1. Our Wedding in Greece
The thing I am most grateful for in 2020 is definitely being able to organise our magical wedding in Greece. We were supposed to get married in May 2020, but it was obviously impossible due to the emergency state and complete lockdown in Romania. It was a hard decision, but we were forced to postpone the wedding. Even though everyone kept postponing for next year, we decided to risk it and rescheduled everything for the end of September.
I am so happy we did that because our dream wedding came true and I would not change a thing.
I will share everything with you soon on an exclusive article with lots of details and pictures.
2. Seeing our soul project By The Lake grow
Nothing makes you happier than seeing your work paying off, right? When this pandemic started, we were terrified that our soul project will suffer as a lot of businesses did. But we were lucky enough to grow so beautifully this year. We worked a lot, invested all our free time in there and the results appeared immediately.
I have to confess we had a period of hesitation around March – April when we were not decided if we should continue or suspend everything until things calm down, but I am so happy we were inspired enough to continue.
Everyone that has visited us at the beginning of 2020 and at the end of it can confirm how much we have evolved 🙂
3. Spending more time with Hubbs
Having the chance to spend more time with the person you love in a crazy world that never stops is a blessing, from my point of view. I would obviously not choose a pandemic to do that, but if this is the case, I try to see the good part.
We were trapped with a very busy schedule and, all of a sudden, everything stopped and we were able to wake up late, watch movies, take naps, cook together, work in the garden, learn new things without even feeling guilty since it was not our choice.
This kind of pause can be so beneficial for your relationship because there is no rush on doing certain things, you can take everything at your own pace.
4. My Greek Birthday Party in the Garden
I just love Birthday Parties and last year was no exception. Since we were getting ready to leave to Greece for the wedding, I have decided to organize a Greek Party at By The Lake. We were lucky enough to have the perfect weather for a Garden Party so my friends and family were able to visit us and spend a beautiful day in the nature.
Everything was Greek themed, white & blue, with olive touches. We had balloons thanks to Iuliana – Fata cu Baloane and cute personalized messages thanks to Raluca – Charmink Calligraphy. We even had a lovely Olive Bar as a starter and lots of delicious Greek traditional dishes. Azza Events took care of the music and Andreea&Cami brought the yummy Vegan cake from Sublimmme.
What a day! Even though I had planned to turn 30 in New York to celebrate in style, my birthday was perfect at home and I am thankful for everyone that was by my side!
5. Sunsets in Santorini
Seeing Santorini sunsets with Hubbs was a bucketlist experience for me and I am so happy we managed to tick it off. I have previously been to Santorini and I knew the beauty of it, but everything has a different meaning when I am with Him!
After the wedding, we hopped on a ferry and spend some honeymoon days on the impressive island. We’ve witnessed sunset in Oia, which is supposed to be the most famous one, but I have to admit my favorite was from our jacuzzi in Imerovigli. The view was simply touching!
6. 3 Year Anniversary with Hubbs in Milan, Italy
To be honest, 2020 started so beautifully for us with a short January getaway to Milan to celebrate our 3 years anniversary. It was a surprise for Hubbs and I sure managed to impress him by booking the place with the best view in town. It’s an apartment in the heart of Milan that has a beautiful balcony with an incredible view to the famous Duomo.
I have been to Milan many times before, but this was definitely the best experience I had. The weather was so beautiful and we were able to enjoy Milan from above with the best view in town!
As a plus, being so close to the Duomo obviously has its perks because we were able to witness it with almost no people in the early morning!
7. Visiting Dublin for the first time
Before the pandemic, we had planned to visit at least one destination/month so February continued with Dublin. I had it on the list for a long time and, because Hubbs had already visited it, I thought we would enjoy seeing it together. And I was right. Dublin was so full of life that I fell in love with it. We ate crazy delicious food (not very healthy though), drank quality beer, went pub crawling (which is a must in Ireland) and sang our hearts out since the music was on point.
I am sorry we were not able to explore more of Ireland because I know there are so many amazing places to see, but I am sure we will get this chance as well in the near future.
8. Organizing beautiful & successful events
Besides my career as a lawyer, last year I worked as much as I could on my dream: organizing beautiful & different oudoor events. I love planning every detail, choosing plates, cutlery, glasses that fit the event, establish wedding concepts and 2020 was the perfect moment to develop this passion.
Since outdoor events were still permitted (with limitations & restrictions, obviously), I was able to allocate all my free time into organizing them and I now know how much I love this part.
I have created lots of decors that I am proud of at By The Lake and I had the best suppliers for balloons, hand written & painted memories, flowers, etc.
The Signature Picnic made baptisms and baby anniversaries way cuter, the Cigar Bar added a spark to weddings and birthdays and the Traditional Corner impressed all the guests.
So happy for everyone that chose to celebrate their Special Day with us at By The Lake and I cannot wait for the 2021 Events to come!
