2009...So Far

So far, 2009 has been pretty decent to me...with the exception of the bug that is living in me. I've been some kind of sick since Christmas and still am not feeling 100%. My visit to Urgent Care yielded a sinus issue diagnosis complete with horse pill antibiotics. I just about start to feel better and then it hits again. But, I'm not blogging to complain. Instead, I wanted to lay out my simple progress to achieving my 2009 goals..

• Went to the gym this week and pushed myself way past my initial excuses and comfort level to work up quite a sweat...but I need to add some new stuff to my iPod this weekend to keep the motivation level up.
• Have a 1st interview for the Director (my boss') job next Tuesday. Was not feeling all that confident about it when I turned in my application, but have decided to just ride out the process and see what happens.
• Spent some quality time with D...nothing doing much, but just taking the time to really talk about things and what's in our heads. Sometimes, this is hard for me because I tend to hold it all in rather than sharing.
• Spoke up for something I was annoyed with at work and I'm still alive :) I was so nervous, but wanted to be a positive change agent rather than let this little thing fester into something so much bigger. The boss was impressed and thanked me for the suggestion.
• Watched the Oprah episode on spirituality which gave me some real thinking points and made me realize it's all connected!

Overall, 2009 has been pretty good to me so far! I do keep thinking about Michael and his philosophy of life...because of the short and precious nature of life, that was one heck of a way to live life! Hope 2009 is good for everyone!

Celebration of Life

Warning...this blog has a heavy subject matter...I just returned from a celebration of life at Mission Bay for Michael. While I did not personally know Michael, his mother Susan and my Mom have been friends for close to 40 years. Mom asked me to attend to show our support for Susan during this difficult time. Michael was Susan's only child (I am an only child and am pretty sure this is hitting my mom pretty heavily for that reason).

Michael was born on December 1, 1967 and died on January 1, 2009 at the young age of 41 years old. Michael was a nurse and very active in his life...he was married and leaves behind 2 cute daughters (almost age 4 and age 2). In August 2007, after feeling like something wasn't right and 3 doctors confirmed, Michael was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease). For those of you who don't know, this is a horribly debilitating disease with a typical time lapse of 2-5 years from diagnosis to death. For Michael, it was less than 18 months.

All those who spoke of Michael shared his view on life. He lived life on his terms until the end of his life. It was even said that a neighbor took him hang gliding within the last few months of his life with his breathing machine and all. His philosophy was to Live Life to it's fullest; Live Purposefully and Live Passionately. Listening to those speak about Michael and watching his daughters, I got caught in the eternal debate about death. What is the purpose of Michael dying so young and leaving a wife and young children behind? I rationally understand the plan of life, but emotionally wrestle with this kind of loss. I guess these are the mysteries of this life. Today only made me appreciate life all that much more and those that I share my life with.

So, Michael, while I never met you personally, rest in peace. God Bless your family as they remember you and grieve. And, to all those who read this, thank you for your presence in my life and never take granted those around you!

2009...My Resolution Wish List

Happy 2009! Since I've been home this week, I watched Oprah's Best Life Week. Hearing her talk about her failures and how she's getting back on track made me think about how to make 2009 my best year. I am not one to make resolutions, but I've started a list of my aspirations for this year. Here goes...

1. Finally accept that I am "all that and a bag of chips". For quite a long time in my life, I've been succeptible to the "I'm not good enough" complex. So much so, that it has impacted my past relationships and sometimes creeps into my life now. Instead, I've decided to embrace me and know that I am pretty darn great and have accomplished! I really need to hone this feeling because of two events this year, the annual Greek reunion and my 20th (yikes!) class reunion.

2. Forgive the past...as much as I say I'm over things from my past, I think I still hold onto pieces of it. I can't confront the anger and sadness face to face because the person has passed, but I can let it go. It's time to finally release this baggage!

3. Stand up for myself and stop accepting the putdowns of certain "so called" friends. For example, I have a friend who started treated me badly a few years ago after she'd been married with a child and I had lost some weight. Last year, I reached out to her after her divorce and she totally ignored it. I'm a damn good friend and am done with being the doormat.

4. Cultivate my good friendships and make those my priority.

5. Get healthy...I don't have to be rockstar bodacious, but a little less "fluffy" would work for me. I really want to be in good shape, so when it's time to take the next step into parenthood, I'm prepared physically.

