Welcome to my December reflections and my fourth travel blogging month in review! I’m excited to write these personal posts to keep myself accountable and to track my progress, especially my travel blogging aspirations.
I’m sharing personal, business, life, and blogging highlights and challenges, as well as things I’m working on.

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Personal Highlights
I love December, it’s all about recharging after the Thanksgiving holiday. It’s quiet and peaceful and not too stressful.
We spent time with our families: dinner on the 24th with my side of the family and with my husband’s side on the 25th.
A big win for me was finally passing my last test of the National Registration Exam for Architects. It took me 4 attempts to pass the test. It was stressful to study during the holidays but I just wanted to get it done before the end of 2024. And just in the nick of time.
What I did differently for this test was mainly my mindset and how I took care of myself outside the study hours:
- Make sure I got 8 hours of sleep
- Worked out every night to decompress
- Ate wholesome meals at home
- Drank plenty of water and supplements
I also told myself I could take this test as many times as I had to pass and to remember that I just needed to score the minimum amount of correct answers. It was a huge relief to know I could get 50% incorrect and still pass.
This made all the difference, during test day I was calm and tried my best. And it paid off with a PASS!
Travel Highlights
No travel for December either, though we’re steadily planning our 6-month Digital Nomad visa/trip to Japan in mid-March 2025.
Both our parents are joining us for two weeks in Japan and we’re so excited to show them around the country we love so much.
We purchased our airplane tickets using the AmEx website: Alaska Airlines flight operated by Japan Airlines. We scoured the internet for the best price and AmEx had it. My husband invites you to sign up using our referral code! This card has amazing perks, good discounts for flights and hotels, and access to the Centurion Lounges
Our next item on the to-do list is to plan our itinerary and book hotels.
We’re on a mission to obtain airline and hotel statuses this year. We’re thinking of Airline status with Alaska Airlines (with their Oneworld partnership) and World of Hyatt hotels. Will let you know of our progress.
Business Highlights
On my Architecture side of the business, December was a slow month. We signed up 1 new client. This month was mostly wrapping up projects to start a clean slate for 2025.
Thankfully, the week before my test my working schedule cleared up. I was able to use that entire week to only study. No one called and there were no emergencies. I think everything lined up to give me a good chance to pass my test.
Regarding my “passive” income – the Airbnb/rentals, thankfully we were booked completely, so all mortgages and utilities were taken care of. I started putting aside rental income to pay our property taxes and home insurance (why I didn’t do it sooner, who knows). We now save this money in our Wealthfront HYSA account.
Travel Blogging Journey
Travel Blogging took a backseat this month because I was solely focused on passing my test. Now that it’s over, I can focus on writing content. I’m so excited to get back to writing and flexing my creative muscles.
I had to cancel my RankIQ membership because I couldn’t justify spending on the tool when I wasn’t using it. I was able to pause it for 6-months. It should be enough for me to write posts on keywords I hadn’t had a chance to write on.
I had 0 blogging income this month and next month I want to put out more Japan content, especially around the digital nomad visa because that’s what I’m going through.
Conclusion
As always, thanks so much for taking the time to read these accountability posts. My main goal is to look back and track my growth.
Send me a message to let me know how you’re doing.
If you’d like to support my blog, consider buying me a coffee . I hope to see you out there exploring the world!
Lastly, Happy New Year! May 2025 bring you many blessings and surprises. I will always be cheering you on.
