2013. Pretty Good Year.

This was our Christmas card this year. I wanted to write 2013: Best Year Ever! but Jordan said that everyone writes that so he suggested Pretty Good Year. And it was. Some pretty good stuff happened. Like always, here's my year-end review.

What did you do in 2013 that you'd never done before?

Went to Tennessee and saw Jordan's childhood home. Visited the Creation museum. Lived in Madison, WI. Met with a realtor. Visited a therapist and nutritionist. Co-planned a baby shower. Began meditating. Joined a UU church. Taught in an Art department with multiple teachers. Learned how to use video-editing software. Rode on a PedalPub. Had a proper bra fitting. Bought a cat tree. Turned down a teaching position offer. Made a coconut curry from scratch. Sewed myself a scarf and wore it in public- (this happened today!) There's probably more. Doing things for the first time is something I should strive to do more.

Did you keep your New Year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

At the beginning of 2013, these were the three goals I set for myself:

1. By the end of the year, I'd like to have a job that is more aligned with my passion for Art and Education and actually pays me enough to be able to save for the future.

2. By the end of the year, I'd like to establish an exercise routine that I can maintain long-term.

3. By the end of the year, I'd like Jordan and I to have firm and realistic plans for eventually buying a house and having a baby. 

To my surprise and delight, I managed to achieve two of the three- not bad! In case you're wondering, #2 is still my constant struggle. Since the goal-setting was pretty successful this year I think I'll set a couple goals for 2014...

1. By the end of the year, I'd like Jordan and I to be living in our very own house.

2. By the end of the year, I'd like to be pregnant/have a baby/something like that.

3. By the end of the year, I'd like to own a DSLR camera.

4. By the end of the year, I'd like to establish an exercise routine that I can maintain long-term. (If at first you don't succeed, and all that)

Did anyone close to you give birth?

YES! The closest person is Kristina and I got to hold her baby already. There are several others too, family and friends. My facebook feed features baby pictures pretty consistently.

Did anyone close to you die?

Catresa, my former manager at Dentalworks. It's still very hard for me to think about.

What countries did you visit?

None! I didn't leave the country this year, and my passport expired. Sad. But we're hoping to visit my aunt and uncle in Vancouver this summer so I better get on that passport renewal thing...

What would you like to have in 2014 that you lacked in 2013?

More self-acceptance. More self-control. More reading, less internet. 

What date(s) from 2013 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

September 4th- my first day teaching Art again! 

What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Embracing the uncertainty of leaving Ohio and facing the chaos with a positive and optimistic attitude. Moving across state lines with a completely-full U-haul, a car with two unhappy cats, and my best friend and building a new life in Madison.

What was your biggest failure?

Not being kind to myself, mentally and physically. 

Did you suffer illness or injury?

Not much. I've been sick for the last 4-5 days, but that's been the worst of it.

What was the best thing you bought?

I'm embarrassed to say it... the cat tree. They love that thing.

Whose behavior merited celebration?

My amazing co-workers, both at Dentalworks and at my new school. I have been so fortunate to consistently work with talented, generous, and interesting people. Our apartment manger and maintenance crew in Madison- they have been very responsive and helpful and we love living here. And as always, my wonderful husband. Jordan really is the best. 

Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

Some of my students display less-than-stellar behavior on a fairly regular basis...

Where did most of your money go?

Where it always goes... rent, gas, groceries, student loans. We're saving for a house now, which is new. The fact that we HAVE money to save is pretty exciting.

What did you get really, really, really excited about?

The fact that Jordan and I both had job offers while we were living in Columbus. When I got the call that I was being offered my current job, I may have jumped on the bed and screamed into a pillow. Getting a snow day a week ago. 

What song will always remind you of 2013?

I'm all about honesty. The first song that comes to mind is Wrecking Ball by Miley Cyrus. Also, there is a song that Jordan and I made up about moving to Wisconsin that we sing with the cats. Yep. Feel free to judge away.

Compared to this time last year, are you:

i. happier or sadder?

Happier with my personal life, AND happier with my professional life. Whoo-hoo!

ii. thinner or fatter?

Probably fatter, but only a little fatter. 

iii. richer or poorer?

Richer, for the first time in two years.

What do you wish you'd done more of?

Spending time with our friends in Columbus before we moved. 

What do you wish you'd done less of?

Being too hard on myself. 

Did you fall in love in 2013?

I STILL stayed in love. Going on ten years! 

What was your favorite TV program?

Breaking Bad. The finest television show of all time. Orange is the New Black was pretty good too.

Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?

No, I just don't really spend time hating people. 

What was the best book you read?

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn and Wild by Cheryl Strayed 

What was your greatest musical (re)discovery?

James Taylor

What did you want and get?

A new home, new job, new city. And all of it was amazing. 

What did you want and not get?

A wake-up light alarm clock. 

What was your favorite film of this year?

The second Hunger Games movie, Catching Fire, was great. I think we saw the first Hobbit movie at the beginning of the year and I loved it. I can't wait to see the second! We just don't watch a ton of movies anymore.

What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

I turned 31. Jordan and I went to a cabin in northern WI and I wrote a blog post about it not too long ago.

What one thing would have made the year immeasurably more satisfying?

I can't think of anything, to be honest. 2013 really was a pretty good year. 

How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2011?

About that same as it was in 2009, 2010, and so on. Jeans and t-shirts. I probably won't be changing this any time soon. 

What political issue stirred you the most?

Working in public education in WI after the Act 10 stuff from 2011 has been challenging. I really wasn't prepared for the differences in education from MN to WI.

Who did you miss?

My family and my friends in MN, for the first half of the year. And my friends in Columbus, in the second half.

Who was the best new person you met?

My co-workers at school, especially Lyz.

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2013:

Moving is terrible. Having the right attitude can make a scary and uncertain experience into one that is exciting and full of possibility. I am supposed to be an Art teacher, this is the right career for me. Anxiety is just anxiety, it will not control my life. I am the lock and I am the key.