Our Favorite Things from 2024

PersonalYear in Review
Written By Joel

It’s an interesting year to be doing our “favorite things” because so much has changed from when I wrote this post a year ago. We’ve watched fewer movies and TV shows, attended fewer live performances, and had less time for new music. Yet, when I look at our lists, I remember all the memories and feelings I associate with each of them.

Favorite TV Show

Jenn - One Day (Netflix)

It’s interesting how my top five picks this year covered such a wide range of genres and themes. But each one holds a special place because they’re tied to different moments in my journey with Elle. One Day was a standout—a show I could watch over and over again. It’s based on David Nicholls' 2009 novel, which follows a 14-year relationship between two friends, capturing the intricate layers of love over time.

It’s rare for an adaptation to capture the emotional depth and tone of its source material as well as this one did. The novel is a raw, honest depiction of love in its most unfiltered form, showing how it can change and evolve over the years. It also speaks to that profound realization that what you’ve been searching for might have been right in front of you all along. I remember feeling that deep ache when I finished the book years ago—heartbroken by the ending and sad that the story had come to an end. The show brought all those feelings back, which is a testament to its incredible writing. For me, this show was a perfect 10/10 in every way.

Joel - Mr. & Mrs. Smith (Amazon Prime)

I struggled this year with my favorite show. There wasn’t a single standout, but many B+ and A- shows. My top ten shows of the year are all great, but when I think about the show that I thought was firing on all cylinders for the entire season, it would be Mr. and Mrs. Smith on Amazon Prime. The duo of Donald Glover and Maya Erskine was electric from the show's opening moments. This show has a whit and confidence that so far surpassed the Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie movies, and it’s hard to imagine that they share the same source material. I love this show and its one that I would love to re-watch again one day.

Favorite Movie

Jenn - Twisters

I didn’t watch many movies this year, especially not new releases in the first half. Reflecting on the ones I did see, quite a few were rather forgettable. But there were a couple of standouts. Inside Out 2 was undoubtedly excellent—it truly hit all the right notes—but I don’t feel compelled to watch it again. For me, the ability to rewatch a film is a key factor in what makes it a favorite. Dune 2 was another standout, a true cinematic masterpiece. The cinematography, acting, and score were all exceptional. Yet, despite its brilliance, I don’t have the desire to experience it a second time.

Interestingly, the film I kept coming back to was Twisters. I even caught myself rewatching it on someone else’s screen during a flight to San Francisco. I’ve always had a soft spot for the original, and this new version was equally entertaining, well-acted, and just plain fun. It offered exactly the kind of lighthearted escape I needed this year. So, much to my own surprise, Twisters ends up being my favorite movie of the year.

Joel - Hit Man

I’ve picked a Richard Linklater movie as my favorite for two years in a row. Last year was Before Sunrise, a film that is easily in my top 5 of all time, and this year is Hit Man. Sometimes, picks for this post are about a time and a place, which might be a big part of why I’m picking Hit Man on Netflix, which we watched while staying at Boram when Elle was only a few days old. A few days into our stay there, we bought some popcorn at the Morton Williams across the street and watched Hit Man while lying in bed with Elle. It’s a funny, intelligent, and surprising comedy.

Favorite Live Performance

Jenn - Our Town

Admittedly, we didn’t catch as many performances this year as we have in the past. A big part of that was due to my health, both before and after pregnancy, which made it tough to sit through long shows. But we did manage to see some really great ones, most of them later in the year—probably because I could finally enjoy them again.

That said, my favorite performance had to be Our Town. I remember leaving the theater and talking to Joel about how much it resonated with where we are in life right now, especially with the importance of living in the moment, not just for the future, and not taking anything for granted. In the play’s final act, one of the characters dies and gets to choose a day from her life to revisit. She picks an ordinary day and, with the knowledge of what’s ahead, realizes how much the small worries didn’t matter and how the simple joys should have been cherished. I think about that often, especially with Elle growing and changing so quickly. Every moment feels fleeting, and I just want to soak it all up as much as I can.

