Retrospect on a year

I realized it's 2009 and over a week into it and I haven't really done a retrospect on the year. Just some things that made the year stand out.

1. We started the year with a minivan and an old sedan and finished with an SUV and a convertible. COOL!

2. We made the decision to send our son to private school so he could be in a better learning environment, and haven't regretted it once. It's worth every dime of the tuition.

3. I got a taste of teaching full-time in my classroom. I loved it, but I can see now why teachers need that 2 1/2 months off in the summer.

4. I have finally figured out my daughters mood swings are primarily hormones. It hit me on the head like a ton of bricks. "IT EXPLAINS EVERYTHING!"

5. My husband decided managment isn't all it's cracked up to be. It took a period of adjustment, but he is starting to enjoy a less stressful job. The first "commission" check, along with the overtime pay didn't hurt!

6. My husband has also rekindled his love of the theatre. He will be playing Judge Turpin, one of the principle roles in "Sweeney Todd" at the Salina Community Theatre. http://www.salinatheatre.com/.

7. We went on our first cruise. We took in the Bahamas, Miami, Key West, and a private island. As much fun as it looks, jet skiing on the ocean is alot more work than I thought. I was sore for days. Hangin out at the Doral Resort in Miami on the last day of the vacation helped my recovery though!

8. My daughter "blossomed" over the summer. The day my husband asked me "When did she get (those)?" made me laugh and take pause all at the same time.

9. I surprise my husband with a trip to Las Vegas for his birthday to see "Phantom of the Opera", his favorite musical at the Venetian. We had 4 days without the kids, and enjoyed being a couple. Despite the oppressive heat, it was an incredible trip.

10. We are accepting the fact that my father-in-law's Alzheimers is getting worse, and we are angry that we can't do anything about it.

11. We watch as other family members deal with multiple health issues, we thank God we seem to be OK.

12. My daughter grew 4 inches in 2008. By the time 2009 is over, she will probably be at least an inch taller than me.

13. My son got passed the wall of reading. Now he reads everything.

14. We found out that K is a really good volleyball player, and E may have promise in Tennis and Bowling.

15. We also found out that despite the fact that she Kida is "the dog", we can't imagine our lives without her. This came after a health scare for her.

16. We have learned to be satisfied with the gifts God has given us. We have a great home, nice vehicles now, a full refridgerator, fulfilling travel, and adequate resources to support them.

17. We thank God for every day we have our parents and my grandmother. Many of them have had health scares this year, and they have made it through.

18. We thank God for our brothers, sisters, in-laws, nieces, nephews, and so on. We have a pretty large extended family, but we always find ways to come together at least once a year. That says something.

19. Everyday I pull out of my driveway and look at the house across the street. Our neighbors lost their marriage, home, and filed bankruptcy this year. I watched the husband suffer through his wifes antics and I feel I probably helped him through suicidal thoughts. He is doing better now, but the house is still empty. I pray for his recovery and that he finds love again.

20. As our church said goodbye to our pastor, I look toward 2009 and hope we find a pastor who can lead our congregation passed some of the turmoil we saw in 2008 and on to better times.

That's my retrospect. I'll make a promise to look back on this in 2010 and see how far we've come.