homage to 2015

The new year is upon us.

2015 was quite the year.

Here are the happy highlights:

January: Our little Charlie was born. I can't imagine life without him.

February: We stayed home, sanitized our hands, and snuggled our baby boy.

March/April: California trip to see our amazing friends.

May: Dave and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary! And I turned 31, which was a big deal for me because it was my golden birthday and I had looked forward to it ever since I was a little girl and heard about Golden Birthdays. (It's when you turn the age of your birth date.)

June: Jack had his golden birthday and finished up baseball.

July: We spent the entire month in Idaho.

August: We tried to squeeze in as much summer stuff as we could.

September: An amazing visit from our awesome Vermont family.

October: Amazing trip to Arches National Park. Also, Star Wars Halloween!

November: Hosting my first ever Thanksgiving with my lovely sisters. (Also, I read the last 3 Harry Potter books in 1 week. Don't judge.)

December: Awesome Christmas celebrations.

These are the happy things. Sandwiched in all of that was Dave working like crazy,  the big kids' constant bickering, a lot of raised voices, and  Charlie getting 3 ear infections and learning how to get into everything.  And I went through a grumpy phase. (I think it was caused by, among other things, all the turmoil and angst I saw on social media that somehow seeped into my soul. ) (2015 was messed up on social media, amiright?)

I tried to stay focused on my goal to Reach Out. One thing I incorporated this year was reading that theme in my scripture study as well. It was so enlightening to me. There were times when I was really diligent about serving others and times when I wasn't. I will say this, it saved my sanity this year. The times when I focused on service were the much happier times in my year. I felt good. I felt productive and proactive. I felt like I was making a difference. In the busy-ness of the end of the year it seemed to fall by the wayside and I felt a difference.

And now I look forward. My love for New Year's resolutions is well-documented. It feels like a clean slate and fresh start. And I feel really good about my theme this year. But that will have to be for another day. Because it's midnight and tomorrow is back to the grind.

Here's to a New Year!