Joel - Our Town

I love being able to go to live performances. After seeing Giulio Cesare in Paris, I remember telling Jenn that I always get a sense of life and purpose when I get out of a live performance. Something is intoxicating about it for me. That was precisely the case when we left the hour and forty-minute performance of Our Town starring Jim Parsons. It hit me at the right point, and I left with tears in my eyes and a sense of hope and purpose. What more can you ask for from a play? This was my first exposure to Thornton Wilder’s very popular play, and I guarantee it won’t be my last.

Favorite Song or Artist

Jenn - Home by Good Neighbors

I’m letting out a sigh right now, unsure of what to say here. During my pregnancy, I found so much comfort in listening to Beautiful Things by Benson Boone. While on maternity leave, I would turn up and belt out It’s All Coming Back to Me Now by Celine Dion and sing along to every word. As the year ended, I fell in love with Home by Good Neighbors, and it ended up in my now-infamous year-end video on Instagram. So, I’m going to choose Home, as it perfectly captures how I want to remember the year and how I’m stepping into 2025:

Darling, won't you take me home?
Send me shivers somewhere I used to go.

Joel - Vienna by Billy Joel

This might seem like an odd choice, but in January, we were in Vienna for Jenn’s babymoon, and she was coming back to bed after a needed relaxing bath at the Park Hyatt, and we started playing Vienna by Billy Joel. On the nose, I admit, but it captured our hearts so strongly that we played that song almost every day from when Elle was born. Now, anytime I hear that song I think about Jenn and I walking around Vienna and laying in bed talking about our hopes and dreams for Elle. It’s a song now with a special meaning that I’ll never forget.

Favorite Book

Jenn - Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne

Writing about this brings me the biggest joy—I can’t help but smile just thinking about it. During Elle’s early months, when I was dealing with infections and the challenges of recovery, one of my most cherished moments with her was placing her in her bouncer and reading to her. For some reason, I gravitated towards the Winnie the Pooh collection and decided one day to order the classic editions from Amazon. I began reading a chapter to her every day.

I’d swear she looked forward to those moments as much as I did. When I read to her, she’d gaze at me with such wonder, her little eyes wide, her face lighting up with smiles, and she’d listen so attentively. Joel even managed to capture a few of these precious moments on video. Beyond being such a special time for us, revisiting these stories as an adult—and now as a mom—brought a whole new depth to the characters and the lessons A.A. Milne wove into them. When I read the very last story to Elle, my voice cracked, and I started to cry—it was that moving. To me, it felt like the forest was a metaphor for heaven or home, a place where we could always find our loved ones and be together in peace and joy. The simplicity and profoundness of the writing struck me deeply, and I just sat there in silence for a while after closing the book, overwhelmed by its beauty. Sharing that with Elle was incredibly special to me.

Joel - Table for Two: Fictions by Amor Towels

There are few authors that I will blindly buy whatever they publish next. But Amor Towels is one of those authors I immediately hit “purchase” on. When he released Table for Two: Fictions earlier in 2024, I gobbled it up. Most of the short stories are in New York, and I found them brilliant. So much so that when we were driving home from Cape Cod in April, I made Jake and Jenn listen to a few of my favorite stories from the collection. I love his writing, his ability to write dialogue, and his ability to evoke the highs and lows of living in New York. I love, love, love this book.

Favorite Purchase

Jenn - Our Nursery Recliner

This one’s a bit of a sleeper—no pun intended! I never would have guessed that this would be my favorite purchase, but here we are. The rocker we bought for Elle’s room has become something I can’t imagine living without. The amount of time I’ve spent in it, talking, reading, and singing to her, is truly unbelievable. Some of my most cherished memories are of holding her close, rocking her to sleep while telling her stories about my mom, her Grandma, or how her dad and I met and the adventures we’ve had. I’ve also reminisced about when we first brought home Frasier or moved to New York.

