I can not believe that we are at the end of 2018!! 2019 is only a few days away, it’s crazy! It has been a whirlwind of a year with so many things happening!! It’s time to reflect on what happened and set some resolutions for 2019!
In January, Michael and I went and saw Aladdin on Broadway!! It was my first Broadway play and it was amazing! I can not recommend it enough!! I also went to Washington, D.C. with work for a professional development program I participated in. We visited the Capitals/Wizards arena and got to see all the locker rooms! Very cool!
In February, we found our home sweet home!! Our rancher in Cherry Hill that we love so much!! We also celebrated Valentine’s Day with matching Navy football sweatshirts!
March was a nice month!! I went to Boston with the professional development program from work, we had an insane snow storm in south Jersey, and I went on girls weekend in the mountains with some gal pals!!
April was AWESOME! I went to Chicago for the first time with work and saw the Bean!!!! We also closed on our house and moved in!!! We have now been living in this house for a little over 8 months and loving it!!
In May, I graduated from my work’s professional development program while on a trip with it in New York City. We also had the yummiest Mother’s Day brunch in Brooklyn at Tanoreen!
In June, we got our Aussie girl Remi!!! On Father’s Day, we drove 7 hours to a small town outside of Pittsburgh, picked up our sweet girl at a beautiful farm and drove 7 hours back! (And I should say, Michael drove the entire time because I am not a great driver!)
July was amazing!!! I took a spontaneous trip to see family in Jordan with my dad and brother! It was two weeks of eating delicious food, lots and lots of hugs, and seeing/exploring with loved ones! Joey (my little brother) and I became great travel buddies!
In August, we hosted a fun weekend with my friends coming down to visit! I got to show them our house and the small town a mile away! Another great friend of mine came to visit and we had ourselves a fun couple of days! We also put in our patio extension in the backyard that houses our gas fire pit!
September is the best month because it’s my birthday month!!! We threw a Labor Day/Start of College Football Party and so many of our good friends and family came!! It was such a great time!! It was also my 24th birthday and Michael took me to a Brazilian steakhouse which neither of us have ever been to!
In October, we went to our annual Army/Navy game in Annapolis! I also started putting some stuff together for The Chic Chemist!! We tried to start this daily activity called “One Picture a Day” where I take a picture of Michael and I everyday to put together an album of cute and not so cute pictures of us!! As my mom would say, WE’RE MAKING MEMORIES!
November was a fun month!! The Chic Chemist was officially launched!!!! We had our first snow at the house and it was so cute BUT we don’t (and still don’t) own any shovels lol. We had Thanksgiving and Black Friday! We put up our Christmas tree at the house for the first time! And sadly, my mom got very sick (go see Science Sunday – Viral Infections), but she is on the mend!
And here we are at December, we took our Christmas card photo in our decorated house! Michael went to his annual Army/Navy football game for his birthday! We celebrated Michael’s 27th birthday! We celebrated Christmas with everyone!! And now we are preparing for New Year’s Eve at the house!!
It has been a crazy year, and lots of ups and downs! These are all the positives in each month but there is no denying there were negatives! I’ve had a rough year coping with certain things at work and I struggle to keep professional and personal separate. I am working on it. My anxiety has increased and sometimes I have difficulty expressing myself. Luckily, I have found a hobby (The Chic Chemist) and think it has truly helped me focus more on what I want and need from life.
For 2019, I’m hoping for growth professionally and the potential of pursuing higher education!! I want to start becoming braver in doing solo activities (I’m a big wuss and don’t feel comfortable doing certain things alone). I would like to focus on my health, eat healthier, exercise (shout out to Michael for getting me a spin bike for Christmas, you rock!). Overall I want to try and be more positive in 2019!
