Hello From The Other Side Of 2015

True to form, I was useless at blogging in 2015. It was a strange combination of being too busy to blog as well as feeling like I have nothing worthwhile to share. Additionally, Netflix lives on my laptop and requires zero thinking or typing skills. The ability to watch every season of a show in one sitting without commercial interruption might just have damaged the world forever.

I know, you're wondering what this year has been like for me. Let's get down to business.

Family & Friends; UK
This year my parents turned 60; my Dad in March and my Mum in April. And I of course turned 30. The irony that I turned the same age that my parents were when they had me is not lost on me. But more on that later.

If you recall in a blog post from earlier this year (perhaps the only other one from this year) I mentioned how much I was dreading all the milestone birthdays that I was going to miss this year. My parents of course, my nephew & niece both turning 10 and then two of my best friends turning 30. Well, thankfully I was able to take a very short trip back home and surprise my mum for her 60th birthday party. Over the past decade, she's really embraced getting older, a trait that I clearly did not inherit. And she's been looking forward to having a big party to celebrate turning 60. 


For awhile I was uncertain whether I'd be able to attend, mostly due to our finances but also the fact that I hadn't reached 6 months at my current job and hadn't earned vacation. Remember when I said a "short trip"? What I really meant was a weekend trip. Of course, the multitude of time zones in a 4 day period was well worth the look on her face when she arrived home from Costco and saw me come out to help with the shopping. And I got to see my beautiful nieces and handsome nephew. As well as my best friends. 
Hands down, the best weekend of the year.

Family & Friends: USA
Adam and I celebrated our six year wedding anniversary this year. Our family is still just us and the dogs. And every once in awhile Adam says that we should change that by starting a family but this is the same man who thought we'd have kids at 23! I think we'll be getting another dog before we have a child. Which strangely I'm okay with. I flirt the line of wanting to start a family and being content with how things are. I suppose I've always assumed that I would have children but this year I've allowed myself to imagine what life would be like without children and so I find I could go either way. And let's face it, parenthood isn't something you should enter into on a whim. 

This has been a tough year for our marriage too, which is another one of the many reasons I'm not ready for children. There have been times when I honestly thought I couldn't stand to have him in my life a minute longer. And then other times when I truly wouldn't want to be anywhere else but by his side. I have of course heard that marriage is a roller coaster but naively assumed that the storms we had weathered thus far had made us strong enough to withstand even a category 5 hurricane. And I didn't really want to write much about that here because whilst I make the choice to make details of my life public Adam certainly hasn't. And so I have a good old fashioned paper journal I turn to when I'm mad & need to process my feelings. The main thing is that we're still here. We're both still willing to do what it takes to stay together and figure out how to better communicate with one another. And of course we do still very much love one another.

Home Turf: Alabama


I have met some wonderful people in Alabama. Yes, we're still here. I have a love/hate relationship with this state. It really is beautiful, I have good friends here and we feel settled. I've been fortunate to meet a great group of ladies both at work and through Meet Up and we get together fairly regularly to do all sorts of activities. The most recent being our White Trash Christmas Scavenger Hunt.

And next week we have The Nutcracker scheduled. It's nice having a friend I can call and get together with for dinner & drinks. I was honestly worried that I wouldn't have that in America. Last month I hosted a baby shower for a friend and the month before that attended a wedding for another. So yes, it feels good to know that I have friends in this state.

The hate part is that it's ALABAMA! Even people from here ask me why in heaven I moved here! It's likely though that we'll be here for some time. And we do discuss potentially buying a home here but we're still not sure if we're ready to be exclusive with Alabama. Speaking of which.

Dream Come True: Washington State.
This year is also the year I made one of my dreams come true. When asked by people where I'd like to live, my answer is usually Washington State. And then, naturally they'd ask why? To which I would answer "no idea". I think originally, it was just the fact that it was so far away from the places I've seen in the US thus far. But as time went on and I learned more about the State, it became a real goal of mine to visit/live out there. Well, this September I made that dream a reality. I had booked vacation with the intention of going with Adam to TN to see his parents but he wasn't able to go as he didn't have enough vacation saved. I had resigned myself to staying home bored with the dogs when a friend suggested that I go somewhere by myself. The thought of being alone in a strange place was both empowering and intimidating. But it was wonderful. Just what I needed. I got some much needed time to relax and unwind. And I got the opportunity to explore part of a State I've been dreaming of seeing. 

One Small Request:
The primary reason I finally dragged my butt over to write another blog post is because I shared on my Facebook page that if my branch wreath reached 60 votes by Sunday, then I would write a blog post. What is my branch wreath and how do you vote for it I hear you ask. Well, my employer, being big on Communerosity (yes, community & generosity had a baby and I'm sitting over here taking selfies with my dogs) is holding a wreath contest. Each location selected a charity to design a wreath for. The public then votes on the wreaths they like best. The top three receive a monetary prize for their charity. So how can you vote for my teams wreath? By visiting the link on our Facebook page. Our location is Eastern Shore and we designed a wreath for the Daphne Library. Don't forget to share the link on your own Facebook page with #onceuponawreath and encourage your friends and family to vote too.