It’s amazing how a single year can bring about such extremes. Moments of happiness and sadness, ups and downs…in 365 days, you can have quite the gamut. The past year has been full of them for me, as I imagine it has for many.
High: Master Bathroom Remodel. Starting our master bathroom remodel and making the decision to do the project on our own was a hard one to categorize, as it’s a bit of both. We decided to tackle our master bathroom on our own, as opposed to hiring it out for remodel. We really wanted to challenge ourselves to a big project, as well as wanted the feeling of “ownership” that working on it ourselves would bring. That said, it’s been nearly a year, and it’s not finished yet, so it could easily be a “low” at this point too. It’ll be fabulous once it’s finished, but good lord is it a lot of work!
High: Getting our kittens. This has been slightly more than a year ago (a year and two months) but I’m counting it. We got the kittens in August 2013, and they have brought so much joy to our lives! Our older kitten, Lily, was our baby and I never thought we’d love another cat as much as we do her, but adopting the twins only brought double the love. Now we have three fur-kids, and couldn’t imagine anything better! They’re a handful (all three of them), but we wouldn’t have it any other way!
High: 2014 Wedding Extravaganza. In 2014, we were blessed to watch FOUR of our friends (four couples) get married, in various places throughout the US. We had a wedding in Seattle, one in St. Louis, one in Cleveland, and one closer to home. Being a part of so many special moments really made me grateful for friendships and returning home to the US, as I wouldn’t have been able to be a part of all of them had we still lived overseas.
High: Catholicism 101. Converting to Catholicism was a huge one for me. Realizing and growing closer to my faith has been such an experience for me, and I couldn’t be happier. J isn’t Catholic, and I wish I could share it with him, but it’s definitely not something that I’m going to push on him. If he feels drawn to that later on, I’ll be ecstatic. If not, it won’t change my love for him in the least and he’ll still be the most amazing husband I could have imagined for myself. Meanwhile, I’m still learning all I can about the Catholic faith and my place in it, and am enjoying myself immensely!
Low: Deteriorating relationship with my family. This is due, primarily, to my decision to convert to Catholicism. My mother, mainly, is not happy with my choice and makes it well-known her opinions on the matter. It’s led to a lot of family tension between me and her, and our relationship definitely isn’t what it used to be. I’m working on it, and hoping that she comes to accept my decision, but if not, I’m comfortable in the fact that this was the right move for me, and it won’t be something I apologize for.
Low: Dad’s health. While J and I were overseas, my father was diagnosed with Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. As time has gone by, it’s slowly progressed. Every time I see him, his health is a little bit worse, and I can’t help but wonder just how much time we have left with him. For now, he has a good quality of life…it’s not what it was prior to the onset of symptoms, but it’s not terrible either. He’s mobile and fairly self-sufficient, which is good. The meds have slowed down the progress of the diseases quite a bit, and I’m so grateful for modern medicine. I’m hopeful for a “cure” though I realize that my father probably won’t see one in his lifetime, but in the meantime I’m thankful that his decline is slow-moving. Overall, though, it’s been harder to see it happen in person, which sounds selfish as all hell, but it is what it is.
As you can see, the past year has been full of joy and sadness, great highs and lows. There are things I wish were different, and some I wouldn’t change for the world, but overall it’s been a good year. I only hope that the next is even better!
Much love,
K.
A feast is made for laughter 