2014 in Review - Smelling the Roses

               As I look back on this year, I have a hard time coming up with accomplishments, so I looked back at my year-in-review post from last year, and I realized that I didn’t actually make any resolutions.  Who was it that said, “if you don’t know where you’re going, you won’t know when you get there?”  I guess that’s true.  It seems like I’ve been aimless.  I’m a goal-oriented person, so sometimes I get so busy that I forget to stop and smell the roses.  I guess that’s what I did this year.  I smelled the roses.

               Actually the first four months of the year were very busy.  I completed my last semester of West Georgia’s BSN program and did my clinical with the palliative care program.  I graduated on the last day of April.  I gave myself permission to cruise along for a while.  I am currently leisurely studying for the CCRN exam.  I need to set a date for my test to light a fire under me. 

               Here is my year in review:

-          In January and February, we had enough snow to play in!  I was on the road in Ice Jam 2014, but I made it to where I was going and got home safely.

-          Rosemary got her ears pierced.

-          Matt’s Grandmother Pilgrim had a stroke and died a few days later.  She was a wonderful woman, and we take comfort in knowing that she is reunited with her beloved husband and resting in the arms of God.

-          Matt and I took the kids to Cumberland Island and the Okefenokee Swamp for Spring Break.  It was wonderful.  This year for Spring Break, we plan to go to Crater of Diamonds State Park in Arkansas and to Fouke, Arkansas, home of the bigfoot from The Legend of Boggy Creek.

-          We finally got around to painting and decorating the boy’s room.  It is smurf blue, and my Dad built awesome loft beds.  Each boy has an area under the bed that can be closed off with a curtain for privacy.  They love it.

-          Matt went to his annual gaming convention in Ohio in June.  The kids and I did a hastily planned and executed bathroom redo during his trip.

-          The kids finished up another successful year with the Georgia Cyber Academy.  In August Bonnie started 9^th grade, Will started 6^th grade, Luke started 5^th grade, and Rosemary started 2^nd grade.

-          Bonnie is no longer taking piano, much to the dismay of her grandmother.  She is also not doing much in the way of crafting.  What she is doing is listening to music, obsessing over bands and YouTube series, texting constantly, eye rolling, meeting her boyfriend at the park, and trying out different hair colors.  She is a teenager in full force.  I’m trying to hang in there.

-          The boys are Minecrafting and playing Pokemon.  They attend PSR and are active in the Boy Scouts.  They both love the Boy Scouts.  Luke played basketball in the winter, but he opted not to play this year because games cause him to miss Boy Scouts on Mondays.

-          Rosemary is just hanging out.  She goes to PSR, but she has declined opportunities to play sports or take music lessons.  But she is only in second grade.  She’ll find her groove.

-          In August, our family rented a house on the beach in Indian Pass, Florida for a week.  We took a pontoon boat out in St. Joseph’s Bay one day and hung out on the beach, fished, ate, and played games the rest of the time.  It was perfect.

-          It’s not my accomplishment, but still big for the family is that my brother-in-law released a documentary film about a local legend named BellTree Smith.  I feel pride by association.  The premiere here at our local theatre and seeing the movie at the international film festival in Rome were great fun.

-          Matt and I took a little trip to the mountains of North Carolina in November.

-          I become a UGA fan this year.  I have always been a nominal fan, but this year I watched all the televised games and learned a thing or two about football.  It was so much fun, I think I’ll do it again next year!

-          We had a wonderful and blessed Advent and Christmas season!  It was best and most meaningful ever.

-          New Year’s Eve was the best I can remember.  The whole family was well and happy.  We went to a party hosted by precious friends and partied the night away.  It was a perfect way to ring in the new year.

-          I am planning a trip to the Florida Keys with my parents in mid-January.  I will probably do a separate post about this because I have lots of emotions swirling about in the head.

-          2015 also brings Will’s 13^th birthday, so I’ll be planning another trip.  He has his heart set on NYC.  I feel like I’ve been there and done that, so I would like a different adventure, but this is his birthday, and if he wants NYC, he’ll get NYC.  It is a big enough city that it won’t be a complete duplicate of Bonnie’s trip.  We’ll have great fun.

-          Otherwise, I think I’ll be smelling more roses throughout the year!

Blessings galore to all who read this post!  I wish you love, health, happiness, and prosperity in the coming year!

Time for snow cream!

Boys room before

Luke painting his room

Daddy and Matt assembling the lofts

Boys' room after

Luke playing basketball

She got emeralds, which is her birthstone

on the ferry to Cumberland Island

 

Cumberland Island

Boy Scout Luke and his giant dog, Sailor

Chillin on the boat - Saint Joseph's Bay, Florida

 

after Blind Tiger premiere at West Cinema

Ingram Family - Christmas 2014

 

NYE kids' countdown - photo by April Ingram

NYE - photo by April Ingram