2024 Year In Review

2024 was a year I did not see coming. I ended 2023 with very high hopes for the new year. However, due to unforeseen circumstances, it quickly became one of the most difficult and challenging years of my life. At the end of the year, I always take time to reflect on the prior year – the highlights and the hardships. For me, going through this process really helps me set the tone and direction for the next year both in my business and my personal life.

January started off with new goals and priorities. I even made a vision board (it had many pictures of Paris on it.) We went for chilly hikes around Seattle as a family. Danny and I started having regular lunch dates around town, and I completed several runs along the beach nearby.

In February, we packed our bags for sunny skies and warmer temperatures in Oahu for my 40th birthday. It was a dream! I remember walking the boardwalk, feeling the warmth of the sun on my skin, and being so happy. We went to the beach, ate many acaí bowls, relaxed by the pool, and soaked in the uninterrupted family time. I returned from our trip so refreshed and ready for spring.

In March, I joined a gym and started taking classes regularly. We were so pleased to see the cherry blossoms bloom unexpectedly on the trees on our street. I continued to share content on my blog and Instagram and was feeling so lucky to have a job I love and enjoy so much.

Then April came and my world turned upside down. I was in a workout class at the gym doing burpees when I had a sudden and very painful headache. I never get headaches so I knew something was up. In my life, before I was a stay-at-home mom, I was a nurse, and I remembered that a headache like this was a symptom of a brain aneurysm. I went to the hospital by ambulance where they did a CT scan and discovered a small subarachnoid hemorrhage (at this point I was vomiting from the pain.) I was admitted to the ICU and given pain medication.

I stayed in the ICU for 8 days while they monitored my condition (strokes are common after a brain bleed like mine.) I was woken up every two hours (even at night) and given a neurological check. Thankfully, two angiograms were negative for aneurysm which was a huge relief. Besides a mild ongoing headache and a pinched nerve from the ICU bed, I felt fine. I was released home thinking I would slowly be able to return to my normal life, but that was very far my reality. I spent the next two months recovering – managing dizziness, very intense brain fog, and headaches. I couldn’t read, watch TV, be on my phone, walk my kids to school, work, or even go to the grocery store. My mental health was not good at this time. I couldn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. It was the worst I’ve ever felt mentally in my entire life. Danny was my rock during this period. He made appointments for me, got my prescriptions, took care of the kids, and got up with me in the night to check on me when I was having terrible anxiety induced insomnia. My mom and my mother-in-law came to stay with us and help with the kids so Danny could go back to work.

In June, the brain fog slowly started to clear, and I could finally do some of my normal activities. I started posting a little again, shared some outfits here and there, and was able to make dinner for my family, something I really enjoy. However, all the stress of this time triggered my Crohn’s Disease. I had been dealing with a stricture (narrowing) of my intestines for the past year, and it worsened in the following months. I found myself having severe cramping and vomiting quite often. It would keep me up for hours in the middle of the night. I started on new medications, began a low inflammation paleo diet, and hoped for the best.

I was able to get my symptoms under control somewhat for a beautiful summer in Seattle. We renewed the lease for our rental house and planned for another year here. We took a trip back to Kansas City to visit family over the Fourth of July holiday. We took camping trips to North Cascades National Park, and the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. We went to Leavenworth, Washington with friends. We went glamping outside of Bellingham. We ate ice cream, relaxed at the beach, and went on several hikes around Seattle. We enjoyed the beautiful blooms all over our neighborhood. We became obsessed with the Paris Olympics and spent hours watching it everyday.

We went to the farmer’s market, took the ferry over to watch a baseball game and a women’s soccer game. The kids started 1st and 3rd grade at school, and I jumped back into my blog with a renewed vigor after summer’s end. Still dealing with my symptoms, I went back to the doctor who recommended a low fiber diet and some more tests. I said goodbye to vegetables, fruits, beans, whole grains, nuts and seeds, and basically all health food. I started drinking tons of green juice.

In October, Danny and I celebrated 15 years of marriage with a sunset sailboat cruise in the Sound. We took a family trip to one of my favorite cities – Chicago. There, we ate pastries and deep dish pizza, visited the Field Museum of Natural History, and went on an architecture boat tour. We celebrated the fall season with a trip to the pumpkin patch, a (virtual) pumpkin carving contest with my family back home, and trick-or-treating around our neighborhood. We spent Saturdays watching our kid’s soccer games.

November and December were my busiest work months, but we still made time to celebrate the holiday season. We spent Thanksgiving with friends, and flew back home to Kansas City for winter break. Tests around this time revealed my stricture had not improved, and we decided to move forward with surgery in 2025.

Reflecting back on this year, although there were some very challenging months, there were also many, many happy moments and memories. We got to travel, explore the Pacific Northwest, and spend time with friends and family.

I also had the best year so far for my business despite months of time off. I still pinch myself that this is my job. I got to work with brands I love like Madewell, Everlane, J.Crew, Sézane, Away, Evereve, Frank & Eileen, and Quince, and many more small brands. I got to connect with amazing women entrepreneurs who I admire so much and inspire me in my own business. I created a ton of new content for the blog, most of which is evergreen and ready for you to explore. Some of the most popular posts on Stitch & Salt this year were:

Fall Capsule Wardrobe 2024
Modern Business Casual Outfits For 2024
Thirty Days Of Real Life Fall Outfits
How I Style My Wavy Hair
Spring Capsule Wardrobe 2024
How To Style Knee High Boots In 2024
Parisian Fall Capsule Wardrobe
Parisian Street Style Fall Outfits

I have some more BIG goals for 2025. I’ll be sharing my personal and business goals in the next post (we have some huge plans!) and I’m energized and excited for it. Thank you for being here and following along even when I wasn’t able to post. I got so many messages during my recovery, and I honestly didn’t realize how many supportive followers I had. It truly meant everything to me, and I’m so grateful you’re here.