6. Continue to get financially back on track. I will admit that I did live above and beyond my means for quite a while. It's not an easy path, but I am so motivated to move forward. Plus, watching HGTV has motivated us to stay focused so that we can buy something within the next year.

7. Date my husband and put the zing back into our relationship...just because we are an old married couple, it doesn't mean that we can't still date. So, we've aimed for a date once a week. I think by consciously putting this out there, we will make the quality time for each other.

8. Embrace the things I love and get better at them...starting with cooking and moving into other areas.

9. Find my way back to some sort of spirituality. I was raised Catholic and am not sure that's where I want to go right now, but am feeling like I need to renew that spiritual connection. I've also decided to keep a journal with thoughts I see and inspire me.

10. Make some kind of career move...whether it be a promotion, move to another job or stay where I am, I need to solidify my career path.


This is a good start...I'm sure the list will grow and change over the year...here's wishing you a great 2009 and hoping it's your best year ever!

Looking Back on 2008

I've seen this in some blogs this morning and thought that the best way to move ahead is to look back and reflect. In 2008:

January: Commemorated Papa's (my grandfather) 30th anniversary since he passed away with Mom and Meema at a mass dedicated to him followed by breakfast; had last lunch with a friend who is no longer my friend.

February: Rocked out (for my love's sake) at an Iron Maiden concert; found out the power of words and gossip and what they can do to a friendship; sent my husband off to Spring Training in Arizona; traveled (the day of the worst storm in the east of the season) to Philadelphia with Mom and Meema to surprise my cousin who was turning 40; endured horrendous customer service, cried and used my then 86 year old Meema as proof why they needed to get us on a flight; had a great whirlwind weekend filled with family and cheesesteaks (yum).

March: Celebrated D's birthday by attending Junior Seau's Legends Party; Reunited with friends for our annual Greek party; celebrated Easter dinner family style at Ruth's; went to our sushi class at Great News and decided that for all the trouble, it is better to just go out and eat it rather than make it, but still had lots of fun.

April: Went to the EC for D's uncles funeral and found out during the viewing that Baby E was getting ready to make his debut into the world; Baby E was born; went to our first Padres game of the season with such high hopes.

May: Celebrated Mother's Day with the family; interviewed for a job and did not get it (they already knew who they wanted to hire); did a girls night and watched Sex and the City.

June: Attended our niece's baby shower; our nephew's high school graduation; 40th birthday party of a friend; sold my Jetta.

July: Went to Arizona for Convention; came home, unpacked, repacked and left the next day for our belated honeymoon trip to Seattle and Vancouver; had the most amazing time; celebrated the July family birthdays; said goodbye to a friend who moved away (still miss you).

August: Endured massive amounts of stress finding the perfect navy and khaki outfit; met Baby E for the first time and fell in love with him; took multi generation matchy matchy family photos; helped plan and execute Meema's birthday party/Baby E welcome party.

September: Had another interview for a job that they already knew who they wanted; kept busy with the day to day; attended a wedding on a cruise ship before it sailed; got pooped on by a seagull before boarding; and met our grandniece all in the same day.

October: Attended D's 20th high school reunion; Had another round of interviews (made the decision difficult, but didn't get this one either); reconnected with a former boss at brunch and realized all the BS is just that.

November: Made a difficult decision that will only make my future easier; went to a Girls only brunch; celebrated our first anniversary with D and realized once again how lucky I am to be married to such an amazing man; enjoyed our first Thanksgiving as a married couple.

December: Had a scary letter from the Blood Bank throw me into full blown migrraine state only to be reassured that all was good; had our 9th annual Ornament Exchange; attended D's holiday party; celebrated my birthday; switched it up for Christmas Eve and got the flu to end the year.

My 2008 was all that it should have been filled with highs, lows, laughter, tears and everything in between. Even though it was trying at times, I wouldn't change it for anything. Here's to a great 2009!

Catching Up...My Winter Break!

So, it's been quite a while since my last post. Somehow, I managed to survive the last week of work before winter break even with non stop activities. The end of work went well...the Nastys gave us little gifts, but I had not one ounce of feeling like I needed to make a last minute run at lunch. After work, we had our holiday party. It was a fun time and I made off with a $20 Starbucks card. With all the ones I've received, I will start 2009 very caffeinated. The rest of the weekend was spent having sushi and then breakfast with a friend visiting from Hawaii and finally ordering our holiday cards.

