Zora's 2021 Highlights
Whew, 2021 is coming to an end, cheers to more love in 2022! I want to say a huge THANK YOU from our family for all your support during what felt like another challenging year. I like to call problems challenges, but my dad always says, “Challenges are good - as long as there are not too many of them.” 😊 Amen to that. As my family looks back on 2021, we ask...what have we overcome, what did we learn, what made us stronger personally and professionally?
Here are a few of my family's 2021 Highlights:
January - We were simply thrilled to have a fresh start and for it not be 2020 anymore! ✨
February - Three flavors of our New Vegan Instant Soups were launched - Tomato Basil has been the Bestseller!
March - Our New AIP Italian Beef Bar was launched and is now the second most popular Bar!
April - We launched Bulk Sizes of some of our Organic Air-Dried Fruits!
May - Our son, Adrian, graduated from high school and officially became the first in our family to graduate from an American high school - this is not a joke (feel free to ask me for more details 😉 ) We are very proud of him!
July - Our best family road trip EVER! We visited friends in Seattle and the islands north of Seattle. We ate the freshest oysters in the world and learned to shuck them. We even held many shucking competitions (best time was 15sec by Josh, Abby took 2nd place at 17sec) ....and we ate way too many of them.
P.S. We especially loved visiting Hama Hama Shellfish Farm (a fifth-generation family-run shellfish farm on Washington's Olympic Peninsula) and Taylor Shellfish Farm (we visited their oyster bar and shellfish market on Chuckanut Drive and absolutely loved the drive between Bow and Bellingham!!)
P.S. We especially loved visiting Hama Hama Shellfish Farm (a fifth-generation family-run shellfish farm on Washington's Olympic Peninsula) and Taylor Shellfish Farm (we visited their oyster bar and shellfish market on Chuckanut Drive and absolutely loved the drive between Bow and Bellingham!!)
August - Adrian left for university to study aerospace. This was very bitter-sweet for me. I always thought I would be the best "empty nester," yet I cried for two days straight after he left. (He didn't even leave the state and I was still a mess!!!)
P.S. A tip on how I overcome things that make me upset: sometimes I try reframing my thoughts by putting them in the past tense! I was very upset when Adrian left for university. Of course, I was also happy for him as he could not wait to gain more freedom and to be surrounded by similar-minded people who mainly talk about rocket engines. Yet, I cried for 2 days after he left. I tried saying to myself that “I WAS upset that Adrian left.” I put what made me upset into the past tense, which helped at least a little bit!
September - We finally moved out of a camper that we lived in (yes, all FOUR of us + a cat and a dog) for the past 12 months while we were reconstructing an older property north of Fort Collins. The best part of living in a camper was the closeness to nature - we heard the crickets every night and the owls every morning at 3AM. The most challenging was the power outages in mid-December - we used the gas oven to keep warm, which meant lots of slowly roasted pork bellies and baked pies. 🥧 If this did not break us and our marriage, I do not know what else could.
October - Our daughter, Abby, decided to graduate from high school one year sooner. By summer 2022, Josh and I will be 100% "empty nesters."
November - Our brand NEW Quinoa Bowls were launched with five delicious flavors and your feedback has been amazing so far!
December - Now we will rest a little more, bake Christmas cookies, pay a short visit to our favorite hot springs, and watch a bunch of Czech Christmas fairytales!
How was your 2021 and what made you stronger? What will your 2022 look like? For us, we like to start each new year with a positive outlook as we believe what you put in is what you get out! 🤗 Wild Zora will keep bringing you more options for REAL FOOD that will make you feel good and save time so you can focus on what you LOVE to do most. 🌟When it comes to 2022, I personally will be a better listener. I will keep reading and learning from many sources to be well-informed and have balanced views. Lastly, I will spend more time in nature with our puppy, Pooh! Cheers to 2022!
-Love, Zora ❤️
