When looking back on 2020, there were so many negative things that we can say happened. 2020 was a WILD ride with lots of new challenges none of us could have predicted. But, even amidst such a challenging year, there were some great things and great learnings that came out of the craziness that was 2020. I’m going to share my top 5 2020 silver linings with y’all today! (Basically…positive things that happened as a result of staying home more, things being shut down for a large chunk of the year, etc).

1. Working Out At Home

All gyms / fitness studios shut down here in Raleigh in March, so that’s when I started working out at home 100% of the time! It was definitely a challenge at first, to not be in a gym or class environment. Working out at home taught me to do research and find workouts that worked best for me. I had to create a whole new routine. Our gyms and studios have been open here for a while and I am thrilled about it but I have taken a lot of the workouts and things I learned back into the gym with me. Thank God for our Peloton we got during the pandemic because that made workouts so much easier.

I felt really efficient working out at home. I just get in, get the workout done, and get out. It allowed me to not feel so overwhelmed like I do sometimes at the gym. I’m glad 2020 forced me to workout at home because it forced me to do different types of workouts and push me outside my comfort zone.

2. Cooking At Home

This is something else I have always enjoyed and wanted to do more of. Like most of you guys, we cooked dinner at home more in 2020 probably than we ever have. I used to run around all day so picking up food was always super easy but when you close restaurants, that changes things. I found new cookbooks I love, lots of new recipes to add to our weekly rotation, and overall just grew more confident in the kitchen! As my dad says, “I am a f@#$ing chef.” Thank you to Hello Fresh for giving us some great recipes to try out and add to our collection.

3. Games and Dancing

Who found TikTok during the pandemic? I know I am not the only one. Like everyone else I joined the app and was sucked in by all the dances. In our house, we LOVE to dance! We will cook and dance around the kitchen and absolutely just jam out. It taught me to let stuff go, to not take everything so serious, and gave me another outlet to get some physical activity in.

I’ve always liked games and came from a family who loves to play games together. Card games are our thing. We play with groups of friends or my whole family. Well, when you are spending every single day and every single night together with no sports and no new shows, you get creative. We’ve found so many new games and now we play a game together almost every single night. It’s been a fun activity to do together outside of just watching TV!

4. Family Time

We have always been a close family but when you are in a house together all day everyday, it definitely tests relationships. I’m sure I am not the only one who can testify to that statement. But we actually worked through a lot, we had conversations, we learned things about each other, we became closer. Now looking back, I feel like we have a better perspective of each other and really understand how each person functions.

5. Outside Time

I am blessed to live somewhere that has beautiful weather 9 months out of the year. 2020 was spent a lot outside working out, washing the car, walking the dog, paddle boarding on the lake, eating on our back porch, watching sunsets, and (trying) to get some sun on the back porch. Soaking in that Vitamin D and not spending all day everyday inside really made a difference on my perspective. It helped me look forward to something.