Top 9 of 2009

Top 9 of ‘09 (This isn't how this post is supposed to look but I can't figure out how to put the pictures in their place, so just figure it out :)

1. Family get-togethers: I treasure the time I get to spend watching my 5 nieces and 3 nephews grow up. Elizabeth, the oldest and an especially special one since she’s my goddaughter, turned 8 this year and made her First Communion. She beat me at Scrabble this Thanksgiving which was really a turning point in our relationship. When did she learn to spell? I missed the huge family vacation to DisneyWorld in July (you’ll see why in a minute), but it was fun hearing all the different versions of it depending on who I asked!


2. I went to Mardi Gras! OMG, Mardi Gras is so fun- you must go! My favorite NOLA native, Kevin, is the most awesome host a Yankee could ask for. I definitely got to be a part of the “Best Of” events for the week. I marched in a parade dressed like L’il Bo Peep, went to M.O.M.’s ball (don’t ask), screamed “throw me somethin’ mistah!” at floats and caught beads (without even flashing- I swear!), ate raw oysters, and drank Absinthe. The rest is kind of a blurrrrr. :) What more could a girl want for what otherwise would have been a cold, miserable winter February week in Wisconsin?


3. I sold my house! In a terrible market flooded with houses exactly like my 3BR 1BA cape cod, my house of the last 4 years miraculously sold in just 10 days. It was getting to be too much for me to maintain and it was time for a fresh start. So since July I’ve been renting the lower of a duplex, enjoying chore-free Saturdays and a little extra money in the bank. Cosmo misses the endless fetch sessions in the big fenced yard I had at the house, and he goes tearing through the house barking when the upstairs neighbors come and go, but other than that, its been a pretty easy adjustment. We are in a sweet location in the Tosa village with easy access to the parkway, great neighborhoods for walking, Starbucks, and bars & restaurants. Plus, I don’t worry about being burglarized here (like happened twice in my house) so it is nice to rest easy.

4. Triathlon Season! In July, I competed in my 2nd sprint distance triathlon: ½ mile swim, 12 mile bike, 3.1 mile run. I beat last year’s time by several minutes despite a terrible asthma-attacking swim leg. I exited the lake swearing I would never swim again, yet in September I somehow ended up doing the swim leg in a team triathlon with a couple of friends. I finally beat that lake and had a good, strong swim that day. I’m looking forward to the 2010 race season and am hoping to compete in an Olympic Distance triathlon (double the sprint distance) and perhaps a half marathon.


5. Appalachia Service Trip. A week after the Trek triathlon, I traveled to the Appalachia Mountains of Clintwood, VA with a group of high school students from my church, St. Margaret Mary. This was my 2nd year as an “adult” chaperone for the week-long service trip. Last year I did roofing, but this year I spent the week with 5 others volunteering at RAM (Remote Area Medical), an annual health fair for the uninsured and under-insured to get medical, vision, and dental care. It’s a pretty amazing event and I was thrilled to be a part of it. And P.S., the high school kids are tons of fun and gave me loads of laughs.


6. I made cakes. Two friends turned 40 this year and one of them built an amazing tree house for his kids so it was a tree house warming/40th birthday theme. The iPhone was my favorite, however, full of my friend, Joe’s favorite apps.


7. SNC Homecoming. In October, I headed north to De Pere for my 11 year college reunion. Why 11? Because many of my peeps were celebrating their 10 year. It was amazing to see the new Mulva Library – there’s actually wi-fi there. Email was brand new my first year of college and we still printed on those dot matrix printers with the green and white striped paper!
8. New job opportunities! I am “exploring” a new career path in the area of Enterprise Risk Management. Basically we help companies identify risks, as in man-made or natural disasters, then help them come up with disaster preparation and response plans. I have been working at NEAS, Inc. for the past 8 ½ years and in November my boss approached me about this opportunity to start shadowing one of our Vice Presidents since he will be retiring in a few years and someone will need to fill his shoes. Most of our clients are airlines, professional sports teams, and large event venues. It is all still very new, but its nice to have a new opportunity. I will be traveling a bit more. This year I went to Oklahoma, Las Vegas, New York, and Denver and Seattle and San Diego are coming up this Jan/Feb.

9. I survived another year of being single. It’s hard to believe it’s been almost 3 years since my divorce. I’ve grown a lot and discovered a many parts of myself that might have been left dormant had I not gone through a divorce. It’s still painful at times and I look enviously upon seemingly happy families. But overall I am very happy and living a good life and I shall remain faithful and wait in joyful hope that one day (soon?!) a tall, dark, handsome, rich, successful, funny, kind, caring, loving man will cross my path and look my way. ☺