Decade In Review...

I've seen this on a few blogs, and thought it was noteworthy to reflect on the past decade...

2000: I get VERY ill with Gallstone Pancreatitis. I spend two weeks on January in the hospital. I miss a month of college, and should have dropped out for the semester, but decided to go back and press on....earning an impressive 2.5 GPA. That summer I got accepted to be a missionary in San Antonio, TX, and loved every minute of that. That fall, I travel with my best friend Penny to Florida and take a cruise to the Bahamas.

2001: I graduate from college, and take my first teaching job (4th grade). The first year of teaching is very hard, but luckily I met Wendy, who helped me through so much. We also became best friends. I had a hard time adjusting to living in Louisville, and making friends. I know I am slow to trust people, but I am happy I am cautious about who I trust. I spent a week in Spain with Sam and Penny. This was my first international vacation.

2002: I move in with Sherry, and we room together for two years. The first year was pretty good, the second year....not so much. My dad has his hip replacement surgery. I visit him a lot because he stayed at a rehab facility in Louisville for a month.

2003: I took a trip to Chicago with my sister. This was one of my favorite memories with her. I begin taking Master's classes at IUS. I am starting to feel like I have more confidence as a teacher.

2004: I buy my condo! WOW....I'm a homeowner!!! I am happy to be living on my own, and swear off having a roommate until I get married! I also finish my master's degree from IUS. To celebrate this achievement, I take my first "by myself" vacation....I go to Asheville to the Biltmore Mansion, then on down to the Outer Banks. I loved touring all the lighthouses there.

2005: I finish my rank one at IUS. I am honestly content with doing nothing, since my life had been such a whirlwind of classes (two nights every week, and classes all day every Saturday). I participate in the Kentucky Reading Project, to which I find my true passion....being the best reading teacher ever. To this day, I still pre-order nerd books about literacy and read them all the time (I am on my third book over Christmas break). This year, I also have my best class EVER. They are such sweethearts, and I love going to work every single day.

2006: I decide that I want to have WLS. I go through the entire process, all the way to independent review, only to be completely denied by my insurance company. This crushes me emotionally. I was at a point of desperation, and ready for a new way of life. I also have had enough of my principal breaking my back by putting a large portion of her job on me. I decide to apply for other jobs, and took a new position. I had major dental work done on my mouth the summer of this year as well.

2007: I began my new job, and decided to research self-pay options for WLS. I set a surgery date, and take four weeks off for surgery and recovery. I am forced to quickly grow as a professional, because I am presenting frequently to large groups of teachers. I also meet regularly with principals to discuss teacher progress. Although I really miss teaching, I view this time as a chance to focus on getting healthy. I take a holiday with my two best friends, Mandi and Penny, to Florida, and we go on a cruise to Mexico. I loved it! I started Change is Good, Changing for Good as a way to process my weight loss emotionally.

2008: I continue to shed the pounds, and try to come to grips with the person I see in the mirror, verses the person I saw for so many years. I wish I could say this came easily, but I still struggle to this day with that. In April, I take my first holiday to Canada. I see Niagara Falls, and tour all of Toronto. I love Canada, and I am amazed at how much walking I was able to do. I met Ben, and had a wonderful summer of romance. I take a holiday to Columbia South America to see Sam. I enjoyed visiting the country with him. I decided to go back to the classroom, and go to work at a dream school. It is a challenging place, but one I feel is really doing what is best for kids. For the first time, I feel more like the "underdog" teacher, instead of someone who is always on top of my game. There are so many talented teachers in this building due to the principal's recruitment and amazing staff development. I am forced to grow to keep up. Sam, Mary, and I spend election weekend in Seattle, Washington and British Columbia. I am completely smitten by HH!

2009: This year starts off with a bang....Ben proposes to me! I begin to plan the wedding. HH and I get married, and take a two week honeymoon to Washington, D.C. I also take a work trip to Jamestown and Colonial Williamsburg. Ben moves in, and we begin to settle into married life. I also get serious about learning how to cook. It baffles my mind that I have maintained my weight for a year.

2010: The only thing I am quite certain of this year will be a move. We have a call back to a church this month (actually this weekend), and Ben has another church that has done a phone interview with him, and has decided to invite him to come preach towards the end of the month. I am a dot every i and cross every t kinda gal. It is weird not knowing where we will be in a few months. While we are waiting, I am determined to soak up every bit of life that living in a bigger city offers, since most likely we will be living in Smalltown, USA.

It has been a great decade!!!