2016 Reflection

1. What do I want to accomplish with 2017?

My CPA license.  Hands down.  

I also want to learn to not let people effect me the way I do... hear me out.  I find that I'm an incredibly giving person.  I'm the first person to volunteer to do things to help people out.  But, I've also found that {people} don't necessarily return the favor.  I end up burdening myself and causing myself undue stress for people that are likely to never return the favor.  

 2. Who surrounds me? Are they positive, do they lift me up? How do they make an impact on my life? How do I impact them? 

I have a very tight bubble.  I'd say maybe three people are really "in" my bubble anymore. And yeah, I think they are an incredible group of individuals who are my biggest support system.  They are the best cheerleaders ever.  

3. Where do I stand?

I'm learning this more & more each day.  Here's what I know... I have a man who loves me unconditionally.  He is my biggest supporter, my best friend, and I never knew love existed until the day he walked into my life.  I have a Mom who is also my best friend, and I wouldn't be 1/2 the person I am today, without her.  I have a career I adore and a team that makes me happy to come to work.  I have worked incredibly hard in both my educational life & my professional life to get this far in my career.  I have a sweet {spoiled} puppy dog who makes me laugh on the daily.  I'm physically and emotionally healthier than I've been since high school.  Every day, I look in the mirror & while I'll likely always see imperfections, I'm learning to love the girl looking back at me.  

And honestly, I'm the best me I can be.  And for that, I'm eternally grateful.

4. What do I need to focus on?

Learning to savor the season.  I'm incredibly blessed & I need to really remember that. The desires of my heart will happen in God's timing.

5. What changes need to happen?

I need to remove the people from my life who are nothing more than acquaintances disguised as friends.  Honestly, I deserve better. 

I need to focus on my health by "creating a plan" and sticking with it.

6. What regrets do I have?

I honestly can't say that I have many regrets as we close out 2016.  I think my biggest regret would be agreeing to Alex's contract assignment.  

I also regret not standing up for myself more.  

7. What have I learned?

I've learned to love me again.  I've learned that my body is a miraculous thing, and should be treated as such with wholesome, clean food.  I've learned that I can't count on people to be {there for me} in the way I need them to be.  I've learned that I really can't hold people to the same standard I hold myself, because I'll likely end up disappointed. 

8. What do I need to learn?

All of the answers on the CPA exam.  :-)  

2016

Y'all.  Can you {BELIEVE} that it's been almost two years since I've updated this little 'ol blog of mine?  I used to really believe that writing my thoughts down on this blog was therapeutic, and then I found that it got to be a bit cumbersome to keep up.  But y'all - it's so fun to look back over the last few years and just see really how much life has changed.

As you all know, 2015 brought about BIG changes in our little world...

January - I moved to NC, to a long term hotel & then to a corporate apartment.
February - Alex & Chloe followed.  We moved from the corporate apartment to a 1 bedroom.
March - Mostly just explored GSO & settled into a new job.  Took a trip to the ocean.
April - Moved AGAIN from a 1 bedroom to a 2 bedroom.
May - Celebrated 32!
June -
July -
August -
September - Got engaged on the swinging bridge at Grandfather Mountain.  Had an extended vacation with my parents at Nags Head (Outer Banks), Grandfather Mountain & Asheville.
October - Celebrated Alex's birthday + our anniversary.
November - Had Thanksgiving, just the two of us.
December -

2016 was a pretty non-eventful year, until the end.  But that's okay.  I've found that I love non-eventful, and I love my little family.

