2016 was an interesting year for me. There were some definite high points. My biggest priority going into 2016 was to get accepted into graduate school. I was so blessed to be accepted into my top choice. The program is entirely online, so my family was able to remain anchored in Arizona, but is supported by a highly regarded university. What I had no idea was how much of my time it would take. My life during the semester pretty much consists of work, family, homework, and (a little) sleep. Hence the blog fell completely off the deep end. As a matter of fact, I'm still on Christmas break right now, so I had a little extra bandwidth in my schedule to write this.
The other huge thing that happened this year was a promotion at work. I am absolutely thrilled that I got it. I was so nervous during the decision making process. And it's stretched me some in terms of roles and responsibilities. Compounded with this, we've been short handed, leaving me with some long hours. Luckily that should ease up into the coming year.
Unfortunately the year wasn't all fantastic. My mom was in a severe car accident while on vacation this fall. She will ultimately be okay but it will take a while. And there is nothing quite like having to rush halfway across the country to be with her. Luckily for us, she's home now.
The boys continue to grow and change in ways that are fun to watch. C is now in fourth grade and J is now in 1st grade. Hard to believe that C is one of the older kids at the school! They are such interesting people to talk to and be around. The baby years are nice, but there is something magical about the elementary age as they really become their own people. E continues to be my rock and has really provided a strong support for me to lean on as I've gone through stressful times. We celebrated our 15th anniversary this year! And we've now known each other for 20 years, more than half my life. We took our family vacation to San Diego again and stayed for two weeks this time. I've never in my life taken a two week vacation and it was glorious.
Our extended family grew this year with the birth of my nephew. I'm sure I'm biased, but he is so stinkin' cute! Although the boys are really starting to outnumber the girls on that side of the family...
Now for the resolution list:
- Get accepted into and start grad school - Yes!!!
- Sew a skirt for myself - I tried. I found a pattern online for a skirt sewn from knit fabric that seemed easy enough. No paper piecing, just measuring the fabric, cutting and sewing. However, I cut the wrong way so the skirt isn't stretching the right direction. I also did the math wrong on my ease and added instead of subtracted, so the skirt is about 6 inches too wide! I think based on that fact, I may be able to salvage the fabric.
- Lose 10 pounds - Not even close
- Finish the last two stockings - I started one of them
- Read 8 books (Honeymoon Suite - 4/12/16; Babyland - 4/15/16; Heart of the Matter - 4/19/16; a few others I forgot to write down)
- Make truffles - nope
- Blog 24 times - hahahahahaha
- Knit 2 pairs of socks - I've got two pairs on the needles but didn't finish either
So it looks like I got through two of my resolutions - 3 if you want to count the skirt that I sewed but couldn't wear.
On to this year's list:
- Survive grad school (by the end of this year, I'll have one semester left)
- Finish at least one of the Christmas stockings
- Knit a pair of socks
It's not a long list, but considering what a time suck grad school is, I think it's reasonable. I figure I can go nuts on my 2018 resolution list :)