Highlighted by Highly Enthused is a newsletter, once a podcast, concerning all the best things to consume in life. It’s written twice per month by Sophie McComas-Williams and Sophie Roberts, and today’s dispatch is written by SoMo! The majority of each newsletter is free, but there are five extra recs in each for paid subscribers. Thanks for being here!
Last time I was this pregnant (1 week remaining), I felt buzzing with unspent energy. I wrote a lot, I cooked and filled the freezer, I did all the bouncing on the Swiss ball I could. But this time around is so much slower, so much sleepier, heavier. I’m all for having your babies in the summer, when you’re basically nude or at least topless so damn much and so don’t need to dig through three layers to reach your nipples. It’s so much easier to get out of bed 40 times a night when the temp is balmy, but boy, the heat makes walking 500m to the shops feel like you’re wading through thick mud wearing ankle weights.
I’ve been leaning into small pleasures - perfect non-alcoholic drinks, film, books, and not going too far, just waiting, waiting, waiting to meet our new babe, to tickle the toes that nudge the inner skin of my belly all afternoon. Sydney is disgustingly gorgeous this time of year, it feels tropical and lush. When you’re waiting for something to happen, there’s plenty of distraction to be had. x
Eat / Drink
There is truly only so much sparkling water with lime a gal can drink, and so over the Christmas break I made jug after jug of this Peach Iced Tea, sometimes swapping out the peach for passionfruit if there was a glut, or nectarine. It’s so easy, the hardest part is waiting for it to cool down enough to drink. Heaven poolside, with just that tiny fizzle of caffeine to see you through the afternoon.
Read / Watch / Listen
One of the best shows I watched this summer was Smothered on Binge. It’s written by Monica Heisey, author of the excellent and really funny novel Really Good, Actually. The show is a rom-com, an unexpected romance that’s silly and serious, light and dark all at once. The episodes are snack-sized, the clothes and casting is phenom, and I couldn’t stop at three eps, I had to sup on them allll at once.
Do / Buy
I’m a newbie to acupuncture, and so the low-stakes, community feel of Freddys Acupuncture Collective in Queens Park felt like a good jumping off point. The space is beautiful, big and bright, but it’s communal. You sign in at your allotted time, pop yourself on a bed in a room of pin-cushioned strangers, maybe 20 of them? And describe what you’d like help with to the therapist when they approach. 30 mins and a mere $30 later, your hip pain may ease, or you’ll sleep a little deeper.
The Fast Five
A quick-fire rundown of the miscellaneous finds we’ve loved this month.