January - A trip to Pittsburgh, PA to welcome in 2016.
February -
March -
April -
May - Surgery!
June - A trip to Canton, OH + Columbus, OH to visit family & friends before Alex left.
July - A trip to Asheville, NC to celebrate the 4th of July and just get away for a bit.
August - Moved from our apartment to a townhouse.  We're {MUCH} happier here!  But, Alex deployed in August too so it was a very bittersweet month.
September - Really focused on adjusted to life without Alex, even if in the short term.
October - Surprised Mom for her birthday.  Celebrated Alex's birthday + our anniversary from a distance.  A 2nd surgery!
November - Celebrated Thanksgiving with my Grandma Taylor.  That's the first time I've spent Thanksgiving with  her since I was 9.
December - Welcomed Alex home for his R&R trip.  Visited Asheville & The Polar Express & The Biltmore.  Then we're heading to Texas for a few days before Alex has to return to finish out his contract.

I'm so looking forward to 2017, to visit Europe with the love of my life, to welcoming him home for good at the end of the summer, and to just settling down & figuring out where God sees our family in 2017 and beyond.

I have big personal plans for 2017, and I can't wait to see them come to fruition.

2014 Reflection

I think it's extremely important to reflect on the past so that you can have clear direction for the future.  For me, leaving behind such an emotionally trying year is joyous, but I feel like I need to try to get to the root causes of why it was so bad so that I can have a successful and AMAZING 2015.

A sweet friend of mine on Facebook posted these questions for reflection.  I never thought about writing down my goals, making a mood board or anything of that nature.  It seems to be the best way to keep my goals in the front of my mind. 

1. What do I want to accomplish with 2015?

Gosh, I have so many things swirling around in my brain.  There's so many changes happening in my life.  Laying it all out like this is a lot harder than I imaged.

I'm going to really focus on this over the next week, and update with my desired goals, but I want to make them tangible goals with tangible results. 

 2. Who surrounds me? Are they positive, do they lift me up? How do they make an impact on my life? How do I impact them? 

 

I have the most wonderful support system.  I knew that, but I really learned how amazing they really are once I annouced my desires to pursue this position in NC.  Seriously.  I can't say that my support system has always been this strong, but as time has progressed, as I've gotten older, I've figured out what REALLY matters in this world. 

They are extremely positive, uplifting, motivating. 

 

Their impact on my life is great.  I love knowing that I always have someone who has my back, regardless of the storm.  It's a fantastic feeling.  I hope that my impact on them, and their lives, is as great as their impact on mine. 

3. Where do I stand?

 

You know, I'm honestly not sure how to answer this question or if I truly can.  Maybe this is something I need to revisit in a month or two.  I feel like I'm existing, but I know what I need to do to change and make things better.

4. What do I need to focus on?

 

I need to focus on my health, both mental and physical.  I need to focus on what's important in life, my family & friends.  I need to focus on my spiritual relationship, and figure out a way to revive my excitement for life in general.  I need to focus on being happy, or at the very least, pursuing happiness.  I need to focus on not being afraid, because God didn't make us to be fearful people.

 

5. What changes need to happen?

 

I need to leave all the negativity from 2014 behind and focus on 2015.

6. What regrets do I have?

 

I think the biggest regret I have from 2014 is the ending of several relationships that were important to me.  It's always hard to look back and realize what I could have done differently.  And honestly, maybe there isn't anything I could have done differently. 

That's the emotion I have to take into 2015. 

7. What have I learned?

 

I've learned that the only person I can control is me.  I can't make people be kind, I can't make people change their attitude.  I can change the way I respond.

8. What do I need to learn?

 

I need to learn to focus on today, and stop worrying about tomorrow. 

 

I need to learn and remember that God is in control, and there's a reason why he laughs when I make plans.  He always provides, and He's shown me that time and time again. 

 

I need to learn that I can't survive this crazy world alone, and that I need to ask for help. 

I need to learn that my primary focus has to be on myself and my family, including friends that I so dearly think of as family. 

 

Cha, cha, cha, changes.

So I'm pretty sure it's been no secret that 2014 has sucked.  Majorly.  It's been a series of ups and downs, but it has felt like mostly downs.  I've been incredibly unhappy at work, I feel like I've been inundated with all the various baby annoucements/births, and things have been rocky a bit financially.  Quite frankly, it's been a shitty year, and I'm so darn happy to be saying GOODBYE to 2014!

