A Decade in Review

A tweet from Annabelle got me thinking about the New Year. Instead of recapping 2009, she looked back at the past decade, which got me to do the same. It has been a remarkable 10 years, full of major highs and lows. Here are the highlights in no particular order (for both good and bad):

• Graduated college, started college, graduated college, started college
• Moved 1 billion times up and down the west coast
• Visited 15 states: Washington, Oregon, California, Hawaii, Utah, Arizona, Montana, Missouri, Colorado, Illinois, Texas, Minnesota, Maryland, and New York
• Traveled through 12 different countries: Canada, England, France (2x), Switzerland, Austria, Germany (2x), Italy (2x), Greece, Czech Republic, Netherlands, Spain, and Jamaica
• Saw the Pope on Easter
• Skied the Alps
• Maintained childhood friendships, rekindled ones of old, and created new lifelong ones
• Witnessed vows of love, and new baby blessings
• Ran countless miles, including two 1/2 marathons, 1 full marathon, and a triathlon
• Sent my grandfather Abel out to sea
• Said goodbye to the tough Norwegian bird that was my great-grandmother Olga
• Got to know my sister and brother
• Said a tearful, heart-wrenching farewell to the greatest person I have ever known: my grandfather Lyle
• Met and married the love of my life
• Laughed, loved, cried, danced, sang, played, praised, hugged, mourned, fished, swam, skied, biked, snorkeled, celebrated, cheered, indulged, humbled, and always was, and am, eternally grateful for every day on this earth
• Along with countless other things I am sure to recall later on.

I have never been a big resolution maker, but last New Year's eve, I made a new year's goal to run a marathon, which I made happen. I feel that goals are easier to strive to, so for the next decade my list of goals is great--none too overwhelming, and hopefully all accomplishable. I hope they are celebrated with you all.

Happy New Year!