2 1/2 hours until 2010 ends…..another decade wrapped up and what a decade it’s been! In such a short frame of time I managed to: graduate from high school & start college, gain some amazing sisters in Alpha Chi Omega, graduate from TTU with my BS in Human Sciences, graduate from TTUHSC with my BS in Nursing, meet my amazing husband & get married, move from TX to CA to Chicago, pass my nursing boards and get my dream job in the NICU, travel all around the US and Europe, buy my first home, and become a mommy to the most amazing little girl!
WOW!
Each year has held something special….though the most special was this year. 2010 will be hard to beat. This time last year I had just entered my 2nd trimester and was busy debating baby names with Dan. We were also stressed to the limit since we had both lost our jobs (and health insurance!!) and were watching our emergency fund drift lower and lower. Thankfully Dan found an amazing job in March & we could take a deep breath while waiting for our little bundle.
In high school New Years Eve was one of my favorite nights of the year. My friends and I would always have slumber parties and would spend the night hanging out with our boyfriends, setting off fireworks, and attempting to sneak a bottle of champagne away from the adults (shhhh….) 😉 In college the parties didn’t change much (except that we didn’t have to sneak the bottle in) and the past years were spent at bars or with the “ring of fire” at the Revoir house (good times…good times!).
My how times have changed! Tonight I am sitting at home while my husband works, cuddling my baby girl (who is sick), eating pizza and sipping on an individual size bottle of champagne. I will kiss my daughter at midnight and welcome her into a new year…a new decade. It is amazing to think of what this decade will hold for her.
Gone is the crazy loud party with the inevitable hangover (the day after the “ring of fire” will live in infamy as the worst hangover day EVER!)…..but I am so happy. I used to think it would suck to be stuck at home with a husband and baby on New Years….I mean it is THE night to party…but I don’t want to be anywhere but here. There will be more parties in the future!
Like most people I’ve made my resolutions and I have already started working hard at them! To keep my accountable here they are:
1. Get HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) out of our house! It is unhealthy and found in almost EVERYTHING (bread, applesauce….). I’ve been diligently reading food labels this past month and passing up anything with HFCS in it. We started making our own bread (yummy!) and do our best to stick to the outer part of the grocery store. I’ve managed to get rid of almost all “processed” foods in our pantry and feel great! For the few things that we really love (mac & cheese!) I’ve managed to find a more natural brand at Whole Foods that doesn’t have HFCS in it. The first few shopping trips took forever…but now I’ve gotten pretty good and know what to grab & what to stay away from.
2. Go organic! We switched to organic milk (tastes sooo much better!) and buy most of our produce organic (definately the “dirty dozen”). We have also started buying natural free range meat. The meat is crazy expensive so we have changed from eating meat every day to only 2-3X a week. Meat is more of a luxury in our diet now (like it should be!). My husband resisted a little at first, but it has been really easy to find yummy recipes that don’t use meat. He is now 100% on board!
3. Get my butt back into the gym! (the oldest resolution in the book!) Thanks to breastfeeding I am about 7lbs lower than I was when I got pregnant….but everything is much softer than it used to be! We hope to start trying for Thurow baby #2 sometime in 2011 and I need to get my body back in shape before putting it through the hardships of pregnancy again! I can’t join a gym in Chicago since we will be moving soon so I will pull out my old workout DVDs and countdown the days until I can get a yoga membership in San Antonio!
4. Take more pictures! I love photos and was gifted a new lens for Christmas that I LOVE….but I find myself constantly forgetting to pull it out! I get so wrapped up in everything and don’t realize that I haven’t taken a single picture until we get home 😦
5. Learn to knit! I bought the supplies and have watched some youtube videos and played around….but now I need to get serious about it! I think I need someone to go through it with me (I can cast on like a champ and knit one row…then I lose it!). My goal is to make Harper a cute animal beanie for next winter!
I am a little sad to say goodbye to 2010. It started rough and full of stress….but it turned out to be the most amazing year ever. I know though that 2011 is going to be just as amazing. With my husband and baby girl at my side how can it not be?!
Happy New Years everyone….I hope you spent it surrounded by those you love. To Harper – welcome to another year baby girl. We love you more than you will ever know and are thankful for every day with you!
Passports & Prams 