Several months ago, I started the conversation with work about a raise.  I was paid significally under the market value for my position, and I wanted them to do something about it.  I didn't figure they would, but I wanted to give them the chance to do so.  I also began the conversation of looking for a new position with a recruiter friend that I met last year. 

Since Alex & I met, we've shared dreams of living somewhere other than Texas.  I've been here for the majority of my life, and definitely all of my adult life with the exception of a few months where I lived in Albuquerque, NM. 

In October, fed up from work, and looking for a change, I pulled up jobs in North Carolina.  Not expecting even a call back, I applied for jobs that were (in my mind) a little more advanced that what I thought I could handle.  Imagine my surprise when I received a call back.

I went through two phone interviews, and then the company flew me to their NC facility to go through another 3.5 hours of questioning.  That was two weeks ago.  A week ago, I accepted their offer to become the new Corporate Accounting Manager.  Yesterday, I turned in my notice at my current job. 

North Carolina is absolutely beautiful, and I'm so beyond thrilled to have the ability to venture out & explore.  I can't wait to hike in the mountains, hang out by the ocean.  Greensboro is literally almost right in the middle of the state, towards the north, and we're approximately 2.5 hours from the mountains and from the ocean. 

I'll be living relatively close to my Grandma Taylor, my Dad, my Aunts & Uncles, and cousins. 

But, leaving doesn't come without great sacrifices.  I go between bawling my eyes out at the thought of leaving my Mom and my bestie, Lindsey & her boy, Adam, to being elated and excited about the next chapter in my life.  I'm beyond grateful for the technology that will allow me to still see their smiling faces on Skype and talk on the phone without paying the long distance price.

And more than that - I'm so appreciative of all the well wishes, congrats, and the people who have truly shown me what having real friends & family feels like.  I know it's not easy for anyone to go through the experience of someone they love moving away. 

It's not easy for me either. 

The journey will be worth it though.





 

T H I R T Y | Farewell...

I know it seems incredibly silly - but I made it!  All thirty days of the Blog-tember Challenge blogged!  :-)  I had to make use of the "schedule" function on Blogger, but if I wasn't honest about that, one would NEVER know!  

I really enjoyed the various topics discussed through the Blog-tember Challenge. First of all, I adore Brave Love, and am continuously thankful that I stumbled across Bailey Jean at some point in the past year.  She's a Texas girl, which helps, but overall, I'm just amazed at how together she is for being 23.  

I'm surprised that I finished, honestly.  I've never put much time or thought into this blog, and only update when it feels like there's something I need to say, which isn't all that often.  

My favorite prompt - making the mood board, because it really allowed me to focus in on what I'd like for our wedding, if it happens.  :-)  I also really liked the fall bucket list prompt!  

Overall, I really enjoyed this, and I'm thankful that I choose to participate.  I didn't always link up daily, but I definitely participated on my own each of the 30 days.

T W E N T Y - N I N E | Blogging Resources

I blog for fun.  I blog for the love of writing.  The only resource I use is The Cutest Blog on the Block for their blog templates, and my brain.  I'm awesome that way.

T W E N T Y - E I G H T | High & Lows

I'm forever in amazement at how FAST this year has flown by!  And now we're wrapping up the 9th month of the year.  October will be here in just a matter of days, and the remainder of the year is sure to fly by!

September Highs:

1.  I finally got some more news on the job front.  Things are moving now.  :-) So we'll see how that goes.  I don't want to post too much if things end up not working out.
2.  With A being back in school, we've been able to catch up a bit, so that's been nice.  
3.  I was able to meet Lindsey for dinner one night.  It was nice to have some girl time.

September Lows:  

1.  It's still so incredibly hot here.  I'm ready for a break in the heat.
2.  A failing grade for FAR.  Boo!

Overall, September hasn't really been an eventful month, but I'm a-okay with that! :-)