On the Monday before Christmas, D had to go in to work for a little bit, so I won the draw to go to Costco (in the rain) two days before Christmas. After 20 minutes of trying to find parking, I was able to get what I needed and it took me longer to park than I was in the store. Then after a quick stop at the grocery store, I headed home. D and I spent some time and were able to make the mail with our cards.

Tuesday, we were both feeling lazy, but then decided that we needed to get out of the house. We hopped in the car and it led us to Viejas where we walked around and had the buffet.

Christmas Eve felt a little off this year...my birthday celebration was postponed to that night, so D and I weren't hosting the family this year. It was also off because we were in grinchy moods and did zero decorating and shopping. Due to the crazy year, the family decided to keep it low key. Instead, I spent some time baking and we gave the family units a box of baked goods that included: Graham Cracker Toffee, Devil's Food Sugar Cookies, Caramel Pretzel Bites, Sweet Salty Spicy Nut and Pretzel Mix and Chocolate Chip Walnut Snowballs. For being a non baker, they all turned out well. D also got Mom a gift certificate to join me at a knife skills class in February while he is on his boys spring training weekend.

Dinner at Ruth's was great...Justin, our regular server, friend and adopted family member, and Tyler took great care of us. The family was all well behaved and had fun...


The Crazy Family less Cousin Cleveland


Meema


Justin being a smart ass while taking his own photo


Tyler

Christmas Day was a rainy day. After a very lazy morning, D and I headed to Ramona to our family friends for dinner. Mom, Meema and Alicia met us there. After dinner, D and I went to see Marley and Me. It was cute, but the best scenes are shown in the previews.

Friday, I was really tired and achy. We ran around a little, but came home to relax again.

Saturday, again, I was tired and achy and spent most of my day on the couch while D ran around. That night, he took me out for some soup to help me feel better. By the end of the night, I felt awful complete with a sore throat...I got the flu!

So, for the last few days and during much of winter break, these have been my best friends...


Now, I feel a little better, but am still not 100%. Hope your winter break and holidays have been good...

Happy Birthday to Me!

Today, December 15 is my birthday...37 (yikes!) years ago at 9:06 a.m. and after 30 hours of labor, I made my entrance (via C section) into the world at a whopping 9 pounds, 8 ounces. Mom still calls me every year at 9:06 to wish me a happy birthday! In deciding to blog about my birthday, I am taking a huge step because I am not one who likes to excess attention. I am the only December birthday at work and have to endure standing alone as the office sings to me. Plus, I was not nervous about getting married, but blushed at the thought of my guests staring at me. Instead, I am celebrating me and the day. Because of my curiosity, I looked up December 15 on Wikipedia to see anything relevant that happened on this date.

Famous Births: Adam Brody (Seth from The OC), Don Johnson (of Miami Vice fame), Tim Conway, and Gustave Eiffel (engineer and architect of the Eiffel Tower) among many others.

Famous Deaths: Walt Disney and Sitting Bull

Famous Events: The Bill of Rights was ratified into law after passing the Virginia legislature.

It's a momentous day...so, happy birthday to me! Here's to another year of more great things!

Highs and Lows...The Recap

I've been a bad blogger lately...I haven't had the presence of mind to sit down and put my thoughts into writing. I must admit that I miss blogging. So, here is a recap and high/low lights of the last...

High...D and I celebrated our first anniversary! While we spent a quiet evening at home to celebrate, it was a great day! I cannot believe that it's been a year already and one full of highs and lows, but it's been so great. I am still amazed that we are married and creating this life together.

Low...D got sick and pink eye. Fortunately, I never got it and I took good care of him. He, like most men, was needy...at times, it felt like he was acting as if his eyes were falling out of his head.

High...Yummy Thanksgiving dinner prepped by Mom with some help from D and I.

Low...Family weirdness at TG dinner...not sure what to make of this, but can't let the drama get to me.

High...Cyber visit with Baby E and his parents. I can't believe how big he is getting and how much he's changed since his Labor Day visit.

High...Lots of relaxation and down time...neither of felt good, but it was still nice to hang out and be a lazy bum.

Now, it's December...where did 2008 go?!? December is a big month for me...Mom, Meema and I hold our annual holiday ornament party; D's work holiday party; my birthday; our work holiday party; getting things done before Winter Break; D and I hosting Christmas Eve; Christmas Day with family friends; and finally, New Year's Eve. I'm sure more will creep into this list, but it's an exciting time of the year. Hope everyone is well...take care!