Monday, December 29, 2014

The Year of Awesome: Part I

Well Christmas is behind us which means that it's time for the "best of" lists.  I love reading all the "best of" lists (especially all the different book ones!) and reading others' recaps of their year.  That said, I do understand that, for some, it's painful to recap a year.  That's how I felt last year. I didn't want to look in the rear view mirror at life and instead wanted to push forward into what was to come.  There are several people in my life who experienced so much pain and heartbreak in 2014 and my hope for them is that 2015 is far, far kinder.   

However, I am thankful that I am ending 2014 in a far better place than I was at the end of 2013 - physically, mentally, spiritually, and geographically.  2014 far and away exceeded my expectations and will forever be remembered as the year of awesome for me.  So many wonderful things came together for me, from returning to running to getting a job offer back home to rekindling my relationship with Phil.  I'm splitting my year in review into 2 posts because there's just too much to talk about for one post.  So here goes!

January featured a trip to Charleston and my return to running.  I have no pictures to document my return to running because I was crazy paranoid that my RA pain would return so I only told about 3 people that I was back to running!


In February I celebrated my 33rd birthday by flying to Austin for the weekend to meet up with my best friends from college.   



In March I ran my first race since before my stress fracture/RA diagnosis.  I felt super strong during this race and ran it far faster than I anticipated (~8:30 minute miles, I still don't know how I did that).




Towards the end of the month, I visited Savannah, which ended up being my favorite Southern city that I visited while living in the south.



April was a  huge month as I received an offer for a job back in Minneapolis and resigned from my job.  I had a paid non-compete so got to spend the ladder half of the month exploring the Charlotte area.  I did a whole lot of hiking and got to form some positive memories in the state of NC.





I also got to celebrate Easter with my brother and his family as they were in the Gatlinburg area which was a short drive from Charlotte.




May was all about the move!  My mom flew down to Charlotte and did the drive back to Minneapolis with me.  That's the most time I've ever had one-on-one with my mom so it's something I'll be forever grateful for.



At the end of May, I moved into my condo (big shout-out to my aunt Barb for helping out BIG TIME with that move) and started my new job.


In June I got to meet my niece Evelyn, who was born in January, and enjoyed a weekend with my family at the lake.

Besides that, I got settled in, soaked up time with Phil and helped him throw a house warming party in the home he purchased in February, and spent a lot of time marveling at my view.  I still marvel at it as we move through the seasons of the year.  I LOVE where I live.





Whew, it's hard to believe all of that happened in the span of 6 months... 

What were some of the best moments of the first 6 months of 2014 for you?

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow! These are great six months already. I'm happy that you had such an awesome year!

Kyria @ Travel Spot said...

I can't tell you how glad I am that you have had a much better year this year than last. Your post, attitude and outlook are so different this year, and thank goodness for that!

This year has also been a good one for me. I did some traveling, got a new job, ran farther than I ever had before and made a ton of new friends. And that was all in the first six months! It's been a fun year and I can't wait to see what this next year brings!

Caroline said...

Wow so much happened for you in the first half of 2014! That's kind of how I feel about my second half haha. I'm glad you had such an awesome year!

Leigh said...

You definitely had a year with lots of ups and downs, but so glad that everything has worked out for you and that you are back home :)

Charis Faith said...

I love your view too!!! It's gorgeous!!! So many good things!!! I don't know about you but for me there are times when the beginning of 2014 feels like a lifetime ago! I'm so glad you were able to enjoy the last bit of your time in NC! I love that you are now right where you are supposed to be! Here's to an amazing 2015!!!

Vanessa Meads said...

I'm so glad the first six months of 2014 were filled with such great moments for you!

Marlys said...

That was so refreshing compared to last year! It was a great year and I'm sure there are more great things in store for you in the year ahead! It was great to spend Christmas with you, in spite of getting the "flu"!

The Many Thoughts of a Reader said...

Spring Break with my bestie and her man with my fam was my highlight of the first 6 months. I also had really fun nights out for my birthday and my husband's birthday and I think for St. Patrick's Day. Which was all wam bam in a row there.

Jolene - EverydayFoodie said...

That's a lot of awesome in six months!! Haha! I'm so happy for you that you got to move home this year :-) (and also that you and Phil carried on where you left off). I love recap of the year posts too - mine will come on NY eve.

Stephany said...

I’m so thrilled to relive your first 6 months of 2014 because it was an outstanding start to your year! And one you SO deserved because of how crappy 2013 treated you. I think the highlights from the first 6 months of 2014 for me were going on a cruise and paying off my credit cards.

Shoshanah said...

I do think that after your 2013 it makes it that much meaningful just how awesome 2014 was. Unfortunately I think we need those bad years at times, as miserable as they may be, because it really puts the good years into perspective.

As for the highlights of my first half of the year, it would be our trip out to California and finding out I was pregnant. Although I've yet to write out my yearly review post and I'm sure once I do I'll remember a few more details.

Becky said...

You know what's crazy? I feel like so much good and positive has happened since you moved back to Minneapolis, for your first few months of the year I'm like "oh I forgot she was still in Charlotte then!"

The first six months of the year were ROUGH for me, but I think some of the better moments was finding small bits of closure for Cece, and starting to plan our big move out of our apartment!

Lauren @ Sassy Molassy said...

It is fun to look back on the year. In the first part of the year, heading to Europe was a major highlight. Also, doing more research about heading back to school and taking the appropriate steps I needed to was good for me.

Amber said...

I'm so glad 2014 ended up being such an awesome year for you! With the exception of my dad's accident in February and some stress when Eric was job searching in June/July I also had another amazing year. Lots to be grateful for that's for sure!

Emilie said...

This post makes me so, so happy that this year really was a positive year for you. So many fantastic things just in the first six months alone! I have to say the best parts of the first six months had to do with running - shaving over 20 minutes off my half marathon time and running 2 half marathons in two weeks, both of which I didn't think I was capable of. Also, getting my gluten allergy diagnosed is another good part of the beginning of the year. It's been a struggle to give up some of my favorite foods but it was great to finally have some answers.

Jeanie said...

Lisa, I'm so glad you've had a fabulous year! You so deserved it and it's fun to look back at the first six months and smile with you!

Cherry Blossoms said...

You've definitely had an amazing year!

Linda said...

THE LONG AWAITED MOVE :)

I'm still so sorry I missed you in February.

Abby said...

Love this post! Despite being in a less-than-desired location the 1st 6 months, you did a really good job at making the best of it! I think your return to running and hiking really helped out with that for your sanity ;)

I need to do a recap of 2014, too! My favorite moments of the 1st half of the year include: my weekend trips to NM to see Ryan, our staycation to Ruidoso (a little mountain town in NM), our ski trip to Colorado, getting Ryan back home, and our backpacking trip! All travel! :)