2012...a year in review

Yes, I fully realize that it's now the 3rd day of 2013 and I'm just now getting around to doing a 2012 recap. I have good excuses (as usual). We had the stomach plague in the house. And I didn't feel like blogging. And I'm feeling rather "meh" about the new year so far. All valid reasons to not blog about last year. And really, this is so new still. It's almost like it's still last year.

So I did some "research" (ha) and it appears that I wrote 137 blog posts last year with my "wordiest" months being January, February and March. You know, those were the months when I actually attempted to write every single day thanks to "NaBloPoMo." Clearly I "failed" those attempts. :)

Anyway....here goes. 2012 as I remember it.

January started out rather 'blah' ... I was not in a good mood when the new year started (shocking, I know). I was feeling discouraged and disgruntled and I was trying to figure out where my professional life should go. You know, same crap different year. But on the BRIGHT SIDE my girls celebrated their birthdays (parties! cake! presents!). And I continued to "train" for my first 5K "race." Oh, I also instituted a lifetime ban on Girl Scout Cookies in this house. So don't try selling me any Thin Mints. Ever.

February was an OK month and not just because it is the shortest month of the year. I celebrated my 39th birthday (yes, that means I'll be FORTY next month...whatever) and birthdays are always a good thing. But the highlight of February was my #PrincessPartyCrew weekend with Kristen, Rebekah, Jackie and Tori.

We spent a weekend at Walt Disney World for the Royal Family 5K (part of the Princess 1/2 Marathon Weekend). We lived it up at a Global Resort Homes vacation home (thank you again Global Resort Homes!). We went to the Magic Kingdom and cried during Wishes. We at dinner at Via Napoli. We saw so many Disney friends. Oh, and we walked a 5K. And it was amazing. And it changed my view of a lot of things. And it empowered me to think anything was possible. Yeah, it was an amazing 3.1 miles. The ladies and I had such an incredible time together .. and we're already talking about a #PrincessPartyCrew "reunion" for the 2014 Princess 1/2 Marathon weekend. And this time, I might actually run the 1/2 marathon. Maybe.

I wrote a post that sums up what the Princess Weekend meant to me. Click here to read.

At the end of my Princess Weekend I was actually lucky enough to spend a few more days in Orlando with Kevin. And, I went to Hogwarts. And my wand chose me! (And if you're not a Harry Potter fan you have no idea what I'm talking about).

March was a somewhat slow month. The highlights included being invited to be a member of the Children's Clairtin Moms Crew. And then, there was the post about the absolute weirdness of job interviews.

In April I got a new job. And then it was May. And May was really cool. Olivia celebrated her First Communion. Emma danced in her very first recital. And I went to Atlanta to be part of the Conversations with Coca-Cola Social Media Conference. Let me just say when I received the invitation to this event I nearly fell out of my chair with excitement. This conference was an incredible event - I met amazing bloggers, learned a lot about myself (and social media) and had a great time thanks to Coca-Cola. One of the highlights of the event was creating my vision board. It still hangs next to my desk and I look at it daily for inspiration.

June and July...what can I say other than it was HOT. And I sort of sucked at blogging during those months. I guess I was busy. At the pool. I also started working for a congressional campaign in June, as the "social media person." More on that later. Oh and in July I was also offered a job that I thought (for a few minutes) might be a great job. Then they told me I wasn't allowed to blog without their permission. Or be involved in politics - at all, ever. And so I told them to take a long walk off a short pier. Or something like that.

In August we took a family vacation to the Outer Banks. It was a lovely relaxing week on the beach. I think I fell in love with the OBX. On the way to the OBX we spent a day in Washington DC and while I'm not sure, I think that was probably a highlight for Olivia - she loves her presidential history and she was able to see the Lincoln Memorial in person! At the end of August the girls went back to school .. Olivia started 3rd grade and Emma started Kindergarten (gulp!). Oh, and I discovered that my ongoing ankle pain was the result of a partially ruptured (but healed) Achilles Tendon. And that's when I realized I wouldn't be running/walking the 2013 Princess 1/2 Marathon for my 40th birthday.

September was slow according to the blog. We did spend a day on Put-in-Bay and that was a ton of fun. And I got bronchitis. Again. That was not fun. In October, Kevin and I celebrated 10 years of wedded bliss. And I blogged about workplace bullies.

November. Ah, the start of the holiday madness. We had an extra furry and fat house guest during Thanksgiving ... when Emma brought home the classroom guinea pig. For six days. Yeah. I learned that (1) I'm allergic to alfalfa hay and guinea pigs love the stuff and (2) Emma wants a guinea pig for her birthday. (Shhh..don't tell her this but she's getting one). And then my third grader started learning about how babies are made.

The biggest thing from November though wasn't the guinea pig or the sex education in third grade. It was the election. And the end of my friend's congressional campaign. I spent six months as part of the campaign and it was an incredible, life changing experience. I met some great people. We had some laughs. We shed some tears. And even though my friend lost, I would do it all again.

And that bring us to December and if you're still reading this you get a gold star. And you're in luck, because I didn't blog much at all in December. Except when I talked about ugly plus size clothes and how unfair that is to women with curves. And then December 14th happened and I tried to process the unthinkable. And then the world kept turning and it was Christmas.