9. Finishing the By The Lake - Wine Bar
Another ambitious project for us was finalizing the Wine Bar so we would be able to host smaller events during the cold seasons and corporate events like team buildings, product presentations, workshops etc.
I am proud to say 2020 didn’t beat us at this project either and at the beginning of November, so a short time after our wedding, we were ready to welcome our guests in there too.
Sadly, events were forbidden during winter time, but I am sure we will use the Wine Bar as soon as we will be allowed and I cannot wait to see people’s opinion!
I have put a lot of work here in the design and I am happy with the results so far!
10. Visiting Mykonos for the second time
One can never have enough of Mykonos – beautiful little town with windmills and good food, amazing beaches and parties, cool villas & hotels. Happy to be back there after 4 years and hope it won’t be our last visit.
We even met Petros – the pink pelican – the official mascot of the Greek island of Mykonos on this occasion.
Arriving to Mykonos from Santorini is so easy by fast ferry and we took a flight home from there.
11. Healthy Family & Friends
This is probably the thing we should be most grateful for in 2020, right? We are all healthy and, even the ones that had to go through COVID-19 or other health problems, are good now so this is the most important part.
We managed somehow not to get this virus for now by being as careful as we could while still live our life a little. For example, when we traveled to Greece for the wedding, we were all tested negative and we had no incidents whatsoever during the 2 weeks holiday even though we had a normal vacation with eating out (outdoor, as much as possible) and not wearing masks outside (these were the regulations in Greece at that time).
I am grateful for the friends we had when 2020 started, but also for the friends we managed to meet during this crazy year like Ioana & Vasi, the photographer and videographer that accompanied us in Greece for the wedding, but not only them, of course 🙂 May they always be a part of our family!
12. Spending 2 months at Home
Do you remember when you were in middle school or high school and you had like 2-3 months vacation per year every summer? This is how I looked at the 2 months lockdown in Romania. It was a chance to be lazy without feeling guilty, to watch movies and tv series, to work on the blog, to dream, to plan, to take naps, to improve my cooking skills, to work in the garden with hubbs, to relax, to unwind, to spend time with the cats, to tan and eat healthier…my list can go on and on and on. Staying at Home was not bad. Not at all. I am even grateful for this! We live in such a crazy world where nothing seems to stop. I was tired, overworked, overstressed and I needed a break to charge my batteries. I would have obviously preferred to travel the world during this time, but we should not forget to be grateful for what we receive.
13. Entering 2020 in Dubai
2020 had a magical start in Dubai – summer and endless places&restaurants to revisit in one of my favorite cities in world.
I am sure I could never get tired of visiting Dubai, but NYE is probably the best time to do it because the fireworks display is simply amazing. It was my second NYE spent in the city and I would go back every year, if possible.
For ending 2019, we chose a Brazilian Restaurant with Burj Khalifa view and we were definitely impressed by the fireworks. UAE knows what is doing!
The first day of the year was spent on the beach with my childhood bestie, Oana and her fiancé, Toufic!
The beach club we chose has my favourite view in town – Dubai Marina – and it’s so close to where Hubbs proposed to me in 2018!
14. Being surrounded by flowers
I am a flowers lover for sure. I’ve always liked having flowers around me, receiving them and even buying them for myself. I know they won’t last too long and sometimes it may seem like a waste of money, but my soul doesn’t believe that.
Being surrounded by flowers instantly puts me in a good mood so it was not a surprise when I’ve started working with them. I would love to grow and develop this passion of mine and By The Lake gave me the opportunity to start doing it!
After one full summer of events, I am proud of the results and I am looking forward to improve in 2021 for even more beautiful and unique events.
15. Decorating Home for Christmas
Christmas is definitely my favorite holiday of them all and it’s basically the only thing I love about winter. Since I was a little girl, I used to decorate the Christmas trees with my family and waited for this holiday to arrive. Now that I have started my own family with Hubbs, Christmas is even more important and we love to decorate the house as much as we can, listen to carols, watch themed movies (mostly me) and gather around the fireplace with our friends and family.
For the end of 2020, I chose an all-white Christmas Tree with snowy aspect and it think it fitted perfectly in the bedroom.
These are just the first 15 things that I am grateful for in 2020 that I can think of right now, but I am sure I could continue the list.
Even though it feels like 2020 was a bad year, I am sure lots of us have learnt many things about themselves and the ones in their life. I am sure our dreams are bigger now and we are more eager to obtain what we desire.
Don’t be afraid and get a pen & a paper and write down the things you are grateful for in 2020. Find a least 10 of them. Small things like being healthy, getting a phone call from an old friends, being helped by a stranger on the street, having your parents and loved ones by your side, spending more time with your partner, rest more, exercise more, eat healthier or satisfying all your cravings, improve your cooking skills etc. There are so many things to be grateful for, you just need to think about them with open heart.
I truly believe making peace with 2020 and accepting it how it was by searching the good things and letting go of the bad ones, will help you have a better 2021! Are you ready?
Lots of Love,
Taisia