I can still picture those late nights, watching her sleep peacefully, while the city outside seemed to move under the moonlight and the Empire State Building lit up the night sky. And there were those sweet moments when she’d sit in my lap, reading My Little Cuddebug or The 123s of Thankfulness. Beyond the memories, the chair itself is incredibly functional and comfortable—truly the best purchase by far. I’m so grateful we have it, and I can confidently say it was worth every penny.

Joel - Fellow Aiden Coffee Maker

I fully admit that this might be recency bias. We purchased a lot in early 2024 to get ready for Elle. But I think about the item I wanted the most this year: a new coffee maker. Jenn bought me the Fellow Aiden Coffee Maker for Christmas, and I am in love with it. It makes an unbelievable cup of coffee, is beautiful, and has vastly improved my morning coffee. I’ve only had it for a few weeks now but I genuinely look forward to making my coffee every morning and am excited to continue putting it through its paces in 2025.

Favorite Memory

Jenn - The Small, Quiet Moments

I think this is the first year I’m choosing to highlight small, quiet moments that had the greatest impact on my heart and life. You’d think it would be the big milestones, especially this year, but for me, it was in the stillness and softness where I found the most joy and peace. I’ll share more about that in my year-in-review, but needless to say, this year has tested my resilience, strength, and courage in ways I never expected.

The first moment was about a week after bringing Elle home. Joel and I were just starting to find our rhythm as parents, figuring out what this new chapter truly meant. I remember we had just finished giving Elle a bath—during which, of course, she managed to pee as we were transferring her—and we decided we wanted to start a family tradition of reading to her every night, with Frasier included. Joel picked Goodnight Moon, a book he had loved as a child, and read it to her while she lay in my arms. That moment felt almost surreal, but I’ll never forget looking around that room and realizing that everything I had ever dreamed of was right there, with the four of us.

The second memory that stands out is the first time Elle truly responded to my nightly “I love you too, as high as the sky” routine—something my mom and I used to do. I swear, I saw her light up and try to say "I love you" back. Ever since that moment, as Joel and others can attest, every time I do it, she either squeals with joy, smiles, or just looks at me with so much love. And honestly, I wouldn’t trade anything for those precious moments we share every day.

The third and final memory is from any random day during my maternity leave with Elle and Frasier. I tried so hard to capture the essence of that time through video, knowing I’d want to look back and remember how beautiful it was. Every day felt like a small piece of heaven. I’d wake up, feed Elle, cuddle with her and Frasier in bed, and then we’d go for a long walk together. We’d sing nursery rhymes, do tummy time, play, nap, feed, play soccer with Frasier, do story time, and wait for Joel—“daddy”—to come home. Sometimes we’d lie on a blanket in the park, looking up at the sky, and I’d think to myself that life couldn’t possibly get any better. I’ve never been happier than in those moments. Watching Elle grow, seeing her learn to roll over, capturing her first smiles and giggles, witnessing her curiosity about the world, and seeing her bond with Frasier—it was all magic. Many days, I’d sit in that rocking chair, watching her sleep for hours, thinking about my hopes and dreams for her, praying that she knew just how much she meant to me, and how deeply I loved her. I thought about the kind of mom I wanted to be and the mom I lost, but above all, I was filled with immense gratitude for having that time—just the two of us. Through all the challenges of pregnancy and postpartum, I’ve realized one thing above all: time is the greatest gift. And in those quiet moments, just me and Elle, is something I will cherish and hold on to forever.

Joel - Our First Family Trip to Canada

Becoming a Dad is by far the most memorable thing that happened to me in 2024, but the day of Elle’s birth was very tough. It wasn’t for a day or two after that we felt any semblance of the joy of becoming parents. For me, though, my best memory from 2024 was our family road trip to Montreal and Quebec. It was a moment that encapsulated so many feelings, memories, and triumphs. It wasn’t without its faults (the hotel catching on fire in the middle of the night), but it was an opportunity for Jenn and I to stretch our legs as parents and show Elle the world. It gave us the confidence and the drive to travel with Elle and be OK because our trips will look different now. It was a beautiful trip that, in ten years, I’ll think back on fondly and be proud that we pushed ourselves to get out and enjoy the world.

Joel

https://www.worldofjoel.com
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