My Personal 2009 Year-in-Review: September-December

September

The beginning of September saw my return from a long weekend at the Zumba Convention in Orlando.  Steph and I learned a lot of new choreography, worked out to the point of exhaustion and shopped ’til we dropped.  It was a fun weekend.  We even got our photos taken with the creator of Zumba, Beto Perez.

Wildman began his first soccer season in the position of Chief Bird Watcher.  Sometimes he was the Executive Grass Picker.  To say that he was not interested in the game would be a gross understatement.  He loved the idea of soccer.  He loved the social interaction of being on a team.  But the game?  Not so much…

J turned 37 on September 25th.  His brother, his father, his grandfather and Cousin B also celebrated birthdays in September.   It was a busy month!

October

We spent October having lots of fun play dates and field trips.

We met some old friends from Texas for a day a Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

The end of October brought all the fun of pumpkin patches, local fairs, Halloween parties and candy.

November

Our friend, B’s, birthday was at the beginning of November.  Steph and I took her out to see Legally Blonde, the Musical.  It was wonderful!

The boys and I ventured over to the Lego Store at Downtown Disney on Veteran’s Day.  I don’t have to tell you how awesome they thought that was.  Funny, though.  They didn’t think visiting the new H&M was as exciting…

We watched Space Shuttle Atlantis launch one afternoon at the beach.  It was a lovely day for a launch.  The low, wispy clouds did not impede our view too much.  Once the shuttle broke through the clouds, it was glorious.

The circus came to town in mid-November.  The boys were mesmerized by all of the acts.  However, the motorcycles in the spherical cage and the guy who got shot from a cannon were the most exciting for them.

Turkey Day was spent in Orlando with J’s family.  His aunt and uncle host dinner each year.  J’s parents, his brother, his cousin’s family all meet there.  It nice to see everyone again.  I drove back home after dinner to rest up for a rousing morning of Black Friday shopping!

December

December was filled with many Christmas activities, as always.  It flew by in a flurry of pine needles and glitter!  My head is still spinning.

My first baby turned 5 on December 21st.  Ugh, my heart breaks when I think of how big he has gotten.  He’s not my tiny newborn anymore, that’s for sure…

We cruised into 2010 with an awesome beach bonfire (where our Christmas tree finally met it’s demise), lighting smoke bombs and small firework fountains in the street and toasting each other at midnight when the ball in Times Square dropped.  It was a quiet but perfect way to ring in the new year.

Happy New Year, everyone!  We wish you great health, good friends and lots of whatever makes you the happiest!!!

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My Personal 2009 Year-In-Review: May-August

May

May brought back our nice, warm weather, cookies at the beach and the end of another year of preschool.

May also brought us our last swim in Ya-ya’s pool.  The sale of her house went through and she closed in June.

I can’t forget Mother’s Day!  We had a lovely brunch at our house that Sunday morning.

June

June’s sunny skies saw the first of many scoops of dirt that would be excavated for our new pool!  Work began on June 1st.

Cutie Pie and I had a date with Elmo!  So fun!

What I do for one son, I have to do for the other 🙂  Wildman and I went miniature golfing for our mother-son date.

I can’t forget Father’s Day and the boys’ Son of Superdad shirts.  We took J to his favorite wing joint for lunch.

At the end of June, J and Wildman had the honor of being in Ricardo and Karenita’s wedding.  The wedding was wonderful, the reception was a snoozefest and my mom’s drama afterward made the night supremely memorable.

July

Independence Day was a blast.  Pun intended.  We had a family BBQ then went out on Steph and Big Red’s boat to watch fireworks from the water.

Despite not having our own pool yet, we managed to stay cool in the pools of our friends and neighbors for most of the month.

A day trip to Disney’s Bizzard Beach also helped us beat the sweltering summer heat.  Except it was not so sweltering on the day we went, much to our chagrin…

Mimi (the one on the right) blacked out and hit her head on the ceramic tile in her kitchen at the end of July.  She was rushed to the E.R. in the middle of the night with a massive head wound and an irregular heartbeat.  We were all scared that she was not going to survive the injury.

