Lessons Learned (or Relearned) in 2014
I was so pleased with how I was able to recap and learn from 2013 that I decided to use the same format this year as I revisit important moments from the year.
January
Stability is key to my happiness.
January began a full-time, set schedule job that had no end date. I work 8-5, at my own desk, and when I leave on Friday at 5, I know what I'm coming back to. For me, having the ability to plan in advance and have some idea what my life looks like, was a fantastic baseline to my happiness.
February
Surrounding yourself with friends makes life infinitely better.
When I look back at my social media from February I see posts from spending my time with friends. Not even doing crazy weekend trips or typical 20-year-old-girl things, but just sharing life. Celebrating birthdays, doing farm work, working out and holding each other accountable for workouts, and just knowing that we had companionship on our journey.
March
Achieving even part of a goal is amazing.
Originally my goal was to lose all 40 pounds and run my first 5k in March on my 24th birthday. I didn't lose all the weight, but I did run my first 5k. Not only did I run it in the time I hoped, I placed first in my age group. It was an amazing day, and an amazing feeling to be able to run three miles and not be miserably slow.
April
Birthday parties don't need to be an over the top affair to be perfect.
To celebrate Jace turning two we had a little party at the park. Pizza, friends, sidewalk chalk, and some bubbles. That's all it took, and Jace loved it.
May
Having a grown up job really helps you grown up.
In May I took my first ever "business trip." I went to the Annual Meeting for my work, spending two days in business casual wear, talking to President's and Dean's of our colleges, and mostly pretending I had some idea what I was doing. Despite being intimidated, I actually really enjoyed it and can't help but enjoy the new experiences I get with my job.
June
Friendships endure.
Yes, I realize I already posted about friendship once, for three summer's prior to this one, I worked at the Berea City Pool. I guarded, taught swim lessons, or managed and LOVED it. In part I loved it because of who I worked with, but I wasn't sure if those friendships could really stay alive when I no longer worked there. As it turns out, though I missed a lot not being there 40+ hours a week, my guard friendships were still there and are still going strong now.
July
Let it go.
Yes, I'm using a Frozen reference here, but July was four months into attempting to buy a house. Not just a house, the place we wanted to be our home, where we wanted our family to grow. But we ran into complications from the beginning and in July we were out of ways to make it work, so we had to move on.
August
Take the time to have some adventures!
In August we did some hiking, went to King's Island, had little cookouts with s'mores, and made an effort to be outside while summer was still here.
September
Even if you fail to meet your goal, you can still look at the bright side.
My second 5k was the Spoonbread 5k, and I wanted to be able to run it in 25 minutes. I didn't. I ran it in 27, but I ran it with a good friend, my husband and son were ready to cheer me on as I crossed the finish line, and the fact that I ran it meant I was still running and keeping active.
October
One year being fitness-aware is wonderful.
It took nearly a year to do it, but I hit my goal weight. Forty pounds lost. And since I took so long to accomplish it, I have to believe that the changes I made are sustainable and that, hopefully, I will always remain aware of my health and fitness.
November
Appreciate what you have.
This isn't news to me, but for most of November I had to make a consistent effort to remind myself to focus on what I do have rather than what I lost. November was a very hard month, and sometimes it's still hard, but I try to remember to focus on the positive.
December
Getting away from home is great. Coming back home is too.
The entire month of December seemed to pass in a blur as we were constantly travelling. The first week was our long-awaited cruise with a drive that went to Ohio-to-Florida-to-Ohio-to-Kentucky. A couple weeks later we were back on the road to spend Christmas with family. When we arrived home after that trip all I wanted to do was just stay home for awhile and get back into my routine. Thankfully, that's what January should be!
Overall 2014 was a good year, and of course it was another year to watch my rambunctious little one grow and learn and a year to watch my relationships mature and strengthen. I look forward to 2015 and both the joys and heartbreaks that will come with it!
January
Stability is key to my happiness.
January began a full-time, set schedule job that had no end date. I work 8-5, at my own desk, and when I leave on Friday at 5, I know what I'm coming back to. For me, having the ability to plan in advance and have some idea what my life looks like, was a fantastic baseline to my happiness.
Surrounding yourself with friends makes life infinitely better.
When I look back at my social media from February I see posts from spending my time with friends. Not even doing crazy weekend trips or typical 20-year-old-girl things, but just sharing life. Celebrating birthdays, doing farm work, working out and holding each other accountable for workouts, and just knowing that we had companionship on our journey.
March
Achieving even part of a goal is amazing.
Originally my goal was to lose all 40 pounds and run my first 5k in March on my 24th birthday. I didn't lose all the weight, but I did run my first 5k. Not only did I run it in the time I hoped, I placed first in my age group. It was an amazing day, and an amazing feeling to be able to run three miles and not be miserably slow.
April
Birthday parties don't need to be an over the top affair to be perfect.
To celebrate Jace turning two we had a little party at the park. Pizza, friends, sidewalk chalk, and some bubbles. That's all it took, and Jace loved it.
May
Having a grown up job really helps you grown up.
In May I took my first ever "business trip." I went to the Annual Meeting for my work, spending two days in business casual wear, talking to President's and Dean's of our colleges, and mostly pretending I had some idea what I was doing. Despite being intimidated, I actually really enjoyed it and can't help but enjoy the new experiences I get with my job.
June
Friendships endure.
Yes, I realize I already posted about friendship once, for three summer's prior to this one, I worked at the Berea City Pool. I guarded, taught swim lessons, or managed and LOVED it. In part I loved it because of who I worked with, but I wasn't sure if those friendships could really stay alive when I no longer worked there. As it turns out, though I missed a lot not being there 40+ hours a week, my guard friendships were still there and are still going strong now.
July
Let it go.
Yes, I'm using a Frozen reference here, but July was four months into attempting to buy a house. Not just a house, the place we wanted to be our home, where we wanted our family to grow. But we ran into complications from the beginning and in July we were out of ways to make it work, so we had to move on.
August
Take the time to have some adventures!
In August we did some hiking, went to King's Island, had little cookouts with s'mores, and made an effort to be outside while summer was still here.
September
Even if you fail to meet your goal, you can still look at the bright side.
My second 5k was the Spoonbread 5k, and I wanted to be able to run it in 25 minutes. I didn't. I ran it in 27, but I ran it with a good friend, my husband and son were ready to cheer me on as I crossed the finish line, and the fact that I ran it meant I was still running and keeping active.
October
One year being fitness-aware is wonderful.
It took nearly a year to do it, but I hit my goal weight. Forty pounds lost. And since I took so long to accomplish it, I have to believe that the changes I made are sustainable and that, hopefully, I will always remain aware of my health and fitness.
November
Appreciate what you have.
This isn't news to me, but for most of November I had to make a consistent effort to remind myself to focus on what I do have rather than what I lost. November was a very hard month, and sometimes it's still hard, but I try to remember to focus on the positive.
December
Getting away from home is great. Coming back home is too.
The entire month of December seemed to pass in a blur as we were constantly travelling. The first week was our long-awaited cruise with a drive that went to Ohio-to-Florida-to-Ohio-to-Kentucky. A couple weeks later we were back on the road to spend Christmas with family. When we arrived home after that trip all I wanted to do was just stay home for awhile and get back into my routine. Thankfully, that's what January should be!
Overall 2014 was a good year, and of course it was another year to watch my rambunctious little one grow and learn and a year to watch my relationships mature and strengthen. I look forward to 2015 and both the joys and heartbreaks that will come with it!
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