I blogged even less this year than i did last year, so i need to at least do a wrap-up for my own sake so that i can remember what happened this year. In order to keep it short, i’m going to experiment with more of an organized format.
January
In January of this year we suddenly decided that interest rates looked like they’d be rising sharply soon, and so we went one night to a seminar about buying a first house. We wound up being the only two people there. Two days later we went visiting homes in the area with the realtors who taught the seminar. The first house had a crappy basement. The next three had tiny kitchens. But the fifth one had a roomy kitchen, two fireplaces, a finished basement and an enormous shower with two showerheads. We fell swiftly in love with it, even though we had almost passed the house by because it was further north than we wanted to be. We made an offer that day, and within about a week the deal was sealed. We were on our way to purchasing our first house.
(The doors are different now, this is an old photo)
February
In February we took a trip to Chicago and moved into our new house!
March
In March Nathan traded in his BMW 1-series for a BMW Z4 M. He was a happy, happy boy. I was a stressed-out bride-to-be (but i don’t regret agreeing to let him make the switch. he really loves the car).
April
In April i had my bachelorette party. It was a blast! We went to Appare for dinner, had oreo balls at the house and then went to Uncle Buck’s for some dancing action. The ladies bought me drinks and i danced until i got all sweaty and gross. It was awesome.
May
In May we got married!!!
June
In June we went to Cancun for our honeymoon. After all that stress with the new house and the new car and planning the loveliest wedding, it was absolutely fantastic to just sit on the beach and do nothing.
July
In July Dustin visited before he went back down to Oklahoma to start his internship. We went to an Iowa Cubs game with Mom and i made the game seem pretty fascinating in comparison to my talk of the books i’d been reading.
August
In August i turned 26. My guy friends had a party for me at their place. We ate BLTs and stayed up late watching Twilight with the RiffTrax on, and then we went out to a park to watch the Perseids meteor shower. I had been warned that it was going to be crappy this year because of the full moon, but we went anyway and each of us saw at least a couple of shooting stars. I want to make this an annual birthday tradition, and hopefully the skies will be nice and dark for me in 2012.
September
In September we went to Iowa City for Nathan’s birthday. We got burgers and beers at The Vine and stayed at a weird little eco-friendly/vegetarian/salvaged-everything bed and breakfast. In the morning we went to Wilson’s orchard and picked apples for pies and apple dumplings.
October
In October we went to Grinnell to see Ume. The show was in the basement of a dormitory, and for a long time it didn’t look like anyone else was coming. North America opened with some spooky instrumental music, and then the college kids (who had all brought their own beverages) really started rocking out when Ume took the stage. It was a really good show, and it was free! I got Lauren’s autograph before we left.
November
In November we learned that my brother has cancer. It’s not really my place to talk about it much, but i can say that for a minute there i was truly scared and i thought that my extreme luck in life was about to run out. It turned out not to be quite as bad as some of us had feared, but still something that was very serious and needed to be dealt with as quickly as possible. My brother came and stayed with us over Thanksgiving and it was wonderful to see him. Shortly thereafter he began his treatment. So far he’s feeling extremely well despite everything, and we’re really hopeful that this will all pass without even being terribly difficult. I can’t express what a relief that is.
December
Earlier this month we went to California to celebrate my grandfather’s 90th birthday. It’s always nice to go down there, especially in the winter since it’s still warm enough to walk around in a light jacket. My grandparents seemed to be doing really well—even better than the last time i saw them, i think—but my great aunt did happen to be in the hospital with some grave-sounding infection. She’s 92, herself. I was glad to be able to go down there and see everyone, including my Dad and his wife.
So, that about wraps it up. What a year! One of the best possible things and one of the worst possible things happened in rapid succession. I still feel incredibly fortunate. I have a husband who is wonderful is so many ways, and a dear little house in which to live with him. I did not change jobs this year, which is a first for me. And my brother is going to be fine, which i’m eternally thankful for. It was a terrible thing that he got cancer, but i’m a lucky, lucky girl to have always had him in my life and to be able to continue on that way.
I don’t want to make any promises i can’t keep, but in 2012 i hope to be a little more social and a little more creative. I’m starting to miss my creative outlets, and i plan to take some classes and/or make some time to get back into making beautiful things. I’m not sure what yet, but hopefull you’ll see.
Saturday, December 31st, 2011 3:33 pm • life
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January 2nd, 2012 at 2:13 pm
Here’s to 2012 being the year of creativity!
January 20th, 2012 at 3:18 pm
You had an amazing year, minus the cancer bit. Fortunately though it sounds like your bro is kicking its ass, so that’s awesome.
I love love love that picture of you & Nathan from your honeymoon, I don’t think I’ve seen it before.