2013: The Review

Seeing as blogland seems to be dead between Christmas and the New Year, I’m entirely convinced that I’m writing this post for myself. But, in case anyone actually cares, or is out there to read this, hi! Let’s scoot back to January 2013 and take a zoom through Like Ordinary Life, the 2013 edition. Enjoy.

January

Bleak. I struggled a lot in January. Declared importance the word of the year. And that was a good choice. I was sick, really sick, most of January, and I was unhappy as a teacher and unhappy as a wife and unhappy. Very unhappy. I also reflected on why it is so hard to find friends as a late-20’s kid. That’s still holding true today, although it’s getting better. Mostly because of my blog friends. Love you all.

February

I “met” Maggie and she’s become one of my best friends. Eventhough we still haven’t met. My red velvet cheesecake swirl brownies took over Pinterest for a hot minute and I almost gave away my chocolate chip cookie recipe. Then I decided not to. And, since I started my very own, one-person Gretchen Rubin fan club, I shared my auspicious symbols with you.

March

I think it was around March when I decided that I had officially become a blogger. Like, I actually started accepting that I saw it as a major part of my life. And a lot of that had to do with how it changed my marriage. That post was a big one. I also admitted a HUGE truth in March. One that I’m still struggling with today. In fact, I may be struggling more with this one than I did back then. But I came clean, and it felt so good to do so.

April

What you don’t know, because I didn’t share it at the time, is that I began seriously job hunting in April. I had been job hunting off and on for years before then, but in April I started to actively, nearly desperately, look for a path out of teaching. I think I’d finally accepted that I saw it as a job, not a career, and that I couldn’t go on much longer feeling that way. I guess I hinted at it, though. I painted our bedroom. Still so proud of myself for that one. And I wrote two of my favorite blog posts after a hiking trip with the husband. One. Two.

May

Jenni had a big influence on May with her whole #BlogEveryDayinMay business. I admitted that I married for love, which sounds wonderful, but has a lot of pitfalls. Also shared a day in the life of my world as a teacher, which little did I know was about to end for good. Speaking of, I wrote this blog post after giving up on a job interview that I was hoping would land me a job. The afternoon that I published the post, I got a phone call that changed my life. I was offered my dream job that afternoon. And so that blog post will always be a big one in my mind. And I still love this post on my bad habits and terrible personality traits.

June

I left teaching. Went on a vacation with my husband. Started a new job. Became a full-time blogger and social media guru. June was too big to recall fully.

July

Was a hard, happy, difficult, challenging, wild month for me. I lost my grandpa Colin. I still cry. We keep the program from his service on our coffee table and sometimes I pick it up, read through it, sing On Angel’s Wings in my head, and just sob. He’s painfully missed. I reflected on a lot of family stuff when he passed. Shared a good story. I also almost lost a tooth. That was scary.

August

Things started looking up again in August. We made our annual road trip to visit my family in Michigan, just in time to escape the humidity of swampland DC. Also, you guys, I wrote this quarter-life crisis blog post that none of you commented on. I’m still perturbed about that one. What gave? (It’s alright, I forgive you.)

September

Birthday month! Historically, September rocks. But I didn’t blog much. I apologized a bit and made a few appearances. And I also shared my Myers-Briggs, which nobody else seems to have. But it explains my quirks. Oh, the work-life balance struggle of 2013 began about here. I also quit working out in September. That was a big mistake. Oh, September, I don’t know what to think of you in 2013.

October

Anniversary month! We went away for our two-year anniversary and that was a lovely adventure. I did my autumn dance. Went to a pumpkin patch. I really enjoyed blogging again in October. It was a good month. Both online and offline. Though I worked out maybe twice and it hadn’t caught up to me yet. Looking back, I could slap my October self.

November

Finally admitted exercise defeat in November. Still working on it today. But at least I admitted I had a problem. Had a minor heart attack when my dad went sailing from Virginia to the British Virgin Islands. Oh, and we visited our alma mater. That was fun. I don’t have much else to say about November. It was good, but nothing fabulous. Also met these lovely bloggers for a blate.

December

A blur. Always a blur, right? I think that I just spoke “Christmas” this month on the blog, except for one cute little post about baby elephants. It’s been a good month. A busy month. We’ve been down two bodies at work all month, which makes life a bit of a spectacle. All in all, it was a good ending to 2013. But, if I’ve learned anything from 2013, it is that 2014 should shape up to be one of the most important, special, exciting years of my life. At least, that’s what I’m aiming for. So, with that in mind, bring it on 2014. I’m ready for you.