Holy Shit, it’s almost 2020! I’ve seen so much stuff over social media the last month with people saying they are ready for 2019 to be over. “Can we all just admit that 2019 killed us a little inside?”No, no we cannot. First off, that’s a poor attitude and second, 2019 was one of the best years I’ve had. In March, I started my new job after being unemployed for five months. I was lucky enough to get a great job and work with some of the best people I’ve met. My company is very generous with their employees and has a growth mindset. Also in March, my stepdaughter had a baby, making my husband and I grandparents. I’m surprised at how much I love that little girl, especially considering I’m not the best person around kids! I love picking out clothes for people and buying baby clothes is so much fun!
In April, we moved into our new house. I am absolutely in love with our house- as I should be considering we picked out everything ourselves! We’ve had fun picking out new stuff and I had a lot of fun decorating for Christmas. When we’ve had friends and family visit, our house has been great for entertaining. In June, we traveled back to Iowa for a week for my cousin’s wedding and to see family. James also traveled back to Iowa three times for kids’s sporting events – state track, state cross country, and some basketball games. This summer and fall, we had several friends and family visit. James’s mom and the youngest two kids visited in July. In September, my mom and sister came down for our birthdays. In October, my college roommate, Brandy, and her husband Craig visited for a weekend. And in November, my friend Tiffany and her husband Luke flew down for a weekend. While they were her the guys ran the Hot Springs Half Marathon. We had a blast showing people around our new town. And as I mentioned earlier, our house is perfect for having guests. Also in November, my brother got engaged! I’m so excited to see him get married as he has found the perfect girl!
After all of that, we had a very low key Christmas with just the two of us and the dog. On Christmas Eve, we went to brunch at Lost 40 Brewery. Then we stayed in and watched Christmas movies for the next two days. I missed my family when they Face Timed during their Christmas celebration, but a low key Christmas sure has it’s benefits. Mostly staying in your sweatpants all day long.
With all of that behind us, I’m really looking forward to 2020. When I was younger, I remember thinking that in 2020, I would turn 40 and that seemed like a long time away. Now, it’s damn near here and I’m happy about it! We have a big year ahead of us. In April, we are going to Branson with my college friends and their husbands. We’ve rented a house for a long weekend and it’s going to be four days of fun. In May, my stepson graduates high school so we’ll be traveling for his graduation party and ceremony. I always measure the length of our relationship by Trevin’s grade in school. We started dating in August 2007 and he started kindergarten and now he is graduating high school. Twelve years can go pretty fast! He’s turned into a great young man (ok, he was also a great little kid too!) and I’m very excited to see him become an adult. In September, we’ll travel back to Iowa for my brother and future sister in law’s wedding. I just talked to her a little about wedding plans and I’m really getting excited for their big day! I’m actually just more excited to have another member in our really big, really loud family.
In less than two weeks, my oldest stepdaughter, her boyfriend, and their baby are coming to visit for a few days. I’m so excited to have visitors again- especially my granddaughter as I haven’t seen her since June! They haven’t been to our new house yet so we’re looking forward to showing them around.
I know everyone is setting New Year’s resolutions, and I probably will too. I actually hate those resolutions because people constantly break them by February. One of my goals is to go to group fitness classes 2-3 times per week. We just joined a new gym so I’m getting back into the groove of group fitness. Those classes force me to try new things and it’s a great way to meet people. Of course, we have the normal goals too- paying off debt and becoming more organized, but that’s an ongoing thing and not something we stop and start every year.
Looking back over the past few years, we’ve come a long way! 2017 was tough. I just wasn’t in a good place physically or mentally. The beginning of 2018 wasn’t my favorite either. Now that we’ve had a year of living in Arkansas, I can look back and see when things started to change. It’s pretty obvious that moving to a new state at this time in our lives was a huge change. However, once we made the decision, everything started falling into place. We found a great rental house when everything other rental property was crap, I found a great job, and we were able to build a new house. Absolutely none of those things would have happened if we’d stayed complacent with our lives and stuck to our plan of staying in Iowa for the next five years. What I’m saying is – screw your plan. Yes, it’s great to make goals and plans, but sometimes those aren’t the best thing for you. If we’d stuck to our plan, we’d still be miserable but not know it. I didn’t realize how unhappy I was until I became happy. Yes, happiness is a choice and you can always choose to have a good attitude but shaking up your life is what really makes you grow. Change is good! Change brought us to Arkansas, change brought us closer as a couple, and change made us grow our relationships with our family as well. If you’re worried about changing things in 2020, I highly encourage you to start thinking about the positive things change can bring. If you’re afraid of change, you’re afraid of growth. Read that again. I’m no Rachel Hollis, but if I can motivate someone to make a positive change, I’m all for it.
Speaking of change, Iowa State needs to change their offense right now. I’m watching the Camping World Bowl, and their offense isn’t looking so hot. Maybe they’ll get a good motivational talk during halftime. Right now Deuce is following our Shark Robot around and not loving this change!
Alright everyone, go out and have a great and SAFE New Year. We’ll be making a charcuterie board and staying in. Probably going to bed before 10 pm too. I’m all about it. If I can challenge you one thing in the new year, make a change. Make a big change, a small change, just make one change and see how you feel! Happy New Year!
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