Hi friends! I hope that you’re all doing well and hope you enjoyed the weekend. We had a great time celebrating Liv’s birthday – I can’t believe she’s 9. Our weekend was filled with cupcakes and family time, but also a guinea pig funeral. Our beloved guinea, Lollipop, passed away suddenly and unexpectedly. (Apparently this isn’t uncommon for small animals, but still horrible.) Poor Liv was the one who discovered her, since they live in her room, and both of the girls were devastated. I have to admit that I was heartbroken, too.

Lollipop had such a fun personality – I taught her how to do some tricks! She was super smart, cuddly, and frequently squeaked and popcorn-ed with joy. Since I was the one who brought fresh hay, veggies, and greens from our garden, they’ve always been super happy to see me. We’ll likely get another guinea pig this week since they prefer to have a buddy, but we were all sad to sad goodbye.

For today’s post, I wanted to share some of my favorite purchases from 2020 and also your top picks from my RewardStyle analytics. I’ve shared similar posts over the past couple of years and it’s fun to look back and see the most useful and enjoyable products from the year.

My top 5 fave purchases from 2020:

1) HigherDOSE Sauna Blanket. I’ve enjoyed this thing WAY more than I was expecting. It uses infrared sauna technology, is made of nontoxic materials, low EMF, and layered with charcoal, crystals, and clay. I’m a weirdo who loves to sweat from my eyeballs, and since I’m not able to get that feeling from hot yoga as often as I’d like, this has been the perfect substitute. I know that many people think that the whole “sweat detox” thing is a myth, but I’m a believer in the detoxifying ability of a good sweat and the healing and restorative properties of infrared. My body craves this thing, especially during cold nights (!!!), so I’ll wrap up like a happy Chipotle burrito and watch 30 minutes of Netflix. 

2) Oura ring. This has made a huge difference in the way I train and my habits surrounding sleep. My Apple watch will often tell me to stop being lazy and NO OFF DAYS, SUCKER while my Oura ring is like, “Perhaps time for an off day to recover from your workouts?” You can read my full post about this little beauty here, and I love to nerd out on all of the stats. I’ve also noticed patterns in my routine that disturb my sleep or contribute to an awesome night of zzzz’s. The Oura has enabled me to remain highly active in a strategic way, during an exceptional stressful year.

3) Frette sheets. On the pricey side, but SO worth it. When I was looking at these online and explained to the Pilot that they were the same sheets the Disney cruise line uses, he told me to go for it. He was like, “How often do we buy sheets?” which is so true. It feels like a special treat because who knows when we’ll be able to cruise again, and it really transformed our bed into this peaceful, dreamy, oasis.

4) Dustbuster for my car. This is one of my top mom hacks right now. I keep this in the trunk of my car and can easily vacuum up crumbs and rogue french fries. It was inexpensive and works well.

5) This picture of Bella! This picture never ceases to bring a smile to my face. Señor Bealo. I guess now we’ll have to get one of Lollipop, too. 🙁

Reader faves from 2020:

1) My favorite bra on the planet. I usually stock up when Nordstrom has sales and have this one in so many colors. It’s pretty much the only non sports bra that I wear. It doesn’t have underwire (praise be) and still gives a little bit of lift and shape, even if you’re a fellow member of the IBTC.

2) These Hunter boots! I was so obsessed when they first came out and couldn’t wait to wear them! They’re easily my #1 pair of Hunter boots.

3) Moonlight dreams pajamas. These pajamas are super light and soft and also make a great gift!

4) My current fave mules. The Pilot and the girls make fun of these but they’re so dang comfy and look super cute with jeans a sweater.

5) Custom family portrait. Another excellent gift idea 🙂 This would be a perfect one for Valentine’s Day.

I’d love to hear any of your favorite purchases from 2020 — something that made life easier or brought your joy during such a bizarre year.

I’m off to record two new podcast episodes! I’ll have a new one up this week.

xoxo

Gina

PS. Don’t forget to join us for Home Workout Warrior challenge! All of the details are here. I just finalized the prizes and they’re so, so good. All the info goes out on Saturday and we start next Monday!