May 22: Good-bye Thirty Five

Farewell fair 35. It has been a really great year. Tomorrow I turn 36. My husband brought home flowers for me tonight, and my kids have already told me that I will not have to do any chores and that we WILL be eating waffles for breakfast. Who wouldn't be excited about that?! Before the celebrations begin for the next year, here's a thankful tribute to the last one.

...the year my baby went to kindergarten, I put both my children on the bus, and I became the mom of "school-age" children.
...the year I completed my first triathlon.
...the year I had my first mammogram.
...the year I reunited with old friends from college and even elementary school and grew closer to current ones.
...the year I read so much it was glorious.
...the year I started blogging and continued scrapbooking and found value and joy in both.
...the year I flew on a plane with both my boys and realized what great traveling companions they are at this age.
...the year we began reading the "Little House on the Prairie" series as a family at bedtime.
...the year I threw boy-themed birthday parties for my kids and truly enjoyed them: water balloons and camoflauge for one, Star Wars for the other (see Princess Leia entry!).
...the year where my oldest watched a commercial for anti-aging cream and told me I needed some of that.
...the year where we went on many wonderful vacations (grand and mini) including: a cabin by a lake with my parents, our alma mater with the boys, a trip to visit my grandparents and run a 5K, a shopping trip to Chicago with my mom and five other favorite girls, a fantastically fun visit to Tucson, a New Year's Eve extravaganza in Arizona mountains, and many local field trips to our city's must-see sights.
...the year I slept in a tent with my boys in the back yard and watched countless hours of driveway baseball.
...the year I sat at the bedside of two different amazing women before they went home to God.
...the year I prayed that my life would be as full of love, family, friends, and peace as theirs were.
...the year I thanked God for what it has been already.