hello from my car picnic

When Lil Momma was a tiny thing and it was winter, one of our favorite things to do was to pack up a snack-heavy picnic lunch and drive somewhere just the right amount of far away. We’d go for a chilly walk in the woods or we’d go stand near the ocean and just freeze to see the water and jump back in the car and go grab hot chocolates. Then, we’d park in front of a beautiful view and have a car picnic with some fun tunes on the radio. (For LM’s younger years, the rotation was very Taylor Swift heavy, haha!). We’d chat and eat and warm up and sip our fun drinks and it was just this little moment of joy and good bit of distraction during those toddler and preschool years. 

I’m in the position, like I have been in recent years, of having to burn vacation time during the last two months of the year. Note, being more intentional with my paid time off is one of my birthday goals for next year. I try to stay out of the house while the Mr. is working and it’s been a really fun challenge to think about what I can do when I can’t do what I really want to do (i.e. go for a woodsy walk or hike)  

What I landed on is a solo version of those car picnics we used to take. After picking up a library hold, I drove to an out of the way Tarbucks (the Starbucks in Target) and grabbed a coffee and an egg and Gouda sandwich and then headed to the parking lot of a state park where I’ve always loved to wander. It’s pretty lovely to sit here and look at the trees and the leaves and read my book and listen to my music and have a snack.

Coffee Break: I tried out a new coffee, which was a bit of a disappointment, but I’m glad I know this now going into the winter flavor season. A fun fact about me is that I’ve only drank coffee for a few years and for the first couple of years I didn’t drink flavored coffee at all. The last year or so, I’ve found that I love fall flavors with the apple and all of that but I’ve never tried the more traditional winter ones. 

Today, I ordered a shaken oat milk espresso with a shot of peppermint in it because all the pricey promotional coffees seem to be along those flavor lines. What I’ve learned is it is not for me! No thank you. I may go get myself a different one when I drive home later, haha! I think I will try a gingerbread flavor at some point and if that doesn’t land with me, I’m just gonna go back to what I usually do the year. 

Hopefully, this was a bit of a distraction after the week that this week was ❤️

Are you a seasonal coffee or tea drinker? Or do you stick with your tried in true favorites? I have certain teas that I drink year-round, but I’m also more adventurous than I have been after doing that tea advent calendar last year. I can’t wait to start my new one in a few weeks!