2008 Revisited

OK so it seems that every year good things and bad things happen. Every year we learn from our mistakes. It is really amazing to sit back and think about everything that has occurred throughout the year and realize that so much has happened.

• My SIL welcomed her son into the world.
• A friend of mine got married.
• My paternal grandmother passed away.
• I spent the entire year in school.
• Jerry had a major job changed that required a huge adjustment.
• Ethan shaved his head.
• A friend of mine got divorced.
• I sprained my ankle and it still hasn't healed.
• Ethan cut his own hair.
  
• My step-sister and I reconnected.
• We marked a year of a friend being gone.
• I discovered Facebook, The Pioneer Woman, and TMZ.
• Ethan shaved a piece of his hair. Again.
  
• The Twilight Movie came out!
• I finally found a hairstyle that I liked.
• Hurricane Ike wreaked havoc on our lives.
  
• I got a new phone...and then promptly dropped the new one in milk.
• I kicked it into gear with my blogging.
• I discovered how much I adore Photoshop.
• I made some new friends, and divorced some others.
  

While some of the things that happened were light hearted, others were significant but all of them shaped me into to who I am today. All in all, this was a good year. My work thrived, my son i s healthy, and lord knows...I'm almost done with school.

What am I looking forward to in 2009? Lots. Mainly getting a break from school before I enter into the MBA program. I gave up setting new year resolutions years ago. I just never keep them. I'm not going to outline what it is I'm looking forward too, I'll just write about it as it unfolds.

Excuse me while I take a break from my deep thoughts to ask Ethan to quit bouncing his ball off the television.

OK, thank you for your patience. As I was saying, I think it will make the new year more interesting if I just share my experiences as they happen instead of trying to predict them. Of course, when I finish school in May, you will likely hear me singing a chorus from the top of a mountain. And when the second Twilight Movie comes out, I'm likely to start doing the Running Man or Rodger Rabbit to celebrate the occasion.

Excuse me one more time while I ask Ethan to please quit trying to give me a heart attack before I'm 34.

Ahem, sorry about that. It's hard to sink deep into myself to share my thoughts as my four year old tries to shave like his daddy does.

I will also strive to break Ethan's fascination with cutting his hair and shaving his head.

While this next part is not a resolution but more of a self improvement goal, I will give you a glimpse. Once I'm done with school in May, I am going to devote much wanted time to improving my photography skill.

So my five readers, I hope you took something valuable from 2008 and apply it to 2009. For those of you that had a bad year, I hope 2009 shines for you. Kiss your kids and tell them how much you love them. Tell your loved ones how much you value their presence. Forgive someone. Learn something new. Kick one bad habit. Embrace your weird quirks. Dance with your young ones and act silly. Reconnect with an old friend. Hold hands with your spouse. And thank God every day for the extra day you have on this earth.

Here's to the new year and a new beginning.