August

J and I celebrated our 9th year of marriage with a weekend trip to Orlando where we spent one glorious day at Discovery Cove.  Swimming with the dolphins has now been crossed off my “Things I Want to do Before I Die” list.  Amazing!

The pool finally became swimmable in mid-August!  We were thrilled!

Mimi came home to my mother’s house at the end of August after one month of hospitalization.  She gained a pace maker while there.  Once home, her crippling headache persisted for another month.  I am happy to report that she has since made a full recovery.  Thank GOD!!!  Mimi continues to live with my mom, her sister.  She’s still working at the hospital full time but is not taking on the overtime work that she had been before the accident.  She speaks of the big D when she speaks about the future as it relates to her husband of 30 years.   For once in her 52 years, I think she’s truly happy.  Thank GOD for that too!

My Personal 2009 Year-in-Review: January-April

From the look of the posts on this blog during 2009, it was a good year for me and our family.  And it was.  It really was a good year.

We had a good year when you look at the facts in black and white but for the past 365 days there has been an tumultuous undercurrent flowing that I have not brought to light here.  The truth is, the undercurrent stems from other people’s problem, not my own.  So, why post about them, right?  I’m not here to dredge up and comment on what is going on in the lives of others.

But, for as separate as these issues are from our little family, they still affect me.  I’m the one trying to give advice when someone wants to talk for three hours in the church parking lot after Zumba class.  I’m the one helping to provide a calm, normal routine for the children of those who are struggling.  I’m the one trying to balance saying too much with saying too little.  I’m the one watching from the outside as depression sets in.

This year has been a dark time for a few close people in my life.  It has held some very deep lows.  Rock bottom in some cases.  It’s been painful to watch and frustrating to help when I don’t really know what to do.

And, perhaps, the most eye-opening and hopeful thing for me, personally, has been the recent realization that I need to distance myself from it.  The issues that my close friends and family are facing are slowly bringing me down.  I have to take a stand.  Push away.  Breathe.

While on the surface 2009 has looked rosy and fun, I have not always felt in-the-moment.  I’ve been filled with worry and what-ifs.  That’s not fair to my husband and my children.  It’s not fair to me.  I must be present.  That is my main resolution for 2010- get from the blanket of others’ struggles before it suffocates me.

Right, so, I’m hoping that 2010 is a more peaceful and positive year for those around me.  I’m going to do what I can to make that happen for me.

Back to my year-in-review…  I’ll break it down into 3 segments.  Here’s January-April…

January

January, as it typically is, was a slow month for us.  Cutie Pie and I celebrated our birthdays on January 18, 2009.  He turned 2.  I turned 33.  Yaya threw a little party for us at her house.  Little did we know that it would be our last birthday celebration in that house.

We also took a trip to Animal Kingdom as part of our celebratory activities.  Disney in January is the way to go, people.  No crowds, no lines.  The holiday rush is over.

Oh, and we got a new president 🙂

February

February saw me run my first ever 5K.  I ran the whole way and finished with a decent time.  I was so proud!  I’m not a runner, you see.  This was huge for me.

I also began my Zumba journey in February by becoming a certified instructor.

I guess February was a month of fitness for me…

March

Wildman tried t-ball for the first time in March of 2009.  He loved it!

I went to a Zumba in the Park fundraiser and worked on choreography with Steph so that we could start up our own classes.  We knocked on a lot of doors and finally found a spot at a local recreation center.  Woo hoo!

April

Easter came and went in a flurry of egg-dying play dates, breakfasts with the Easter Bunny and a party at our house on Easter Sunday.

April also brought the grand opening of our local kiddie bike wash.  My boys were so excited to try it out!

Stay tuned for two more installments of 2009 in review!