An Open Christmas Letter

It's that time of year for Christmas letters and looking back. I'm not sure I'm a true adult yet, so I wasn't ready to send out a full letter on Christmas statonary. And a photo card would be a little strange with only one face on it. So, instead here's a summary of my year.

Impromptu visit from Dank!

At least this happened in the winter

Last January-March: Cold. So very cold. The best part of these months was having "cold days" off from school, visiting Madison, and finally starting to experience sunlight again as the season ended.

The end of winter included Drumline Olympics

I also gained my very own epi-pen after an evening workout caused a severe poultry reaction. One roommate drove me to the ER (when I was starting to resemble Hitch on shellfish) and the others stopped by to visit their swollen peer. It was one of my first real trips to the ER, so it was very interesting, but an experience I'll try not to repeat.

May brought the end of an era, as our household of six split ways, moving out of our duplex. It was hard to say goodbye to all the fantastic ladies and to life in La Crosse, but I found a great duplex, with two new roommates. And, as luck would have it, since we all still like each other, I get to see the former roommates plenty.

Hot tub on a lake surrounded by volcanoes.
A girl could get used to this.

Our open air residence for a few days.
We even got to enjoy a thunderstorm
from our 2nd floor beds

Making Chocolate

Shortly after the school year ended in June, I flew to Guatemala to visit my marvelous sister with my parents. A chocolate making lesson, volcano hike, Mayan ruin visit, hot waterfall swim, and a VERY long layover in Chicago later I returned a few mosquito bites (and lots of memories) richer.

Remember that time we watched the sun rise over Tikal?

I completed my first 10K in June too!

"Well...this is new!" 

In early July, I found out that I'd be teaching AP Physics and attended a conference, during which I was plagued by a Guatemalan bug bite that wouldn't heal. A week later, Sue and I drove down to Missouri to start a road trip. The evening we arrived, we discovered and removed a now infamous botfly. It was gross and a bit scarring (in both interpretations of the word), but also very intriguing.

 The following day (in an unrelated event) I became really sick and spent a few days in a very nice hospital there. Meanwhile, a cut-out version of me continued on the trip. My parents drove down and brought me back home when the doctors deamed me unlikely to spontaneously combust or transform into a vampire (I think that's what the tests were for?). It wasn't how I would have chosen to spend the weeks, but I was happy to feel healthy again within a couple days and gained a new appreciation for hospital staff.

Fuze and Guillaume visit from France!

August went by far too quickly. I tried to pack in as many social events as possible while preparing to have my life dominated by school again. I was able to end the month feeling significantly more prepared, albeit really nervous for the year.

September was also busy. I worked to keep up with running and participated in a scavenger hunt hosted by Mark Jewlers. At the end of the month. I ran my first half marathon and had a fantastic birthday celebration.

Impromptu Neddjmms night

 

I made it

I celebrated Halloween a bit early this year, participating in my second Beers By Bike Brigade (a La Crosse bike pub crawl event) ride astride a tandem bike, bedecked as Miss Frizzle. I'd highly recommend it.








In November, I got to attend a Badger game in Iowa. We were lucky enough to have a beautiful warm day.

Cookie baking at Grandma's

And that brings us to December. I've been blessed to have my sister in the states for the last two weeks, and I'm still wrapping my head around the idea of her leaving tomorrow. We've had a holiday packed full of family visits, food, friends, and laughter.

Enjoying Rotary lights

All the best parties come with umbrella hats.

Looking back, I've grown a lot in a year. I'm more fit, more confident, and have made many new friends. I am blessed with good health, an amazing family I can visit once a week, my dream job, and some of the most loving and entertaining friends out there. Bring it on 2015.

The house and year may have changed,
but the silly friends have not :)