Happy New Year!!
It is good to make some time to jot some things down again! I’ve missed being here…but there were a lot of things going on that I didn’t know how to really write. Suffice it to say that I’m happy to see 2011 start.
I was looking over Tsh’s reflection questions over at Simple Mom. Everyone is busy looking ahead, but do you ever really stop and look back over the last year?? I don’t think I do. I start to and can recall some of the last season or some REALLY BIG things from the last year (major vacation, BIG illness type stuff) But I don’t think I look at the small blessings.
As I was looking at those questions and thinking about 2010, I got out a notebook and pen. While I didn’t actually answer her questions on paper, I got to thinking about the last year. The following is part of that list of highlights I made.
- Committing to ridding my house of 40 bags of stuff in 40 days for Lent.
- Going on a scrapbook retreat alone in March in the MN woods.
- Welcoming a dear childhood friend to my house for a long weekend during the summer.
- Indulging in semi-regular girls’ night home-pedis and movies with my daughter.
- Taking one full Sabbath day. Soaking in the silence. Listening.
- Chaperoning Grace’s 8th grade class field trip into very northern MN for 4 days & 3 nights of wilderness/orienteering training & team building. This was just a month ago so it was cold and snowy! Awesome experience.
- Camping at a local state park.
- Bonfires in the backyard.
- Driving down to the CSA farm early in the morning for farm pick events.
And then there was the less than fun stuff. But it happened none-the-less.
- Taking the dog in for surgery and feeling horribly guilty I hadn’t noticed the lumps earlier.
- Grace’s 10 day migraine. Spending days taking care of her and then taking her on the long drive to Mayo in Rochester to finally get answers and the right treatment to break the headache.
- My car accident in October. Although it wasn’t my fault, it is hard to know that I hit the other car. After almost 2 months my new van is fixed but I am still doctoring for my sprained neck/back. Ugh.
There were hundreds of other moments, both good and bad. Just like your year, I am sure. What I notice in these lists is that it is all about experiences, not things.
Notice?
Nowhere did the new TV or clothes dryer or van come to mind. Ok, so the van kind of got mentioned. Only because it makes the van-crash story that much more sad…the fact that I only drove it 10 days before the accident.
It helps after the materialism that creeps into the holidays to notice that my biggest memories of 2010 were not things at all.
Looking ahead I will focus on the experiences. Not the things.
Small Town ~ Simple Home 
You say you are going on a scrapbooking weekend alone. I would also like to go alone on one to get my books done before my new baby arrives. My friends either do not scrapbook or can’t afford the weekend. I have never been on a scrapbooking weekend and would like to attend one alone. Do you know how to get a list of scrapbooking events?
I did go on one last March. It was the first time I’ve gone alone, as I usually go with friends. If I wasn’t traveling to see friends out of state, I would absolutely go again. Often local scrapbook stores or Creative Memories consultants will have information on retreats in your area. I heard about the one I went on through scrappin’ friends. If you ask around, maybe where you buy supplies, you will probably get some leads on local events. Or Google scrapbook retreats in your area. Good luck to you – both on getting some books done, finding a retreat and life with a new baby when it comes! Thanks for stopping by and commenting.