review!

I just finished entering the final spending details of 2025 into our budget spreadsheet so it’s time for my annual spending review (or, as Kyria calls it, a money pie!). These sorts of posts…

Budget, Habits, Home, Money
Jan, 15, 2026
33 Comments

Year in Review: Favourite Memories from 2025

I’ve already recapped 2025 in terms of blogging and books (my top ten fiction reads from the year, along with my top ten non-fiction). I’ve written plenty about our Christmas (gifts, treasure hunt, general…