2011 was great and a very special and memorable year. Lots of change for sure! Last night as we were ringing in the new year, Jason looked over and said, "Do you remember what I said last New Year's Eve?" I responded, "Yeah, you said 2011 was going to be a great year." We then looked at each other and said, "It sure was."
Some 2011 highlights include:
January
Must have been wedding planning all month...
February
My bridal shower
Turned 27March
My bachelorette party -wine tasting in Napa
April
Our April 2nd wedding...definitely the highlight of the year
Followed by our honeymoon to Maui
MayFinally able to relax and settle into our first place together
June
Celebrated my friend Kirsten's engagement in Tahoe
July
Our niece Adalynn April was born
Jason turned the big 3-0
August
Annual family trip to Tahoe
Started my 5th year of teaching
We switched churches and got plugged into a small group with other young married couples
September
My friend Kristina's bachelorette party to Santa Barbara
Jason's cousin's wedding
October
OctoberOur friends Matt and Mary then got married
Grammy turned 100
Took my first cooking class
November
Kristina's wedding
Started leading the young adults group at our church
December
Our first Christmas together as Mr. and Mrs.
2011 also threw us some tough curve balls. The first was when Jason's mentor (him and his wife also did our pre-marital counseling) was diagnosed with brain cancer in May. Then, the next month, Jason's mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. Both came out of nowhere, but we have seen God's hand of grace covering both of these situations.
With the new year also comes by blog-o-versary. Which means it's time to check in with my 30 before 30. Well, this year was a mini-fail with the 30 before 30. It's funny because I came up with this idea when I was single and had recently ended a relationship. I didn't want to get caught up into thinking I needed to get married, buy a house, and have 2 kids before I was thirty. There are so many other great things to focus on. Hence, I started brainstorming things I wanted to do before 30 (besides those indicated above).
Funny because by the time I finished writing my list of 30 things, I had already met Jason, and we had been dating for a month or so when I started this blog. I was still all about my 30 things, though. That first year I checked nine things off my list!
Well, then this year came, and I got married. And...I only checked three things off my list (and I had intentionally not put 'get married' on the 30 before 30). Mini-fail because I'm now 'behind' (in the sense that I should have half my items done since I'm at the half-way point to 30...welcome to my math teacher brain). But, not a huge fail because I did have one major (and great) event in getting married and then learning how to live life with someone else. Plus, a lot of the items on my list cost $, which was lacking after paying for half our wedding ourselves and then setting up our place.
So, I guess my plan is kinda backfiring on me. But, I'm still moving on with my list.
Here is the updated list with what I accomplished this year and my changed items from the previous year. I definitely have a few more things I want to change, but I haven't finalized those quite yet.
Travel
1. Austin (completed June 4-6, 2010)
2. Boston
3. Thanksgiving in New York
3. Thanksgiving in New York
4. Greece
5. Canada
6. Cruise (completed January 2010)
California Tourism
7. Alcatraz
8. Wine tasting in Wine Country (completed January 9, 2010)
9. Monterey Bay Aquarium (completed April 7, 2010)
10. Hearst Castle (completed August 8, 2010)
11. Lighthouses of California (from San Francisco to Santa Barbara)
11. Lighthouses of California (from San Francisco to Santa Barbara)
Adventure
12. Skydive
13. Hike Half Dome (completed June 17, 2010)
14. Run a half marathon (completed October 3, 2010)
15. Triathlon
16. White Water Raft
17. Hot Air Balloon
18. Ski in another state
18. Ski in another state
Intellectual/Spiritual
19. Read The Chronicles of Narnia ('Attempted' Summer 2011)
20. Memorize a chapter of the Bible
21. Take a Bible class
*Deleted Read 5 Classics*
21. Take a Bible class
*Deleted Read 5 Classics*
Entertainment
22. Sharks Game (completed November 20, 2010)
23. NBA Basketball Game (completed December 31, 2011)
24. Live orchestra/symphony
25. Circus
26. Eat 30 ethnic cuisines that I have never had before (Added 9 new countries in 2011)
24. Live orchestra/symphony
25. Circus
26. Eat 30 ethnic cuisines that I have never had before (Added 9 new countries in 2011)
Personal Development
27. Cooking/Baking Class (completed October 2011)
28. Learn to sew
29. Start a blog (completed January 1, 2010)30. *Learn Photography* (new)
I am looking forward to 2012, which I'm sure will be full of unknowns, uncertainties, and surprises, but rich with our God's love and mercy.
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