We wrapped up Christina’s birthday party this morning with french toast and bacon. I think the girls finally fell asleep around 5am. Then Robin went to a movie with a friend. I did some sewing and all in all it was a pretty good day.
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January 13
Today’s a busy day. The whole family went geocaching with friends from church this morning and it was super fun. Christina is an excellent snoop. She found almost all of the caches within seconds almost every time. We’ve got one near our house. We’ll have to find it. Robin finished this bag and it is super, super cute! It was fun making it with her, and I love that she wasn’t on her phone for like an hour. Tonight Christina’s having her birthday party – a slumber party with five of her friends. I’m charging my noise-canceling headphones as we speak. I kind of love busy days.
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January 12
This is a self portrait I made in middle school. A clock for my punctuality, a smile because, well, I smiled a lot (extra super hyper is really more accurate), a pencil because I like to write, a light bulb for intelligence, and a peanut because… I’m a nut. Not much changes after you turn 14. You just have more bills.
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January 11
Robin and I started making this bag tonight. We got as far as cutting the fabric and sewing one of the straps. I think I might have to make one for myself too.
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January 10
My office hasn’t been this organized in months, maybe longer. I finally rehung photos that fell off the wall months ago and cleaned out my yarn stash. You can see my coffee table, craft tray and desk again. I’ve trimmed all the dead leaves off my plant. You can open my closet doors. I’ve finished editing my photo shoot from last month and organizing my website. I am ripping through my to-dos like confetti. I’m going to need some new to-dos.
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January 8
Christina earned a manicure for letting her nails grow without picking them and I figured, I didn’t pick my nails either, so…
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January 7
Robin got her first Shein delivery today, a sanctioned buy with her new debit card. The anticipation got her through her first cheer practice in weeks, and she wasn’t disappointed. The stuff she got is cute and she has 33 cents left to spend in her account. If there is a way to spend 33 cents, Robin will find it.
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January 6
Christmas is 95% over. One ornament is in triage, the bins need to be put away, and the furniture needs to be moved back and then that’s a wrap. Also today: fully finished the Lego building, started and finished a jigsaw puzzle from Mount St. Helens that we couldn’t remember ever doing before, and ate a delicious lemon poppyseed cake made by a friend at church for Christina’s birthday.
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January 5
I finally replaced my tire. Had to drive 20 minutes to the dealership just to talk to someone, but they squeezed me in without an appointment and got it done at no charge. I still think they need to either disable their phone lines altogether or learn how to return calls, but once I did finally talk to someone, the service was excellent. We also instituted family game night and played Uno Attack and Exploding Kittens. Christina has a vendetta for Billy in Exploding Kittens and targets him exclusively. And then he targets her exclusively and I quietly win the game. It’s a good system.
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January 4
Jupiter. This week has been a test of patience. I have been trying for almost a week to get my tire replaced, but no one will acknowledge my existence when I call the dealership. I have been leaving unanswered voicemails for days. Our heat broke down at the coldest point of the winter so far, resulting in indoor temperatures in the low 60s for days while we waited for a technician to come. The problem? A tripped circuit breaker. No charge. Walgreens filled two prescriptions I never asked for and don’t need, but never bothered filling the one I did ask for and do need, which I didn’t find out until arriving to pick it up. And then there is the joy of dealing with people who simply cannot accept their own humanity and instead blame all their shortcomings on me and my team at work. Looking for bright spots like Jupiter, here, though, I see a really important process overhaul at work that came almost entirely from my own head and is coming together even better than I imagined it (with many sincere thanks to the people who understood my vision and brought it to life). I see Exploding Kittens and a ten-minute phone call with Siggi wherein we did nothing but complain and it felt amazing. And now we have heat. Slowly this week is coming back together.
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January 3
Probably today’s highlight was playing Exploding Kittens with Christina. Now that we understand the rules, it’s even more entertaining than we thought it was. Also, not today, but I finally got around to making the second project in our 3-in-1 pirate Lego set. It may have involved obsessively staying up until 2am to finish it.
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January 2
This little girl got another year bigger today. Ten years ago she shot out of my body like a bullet and she has been a blast ever since. No regrets!
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January 1
I usually go hiking on New Year’s Day, but this year Billy suggested disc golf. We did great through six holes until Christina learned there are EIGHTEEN holes. She instantly lost interest. We followed this one family through 15 holes and were about to start the 16th after them when this group of eight obvious disc golf enthusiasts with their frisbee carts and visors cut in front of us and told us to go to an alternate hole. Is this standard disc golf etiquette? I hope not. I was angry. But since Christina was done anyway, we decided to go out for ice cream instead of picking a fight and forcing our way through the last three holes. It was the right choice.
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2023 in Review
Here we are, turning another calendar page once again. January 1 is really just another day in a long string of days, but it’s as good a time as any to check in and see how things are going. This year, thanks to this project, I get to sit on the floor with 365 pages of my life surrounding me that I can pick up and touch and remember and reflect.
Without even needing to think about it, I lift up our day at Disney World, hands down the best day of the year, and maybe one of the top ten best days of my life.
And, because the Universe loves to keep perfect balance, I also remember the toughest day of my year, a day filled with so much debilitating anxiety I could not get out of bed. That one day led to weeks of turmoil and months of tough choices. But I made those choices instead of ignoring them. And after years of stagnancy, I feel energized. One decision seems to lead to another and before I know it, momentum builds and I start to see change. How refreshing. Not in any way easy, but refreshing.
So what images do I want to see on my floor next year? Maybe more beaches and more camping and more finished projects. More state parks and maybe even some national parks. More home improvements and more time spent baking with Robin or paddling with Christina. Maybe even some cheerleading wins. And even though it may not photograph well, certainly more writing. Too many days with photos of the wall or selfies in bed means I need to readjust.
And so may it be. I look forward to the continued revelation of days.
Year in Photos 