2010 According to Facebook

I posted this last year and thought I would follow suit again this year just to keep it consistent.  Besides, I like the picture into my status updates for the year and what I talked about...Now mind you, according to the application I used to generate this, they used some 13 (or something) statuses of a possible 837 to choose from so this really is just a snippet.  It's fun anyway, though...

Happy Anniversary!

While most people are full of Happy New Year messages this time of the year, I get the added bonus of celebrating my anniversary today!  Five years ago today, my hubby and I tied the knot in a very impromptu ceremony (we planned it in less than 3 weeks).  We had an army of people behind us, helping to pull it all together and taking on pieces of the festivities.

See, every year for quite a few years running, my (then) fiance and I had been throwing New Year's Eve parties in the basement of our house on Avery Street.  We had a bar built in our basement that we called the "Avery Street Saloon" (or A.S.S. for short) and we had friends and family over to celebrate the new year with a few cocktails and games of Threes or L-R-C.  We had been living together for years, had bought the house together, were engaged, but had no real rush to get married officially.  We had both "been there, done that" before and things were great the way they were so why rush it?  This particular year (2005) we were about to welcome our first child into our family (in March) and it became increasingly important that we do so under "legit" circumstances.  So, with our annual New Year's Eve party just around the corner, we decided to turn the usual gathering into a NYE Part/Wedding.  So, that's what we did.  We sent out invites, made arrangements to "rent" the atrium at the Emergency Communications Department where Dave works, had friends volunteer to decorate the area, chose a friend to marry us who is an ordained minister, asked another friend to take photos for us and continued on with our plan to have friends and family over to celebrate the new year.  2006 was to be a good year and we were celebrating for lots of reasons!

So, today.  I say Happy Anniversary to my husband.  Marrying you and starting our family was the best thing we could have done.  We've had our fair share of challenges but I look at it as the work needed to keep things alive.  I love working with you towards our goals!

My 5 Favorite Things about 2010

I'm a big fan of a blog/page called Operation NICE and this week's NICE Assignment (as seen here) is to list 5 of your favorite things from the past year.  I'm always looking for fun and creative ways to memorialize the year gone by, so I jumped at the chance.  But to pick only 5?!?!  Yikes!  That'll be the real challenge.  So here goes:

1.  My Trip to NYC to visit Tiffany in March.  To me, this trip stood for a whole heck of a lot more than just visiting one of my best friends on this planet.  To me, it was a challenge, a goal, and a success!!  I had serious anxiety over making that 6-hour drive, alone, in winter, with two boys under the age of 4.  I still remember seeing the City skyline come over the horizon and crying instantaneously.  A feeling of pride, accomplishment, and power surged over me when I realized I had done it.  And done it well!  We had a fabulous stay with Tiffany and Brielle that (blessed!) weekend!  The weather was horrible but the company was warm and inviting and the memories were priceless!!!

2.  My trip to Arizona with my sister to see my cousin get married in April.
Another trip of a lifetime was the plane ride I took with my sister to Arizona for my cousin, Todd's wedding.  We were both fortunate enough to leave our children home with our husbands to make the cross country trip as solo sisters.  What fun we had!  For 5 days, we shared a room, hung out with our cousin, Billy and his daughter, Clara, went shopping, took the hotel shuttle into town to sight see and bonded with family.  It was good to have that undistracted time away with my sister to reconnect.

3.  Moving to the new house.  While there was much stress and anxiety over making this move, I am so glad we did it!  We found a great house on 5 acres of beautiful land, in an area that has a great school for the boys, family nearby, and great neighbors!  I miss our old house and hold tight to the memories we made in the 6 years we lived there, but love where we are now.  It feels like home and is comfortable to just be here.

4.  My nephew, Ian, joining our family.  For a long time we thought my brother, Noah, would never agree to having children.  He was holding out for all the stars to align and finally, while on my trip to NYC, I got a call from him to announce they were having a baby!!!  I was so excited!  A few months later, we learned that they would be bringing a BOY into the ranks to grow up with my two and I was even more excited!  Then, when we found a house (literally) 42 seconds up the street from my brother and sister-in-law and moved in the month before my nephew was due, I was elated!  Now that Ian is here it feels like he's always been here and I don't know what we'd have done without him.  Wendy is the mother I always wish I had the time and patience to be so I knew she'd have this role down pat.  I can't wait for my boys to grow up with their cousin just up the street.  

5.  TIE - F-H-M Fire Department visit (and the outpouring of love from the whole FD Community) and Taking a Photoshop with my dear friend, Heidi.  I couldn't decide which was more profound in 2010 so I picked both for the individual, yet equally important meanings they held.