And then poof! Just like that it was the new year.
So here we are. Another year to do amazing things.

I wish you all a very Happy New Year and to everyone who keeps coming back to read this blog...thank you so very much.

12 months + 104 blog posts = 2010

Yeah, I never said I was good at math.
But I just looked and this year was rather pathetic for this little blog o' mine.
It started out strong....12 posts in January, 14 in February and 20 in March.
And then...it just stopped.

What's my excuse for such lackluster blogging for the last eight months?
Work. Life. Kids.
All of which aren't really excuses.
So, really I have no good excuse for not blogging.
I just didn't do it.

If I have one "resolution" for 2011 it is this - I will blog more.
Really.
I will.

But for now, let's talk about 2010, shall we?
As I type this post, we have about 8 1/2 hours left in this year.

And what a year it's been.
(Um, you might want to grab a snack...I just realized this post is rather wordy).

I've been to Walt Disney World FOUR times.
Yeah, four times.
I've met so many incredible people on those travels.
I've formed amazing friendships.
I can't wait to go back!

Oh, and I got a job.

So, let's recap a bit, shall we?

January - Kevin and I made our first solo trips (i.e. sans kids) to WDW - he had a trade show to attend for work and I tagged along because aside from my plane ticket (and our park tickets) it was FREE, and you can't beat free. The trip was fast, but fun. And we had the chance to hang out with Don and Mary - two of the nicest people I know. Kevin and I had a marathon day at the Magic Kingdom - 12 hours with no rest - but it was so worth it!

February - Despite Mother Nature's best effort, I was able to escape the Blizzard of 2010 and made it to Orlando (two days early!) for the first-ever Disney Social Media Moms Celebration. I could write an entire blog post (or 10) about the awesomeness that is #DisneySMMoms. But if you want to read about it (again) you can read this, this, and this. The three day event was the most amazing, incredible, awe-inspiring thing I think I have ever experienced. Aside from the hotel (The Polynesian!) and the food, and Joe Jonas, and the magic around every corner ... well, it came down to the people. And the women I finally met in person (after "knowing" each other online for many months) are amazing, incredible, funny, talented, beautiful...and some of my very dearest friends. I would list you all - but you know who you are. I cannot wait to see you in March 2011!

March - For some reason, I wrote 20 blog posts in March this year. I think I just had a lot to say. The biggest thing about March - other than the day Emma shoved a potato chip up her nose - was that Kevin and I decided to surprise the girls with a trip to Disney.

April - We're going to Disney World! Again, Mother Nature tried to spoil my plans with a torrential rain event ... but we fooled her and left a day early on our road trip to Orlando. Which meant, we had an extra day in my favorite city. Chalk that up to a #win for us. The trip to Disney was beyond magical, of course. I had the chance to spend some time with Rora and Maria, and we were able to meet Princess Tiana (yay!). I didn't ever want to leave Disney, but we had to because I was starting a new job.

May - I started a new job. It sucked. A lot.

June - Still at the new job. Still sucking. A lot. But wait...there's a light at the end of the tunnel maybe. I see a job posting in the paper. It sounds perfect. I apply and get an interview. Funny thing? The interview is exactly one year after my last day at the university (the job that vanished thanks to the economy in 2009). Could this be a sign?

July - Oh. Em. Gee. July 6, 2010 - I got the job! I nearly cried when the HR person offered me the job. It's a communications manager position. Full time. Full benefits. I tell my "boss" on July 7 that I'm leaving. He doesn't even look up from what he's doing and merely says "OK" - then kicks me out of the office two hours later (well, OK...technically he told someone else to tell me that I had to leave that day). I have never been so happy to walk out of a building in my ENTIRE life. It really was the second worst job I've ever had (the first would take an entire book for me to discuss...maybe another time).

August - The new job is good. Yeah, that's the word - good. I like what I'm doing. And I realize that I'm not blogging nearly enough. And, Olivia golfs in her first golf tournament...she's a natural!

September - Holy crow! My Olivia starts first grade!!! How did that happen??? I was worried (of course) about how she would adjust to all day school...but, as usual, Olivia was perfectly fine. She loves school. I'm happy. And, my blog turns five years old. Happy Bloggy Birthday, Fishbowl.

October - Two words: Epic October. Yeah, my fourth trip to WDW was a whirlwind 34 hour adventure that was in a word - epic. It was basically a last-minute trip - fly down on Friday night and home on Sunday morning - but it was so worth the delayed flights and sheer exhaustion. JL and Jackie picked me up at nearly midnight at the airport and then we were on the GO the next day. Read about it here. While E.O. was amazing, I also saw my dreams of making the Disney Moms Panel vanish yet again. It was devastating, but everything happens for a reason.

November - Um...I voted. And ate turkey. And yeah...that's about it.

December - Well, here we are. The end of the year. The holidays are nearly over (whew)...and I have to say the highlight of this month was finding out that I am attending the 2011 Disney Social Media Moms Celebration. I can't wait to experience this event again - and room with Tracie, JL, and Ashely...at the Grand Floridian!

I think 2010 was a pretty good year.
I had fun. I got a job.
I laughed a lot.

And now, as I look forward to 2011, I wish all of you a very happy new year and much love, laughter and magic for next year!

xoxo