2009: WHAT A YEAR!!!

I'm jumping on the perverbial bandwagon and posting my year in review.  It really helps to look back over the year and see what all we've come through.  Having a blog is very telling.  For instance, I was looking back through all my posts in 2009, and the very first one dealt with Commitments, Not Resolutions.  Well, I made three that I have NOT stuck with!  I guess this is why I am not even going to bother with the whole resolution thing this year.  I'm just going to enjoy the new year and what it holds for me, and I'm just going to do the best I can. That's good enough for me.

The rest of January's posts dealt with me trying to help my husband get through a major onset of depression.  It was a very low point in our lives where I could not help him, no matter what I tried.  We dealt with this off and on throughout the year.  Things really hit rock bottom for him before they got better just a couple of months ago. Since then he as been doing well. I think they finally got his medication correct.

February started with a post about how our beloved Shitzu, Marsh, came up missing.  It was like losing a member of our family.  We still wonder if he's out there somewhere. :*(  It was also this month that I posted about my feeling about turning 40.  I also began a series on "Monday Memories" posts in which each Monday I would copy a letter that I had written to my children beginning 15 years ago.  I got a lot of nice feedback from my readers on these posts.  If you haven't read them, you may want to check them out and maybe do the same for your children. These letters are priceless, and I only wish I had continued writing them back then.  Make sure you look through all of them, as I posted one each Monday until they ran out.

In March I voiced my feelings about my struggle with giving tough love to my oldest son who would not grow up, gain responsibility, and get a job.  Little did I know that life was going to hit him smack dab in the face and force him to become responsible.  But even as I write this, he is still out of work.  True, the economy is pretty bad when it comes to new jobs.  I'm still holding out hope that he will be able to find a good one after the first of the year.

My April posts reflect me going through daily activities that go along with life.  We saw Justin's band play at he local coffee shop.  We went on trips to hear Jordan play bass guitar with the high school show choir.  He also turned 15 on April 24.  (Now the fun is REALLY about to begin when he turns 16!!)  Chase went to his first prom, and I put together a slideshow with the pictures.

In May, I had an epiphany about myself.  We also got the first picture of our first grandchild via ultrasound.  And, I could not let the month go by without acknowledging the 1-year anniversary of the passing of my mother-in-law whom we still miss oh so very much! 

We became bikers in June and had a few subsequent posts about roadtrips that we took.  We celebrated our 22nd wedding anniversary.  I became a mother-in-law on June 26 when Justin and Chelsea went to the courthouse and got married. 

In July, we found out that we were going to be grandparents of a granddaughter!!  This was great news, as I have been outnumbered by males for way too long.  The girls are catching up, slowly but surely!  Then I posted about my grandma name.  I have since come up with "Granda" as my grandma name.  Later in the month, I did a light-hearted post, courtesy of my sons, about what they would like on their grocery list. Then, onto a more serious post about how we never stop worrying about our children, no matter how old they are.

My August posts seem to reflect lows and highs of different things I was going through in the course of daily life.  Kevin's dad got some really great news in that he found out that, after battling bladder cancer for the last few months, he was cancer free! 

We were full-fledged into school, work, football, and band in September.  Chase had a very disappointing game when he missed the pass that would have won the game against Southside.  He also turned 18 on September 15th, and I posted the story about how I gave birth to him in the car on the way to the hospital!

Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasedena, Californina, January 1, 2011:  That's the news the Albertville High School band received in October!! Since Jordan is part of the band, he will be going, which means that we will have the opportunity to go with him!  I'm so excited. I hope we can afford to pull this one off! 

October also saw Chase being recognized in the senior show at half-time at the last home football game.  It was a sad time indeed as I contemplated on where all the time has gone.

The big news of October was the BIRTH OF MY GRANDDAUGHTER, AMELIA JAYNE!!!  Nothing could top that.  That WAS my November. :)

And well, for December, you can just look back over the last few posts.  Nothing major.  Just Christmas planning and such.  On my very last post before this one I contemplated what a difference a year makes.  Well, if you have read any of what I've said in this post, you will see that just one year can bring many changes.

So, to all my readers, I wish you a very Happy New 2010.  May it hold happiness and love for you and your families.

GOD BLESS!!