As for the Photoshop class, I chose it not so much for the class itself, I mean, yeah it was great stuff to learn and rounded out a whole slew of positive steps forward that I took in my photography in 2010, but i was thinking of it as my favorite more for the fantastic chain of events taking that class set off.  During this class, Heidi's husband, Joey, managed to single-handedly save my butt from the potential disaster of computer failure or data loss.  Not only did he volunteer to take all the kids (5 of them total!) while Heidi and I attended class 3 hours a week for 6 weeks, but while these weekly gatherings were taking place, Joey overhauled my entire computer and storage system and set me up with a permanent and secure copy of all my digital files - in one place!  Now it backs up automatically and is safe from all sorts of potential dangers!  The relief that brings me is indescribable!  I can't thank the Ciravola Family enough for all they have done for me, my boys, and my mental well being in 2010!

Regarding the fire department love Nathaniel received this year, you can read about it all here, but in summary, the single actions and grand gestures these firemen and women expressed the last few months has given me a whole new respect for people in their line of service and restored my faith in society as a whole.  It's truly remarkable and Nathaniel nor I will ever forget it!

Of course there were other moments in 2010 I'd like not to forget.  We did some boating, camped with friends, spent a lot of time up North at Mom and Dad's new camp, attended a Stanton family reunion, went to State and County Fairs, spent a lot of time with friends, and I was proud to be asked to take photos for a few separate events through work and for friends.  2010 was very good for us.  As we settle into our new home and new routines, I look forward to ringing in 2011 with some of the best people I know and starting off the new year with a fresh spirit, renewed energy, and recharged motivations!  Stay tuned for some of my goals, aspirations, and plans for the coming year!  Happy new year!

Resolution Mumbo Jumbo

I am not exactly what you would call a "stick-to-it" type.  When the going gets tough, I bail.  I hate that about myself, but it's mostly true.  That's why this resolution thing is hairy for me.  I always start out with strong convictions, good intentions, and smart ideas but it all goes off track very easily.

I'm a deadline-driven girl.  I need due dates and structured time lines to get stuff accomplished.  I'm a procrastinator in every sense of the word.  If there is a way to put something off, I will find it.  If there is something I can do BEFORE having to do that which I really need to do, I will do it.  But deadlines usually kick me into gear.  At the very last minute, of course.  For some reason, the threat of someone being mad at me or failing to meet a deadline weighs heavily on my mind and motivates me to complete things.  And even though I might procrastinate until the 11th hour, I always rally and come through in the bitter end. 

Anyway, with that said, resolutions are sticky for me.  I have many "self-improvement projects" I'm constantly undergoing.  Many things on my to-do list I'd like to actually accomplish.  But for some reason having the whole year to accomplish them in doesn't sound deadline-y enough.  And I think my expectations *gasp* for realistic goals may be a bit high.

That's why this year I'm tossing aside the lofty "I want to be skinny by 2011" and "I vow to cook like Julia Childs, clean like Mr. Clean, and decorate like Martha Stewart" type goals.  I'm setting aside the vague ambitions to "be happy" or "be a better Mother" and I'm going for something more attainable.  Don't get me wrong, there's definitely room for improvement there and I could certainly use a reminder to tweak my perspective on things from time to time, but as for hard and fast resolutions, I'm simplifying a little this year.

Here goes:

I want to lose 15 lbs before my cousin's wedding (in Arizona!) in April.  I figure that's just shy of 16 weeks away, so a pound a week is a realistic goal.  Now, in good goal-setting technique, I've also thought about how I will do this.  Being realistic, I know I have neither the time, nor the willpower to go back on Weight Watchers full-force at the moment, but I do intend on eating better, with the WW theories in mind.  Loosely "counting" my points, paying attention to the fiber intake, limiting calories and fat...and exercising AT LEAST 3 times a week.  That's not ALL the weight I hope to lose in 2010, but I figured I'd start small - with a DEADLINE of sorts to work towards.  Losing fifteen pounds would get me back to pre-Alex weight and that would be better than where I'm at now!  After I reach that goal I'll work towards my next goal or losing another 20 to get back to my pre-Nate weight...and so on and so forth.  Baby steps!  :)

Next, I want to complete my 101 in 1001 list and get started on that project.  For a refresher on that goal of mine, read here.

Lastly, I want to get my house organized and de-cluttered.  The bigger goal here is to get our house on the market and get it SOLD this year.  It's time to move out of the City and to somewhere bigger and better.  Nathaniel starts school in just over a year and a half and I do NOT want him starting in City schools.  Plus, this 900-something square foot house is closing in on us as the boys get older and their stuff gets bigger!  It's time.  I am learning to part with things I realistically don't need and have agreed to do so more simply (trip to Salvation Army versus trying to Craigslist or Freecycle it all which is VERY time consuming).  Now I just need to find the TIME to tackle my piles.  Again, small doses.  Chip away,  layer by layer.

So, while I will continue working on those self-improvement projects (work on my patience and perspective, be a better mother, etc.) and that to-do list (clean the basement, purge Nate's toys, go through the kids' clothes, etc.)...I will focus my resolution effort for 2010 towards the three goals above. As the year progresses, I will keep you up to date on my progress.  I hope you all will hold me accountable to some degree!  Happy 2010 to you all!  Thanks for following me on this blogging journey in 2009 and I hope you all have a prosperous new year!  May you all accomplish that which YOU set out to take on!