Month in Review: December

December started off with a bang. Our small group from church has a 'social' night in between books and we offered to have everyone over to our apartment for a make-your-own-pizza party a la my birthday parties growing up (thanks Mom)! I took a shortcut and bought pizza dough from Whole Foods, but I did let it rise and then tossed it and baked it myself.

We provided pizza crust, sauce, and cheese and each couple brought over 1 or 2 bowls of their favorite pizza toppings to share. Once everyone arrived, we took turns building pizzas and broiling them until the cheese melted. We had salad to munch on while they baked, so I think everyone had a lot of fun and it was very interactive. It was funny, though, that somehow the 'couples' small group ended up divided: girls at one table, guys at the other :o)

My Dad's home-grown and homemade Norton wine was a hit!

 And then we were busy from there on out:

-I started the weekend premium position at work.

-Ross made a new dining room table and mirror for us.

-I had a ridiculous headache that started on-and-off in October, started to stick around in November, and grew persistently worse throughout December to the point that Advil and Tylenol wouldn't touch it. I had a CT scan, an MRI, a trip to Urgent Care, lots of tears, and no answers. Thankfully, it started subsiding by the end of the month but I did have sobering moments when I thought I'd live with it the rest of my life. I have a new, tiny, tiny understanding of what it must be like to live with chronic pain. And I'm so grateful that I don't.

Hmmm things don't look nearly as chaotic as the feel up there!

-Interviewed for and GOT a Teaching Assistant position at school! It's going to be a huge responsibility, the the opportunity is a tremendous blessing.

-Thanks to many, many prayers and efforts (prayer works!) and despite all my busy-ness (or, perhaps, because of it?) I started to feel happier. And lighter. And I'm so grateful.

-Saw many of my favorite NICU grads and they're all thriving at home.

-Went to my Aunt Theresa's winter solstice party after work and ate my weight in cheese balls and toffee. They days are already getting longer!!!!!! (there aren't enough explanation points in the world for this statement)

-Finished all of my stats assignments. So far I have a solid A! Whether or not I keep it depends solely upon the effort I expend studying for the last test.

-Finished my Nurse Leadership binder for work. This was a year-long project attempting to prove that I am a professional nurse and I deserve a place on the clinical ladder. We'll see.

-We went to an Ugly Christmas Sweater Party with our small group. So fun!

Part of our White Elephant gift. Delicious!

Gift Exchange

Trying to draw "Deck the Halls"

Love this group

-I got Facebook Timeline and I like the look of it (okay, I mostly just love looking at that panoramic sunset from a kayak trip in the Florida Keys for our 1 year anniversary). But I hate that I now have proof that I've been on Facebook at least weekly since 2006.

-I cashed in an early Christmas gift (thank you Mom and Dad) and joined a gym again!!!! (again, there aren't enough explanation points)

-Went to Amarillo which is wonderful, but driving through Oklahoma City always makes me realize we're so close to Ft. Worth, yet so far away on those trips.

-Had a White Christmas in Texas.

-My family (minus Tommy) came to town after Christmas so we got to hang out a lot.

-Went to Hibachi with my Aunt Karen, Uncle Pete, and cousins for the first time in years.

He knew we were getting a kick of how high he kept stacking the dishes!

 -Rang in the New Year... asleep. Because it was my year to work NYE and New Year's Day.

Monthly Goal Evaluation:

This month I wanted to get into the routine of working out again. Six days a week was overly ambitious on purpose, and I'm more than happy to report that I averaged 3-4 workouts a week. I did a lot of weight training (Tone it Up videos, Jillian Michaels 6 Weeks to 6 Pack Abs, and a Lean Legs and Lean Arms Pyramid I found on Pinterest) and was pretty sore they day after a workout-- especially after the Lean Arms Pyramid. I missed workout out on the days I wasn't able to, but I feel like I'm definitely headed in the right direction and I'm ready to kick it into higher gear now that I have access to a gym and classes!