Made some stylistic changes to the "2024 recap" blog post

Author: giudptr

_posts/2025-02-01-2024-recap.md

@@ -13,11 +13,11 @@ image:
 
 ## 2024 Highlights
 
-This year was a journey of growth, challenges, and new beginnings. Here are some key moments:
+It's my first time doing a yearly recap in this way, but 2024 was a special year of growth, challenges, and new beginnings. 2023 was marked by the birth of our daughter, an event that in some ways helped me find the structure I needed in life and give my life purpose. And the consequences of this life-changing event have reverberated into 2024. Here are some key moments from the past year that have made me grow and pushed me forward in my life's journey: 
 
 ### Health and wellness
 
-After my huband’s health scare that marked the end of 2023, I joined my husband in a lifestyle overhaul and successfully lost weight after years of struggling with it. And in contrast to previous attempts that ended up in me gaining everything back again, I maintained it over an extended period and am still at somewhat the same weight going into 2025\. 
+After my huband’s health scare that marked the end of 2023, I joined him in a lifestyle overhaul and successfully lost weight after years of struggling with it. In contrast to previous attempts that ended up in me gaining everything back again, I maintained it over an extended period and am still at somewhat the same weight going into 2025\. 
 
 Learning about nutrition has transformed my life, especially about its importance in prevention, and I am still shocked when I think about how little emphasis is given to proper nutrition by typical healthcare providers. When I was diagnosed with skin Lupus and Hashimoto, nobody mentioned how lifestyle changes could drastically improve symptoms and prevent autoimmune diseases from flaring up. 
 
@@ -27,15 +27,17 @@ Having a small child who shares the same antibodies as me has added another moti
 
 ### Returning to work
 
-In April, I resumed work after a year-long maternity leave. My original open source team had been restructured under new leadership, with most members transitioning to a developer relations focus. I’m incredibly grateful to be part of this new team, where I’ve been learning, growing, and applying lessons from my master’s program. Despite being globally distributed, my team’s support has been a cornerstone of my professional journey this year. This experience has inspired me to align my master’s thesis with my work, diving deeply into developer relations and its differences from marketing—a field I already love.
+In April, I resumed work after a year-long maternity leave. My original open source team had been restructured under new leadership, with most members transitioning to a developer relations focus. I’m incredibly grateful to be part of this new team, where I’ve been learning, growing, and applying lessons from my master’s program. Despite being globally distributed, my team’s support has been a cornerstone of my professional journey. This experience has inspired me to align my master’s thesis with my work, diving even deeper into developer relations and what makes it stand out from marketing.
 
-2024 also marked my first foray into submitting talk proposals for tech conferences. The anticipation of hearing back is thrilling, and I’m optimistic about what 2025 holds. 
+2024 also marked my first foray into submitting talk proposals for tech conferences. I'm thrilled to hear back and cautiously optimistic about the results.
 
 ### Balancing work, study, and parenthood
 
-Enjoying four months of maternity leave before returning to work allowed me to reconnect with my studies. Balancing these responsibilities alongside caring for a small child has been challenging but rewarding. Some weeks feel manageable, while others are disrupted by sleepless nights or unexpected needs—like singing lullabies for 30 minutes to calm teething pains.
+Returning to work also meant unpausing the degree I put on hold before giving birth. Balancing the responsibilities of work and study alongside caring for a small child has been challenging but rewarding. Some weeks feel manageable, while others are disrupted by sleepless nights or unexpected needs—like singing lullabies for 30 minutes to calm teething pains.
 
-I’m deeply thankful for my husband’s six-month paternity leave and my mother-in-law’s support, caring for our daughter three days a week. This robust support system has been crucial in achieving my goals. When people ask how I manage everything, I point to three key elements:
+I’m deeply thankful for my husband’s six-month paternity leave and my mother-in-law’s support, caring for our daughter three days a week. This robust support system has been crucial in achieving my goals. 
+
+When people ask how I manage everything, I point to three key elements:
 
 1. A strong support system  
 2. Prioritizing what truly matters (my daughter, above all)  
@@ -45,9 +47,11 @@ I’m deeply thankful for my husband’s six-month paternity leave and my mother
 
 In 2024, I was fortunate to spend a lot of quality time with family and friends. It started with my husband’s six-month paternity leave, which gave us precious moments together as a family when I wasn’t working. Our travels included trips to England to visit my relatives, a family holiday to Croatia with my parents-in-law, and two months with my parents visiting us in Austria.
 
-We made several trips to Italy—first to celebrate my nonna’s 90th birthday and, sadly, a month later to say a final goodbye. In autumn, my English aunt visited, and we had a wonderful time showing her the beauty of Southern Styria. Christmas brought everyone together at home, including my parents, parents-in-law, brother, and sister-in-law, making it a truly special gathering.
+We made several trips to Italy—first to celebrate my nonna’s 90th birthday and, heartbreakingly, a month later to say a final goodbye. In autumn, my English aunt visited, and we had a wonderful time showing her the beauty of Southern Styria. Christmas brought everyone together at home, including my parents, parents-in-law, brother, and sister-in-law, making it a truly special gathering.
+
+I also cherished the visit from my best friend during the summer, giving us much-needed time to reconnect. 
 
-I also cherished the visit from my best friend during the summer, giving us much-needed time to reconnect. While we didn’t venture far beyond our usual destinations, most of our travels were focused on visiting family. I see this as a blessing—it’s a privilege to have loved ones spread across Europe, giving us plenty of reasons and opportunities to pack our bags and explore.
+While we didn’t venture far beyond our usual destinations, most of our travels were focused on visiting family. I see this as a blessing—it’s a privilege to have loved ones spread across Europe, giving us plenty of reasons and opportunities to pack our bags and explore.
 
 ### Rediscovering photography
 
@@ -59,7 +63,7 @@ But it’s not only about portraits, I have also learned to take the camera with
 
 ### Balancing act
 
-With my daughter starting daycare, I hope to find a better balance between work, life, and studies, especially as I prepare for my master’s thesis. This year, I’ll explore whether developer relations can thrive without a development background and aim to secure my first conference speaking opportunity.
+With my daughter starting daycare, I hope to find a better balance between work, life, and studies, especially as I prepare for my master’s thesis. This year, I’ll explore whether I can thrive in developer relations without a development background and aim to secure my first conference speaking opportunity.
 
 ### Photography goals