Thursday, January 1, 2015

2014 Year in Review

Happy New Year! 2014 was a great year and as I've been reflecting on it I've realized how many great things truly happened. As I write this on January 1st, 2015... I can't help but have great expectations and such excitement for the year ahead! ** Keep your eyes peeled for a post talking about my goals for 2015!** Please enjoy my little year in review!

January

Welcoming in 2014 was so much fun hanging out with family and friends at home and looking forward to all that the year would hold! I headed back to what was then Valley Forge Christian College a couple weeks into the year after having been off campus for the fall semester and the month was filled with readjusting to life on campus, hanging out with what seemed like long lost friends, and enjoying many, many snow days as the Pennsylvania winter was really quite rough. 

Snow Day #1!


February

A month filled with more snow days and harsh Pennsylvania winter. My whole group of friends went over to our friend Michael's house from school to watch the Super Bowl. It was a night full of friends, fun, and food. Even though the super bowl was actually horrible and a complete blowout... it was a night that holds great memories and that I loved. February also included a trip home for presidents day weekend with my friend. We had a lot of fun and enjoyed the weekend home with my family! This month also held a minor league hockey game with my dear friend Karen! It was at the Wells Fargo center in Philadelphia and we had a ton of fun! I also was quite excited to be in the Sports Complex in Philly as I absolutely love stadiums! 

The Minor League Hockey Game with Karen!


March

An interesting month indeed. March was probably one of the most challenging months of the year for me, if not the most challenging. I had some pretty serious complications in some friendships and ended up moving apartments. I kept up with my schoolwork however and had a nice refreshing spring break at home. I believe we had one final snow day at the beginning of the month... which was always nice. I enjoyed some crafting with my new roommate for our school's Spring Banquet which was coming up and all around just enjoyed the impending coming of Spring. I spent a lot of time with Asa during this month which of course is enjoyable. 

Heading home for Spring Break!


April

This month was quite busy! It started off with Spring Banquet... my first and last time going! It was such a lovely evening spent mostly with Asa and then a group of us headed out bowling after! April was also filled with things such as housesitting for the family I worked for while they were in Florida, VFCC's Community Service Day, the opening of an extension "campus" of our school... The Conference Center at Valley Forge, Asa's Senior Recital (which he KILLED, by the way), a day trip to Philadelphia with Asa, Easter Break and family time, and most importantly... we welcomed a very beautiful baby into our family! My little cousin, Emma! 

Baby Emma


May

A beautiful month, but another very challenging one. It started off with finals week which of course is aways rough... but then came graduation. I didn't graduate because of being behind in some classes... but the graduating class was the one that I came in with which held 98% of my friends. I'm really not good at goodbyes so that day was emotionally completely draining for me. I got through it, but it was a rocky road. The rest of the month held time spent with family and a few friends at the wedding of two wonderful friends, Liz and Cody. We celebrated mother's day. My summer addiction to the TV show, Friends, started in this month. May was also "home" to one of the most difficult decisions that I've ever had to make. I was supposed to leave home at the beginning of June to move to Harrisburg, PA for the summer but not very long after I got home... I started feeling God direct me and move me to stay home for the summer instead of going to PA. The phone call I made to the church I was supposed to be working at killed me, as I truly hate letting people down and backing out of commitments, but I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that it was what God was leading me to do and as I look back on that decision now... I am so glad I made it. I still feel bad that I had to back out of something I had committed to... but I know that I made the right choice. 

On the way to Liz's wedding!


June

What a month June was! After deciding to stay home for the summer, I finally settled into my room and started getting things done. I had two summer classes that I needed to work on, so I started my work for that, I spent a lot of time on the back deck and by the pool. Cousins came over to swim and the weather really got nice. We celebrated my mom's birthday, father's day and my parents anniversary. My sister and I ate a lot of ice cream from Nick's Nest. I watched soccer for the first time, played Bingo every Thursday, spent a day at the lake with my best friend and traveled to Pennsylvania again to see my friends Tim and Vanessa get hitched! It was a gorgeous month and I absolutely loved every moment of it. 

Can't leave PA without Wawa handy!


July

WHAT A MONTH! July was extremely busy. Out of the 31 days in the month, I was gone for 17 of them. The month started off with a visit from my wonderful Aunt Shar who lives in Iowa! She was here for almost a week and over the fourth of July holiday. It was so nice to have her in town for a visit! Also in July, I did two weeks of youth camp with my home district (Assemblies of God, Southern New England) and had an absolute BLAST! Seeing students lives transformed over the course of the two weeks I was in the mountains in New Hampshire is a completely humbling and awe inspiring experience. I love camp, and I love teenagers. God really used these two weeks to reconfirm my calling into Youth Ministry and rekindle my love for Southern New England District. I can't wait until I'm back in this district permanently. I also went on a beach trip with my home youth group and had a great day! The last week of July was spent in Columbus, Ohio for National Fine Arts! I got the opportunity to go with my church and jumped on it because I'd been dying to gain the experience. It was probably my favorite week of the summer and holds so many different memories with so many different people. I love the network of friend's that I've gained from all over the country... it makes me so overjoyed. Also, I became a Starbucks Gold Member while in Columbus, so that's cool. 

Gold Status!

August

A month of final relaxations and starting school again. Once I returned from Columbus, I relaxed and spent a lot of time with my family. My cousins all came over one day and we spent the day hanging out and swimming and eating watermelon. I painted, I ate frozen yogurt with my best friend, I tried to eat healthy, I cut my bangs, I watched movies... I genuinely enjoyed life. Towards the middle of the month, my family drove three hours north to spend a weekend in Old Orchard Beach Maine. It's basically my favorite place to be on earth and it was a very relaxing weekend. Once we returned I got my hair cut and packed up my life to move back to Pennsylvania for my final semester on campus at Valley Forge. My dad and I headed down with cars full of things and moved me into my small dorm room. I met my suite mate who would quickly become one of my closest friends. I also went to Atlantic City for a day with Asa and went to Maryland to stay with him for labor day weekend. I love that boy, a lot. 

Old Orchard Beach


September

I enjoyed September. For some reason I never have a great taste in my mouth when it comes to September... but this year was different and made me rethink my attitude on the month. It started with the end of labor day weekend in Maryland. What a truly wonderful weekend that was. After that it was a couple weeks of truly diving into homework, coffee dates with long lost friends, trips to the National Park, and hanging out with a few friends that I had left on campus. On September 16th, Valley Forge Christian College officially became The University of Valley Forge! It was a huge day on campus full of celebrating and class canceling. I got to hang out with an excellent group of folks and the weather was just simply gorgeous. I spent another marvelous weekend with Asa in Maryland and we went to a Red Sox game and hung out in Baltimore. The rest of the month was taken up with school, a trip to Six Flags with Asa and the first sights of fall and lots of coffee and doctor who and target shopping. It was a marvelous month.

Asa and I in Baltimore!


October

My absolute favorite month! I don't know exactly what it is about October... maybe its the cooler weather sitting in, the pumpkin spice everything, the gorgeous and colorful leaves, or the fact that it holds my birthday... whatever it is... I just absolutely love October. It was a jam-packed month for sure... filled with again, lots of schoolwork and time spent with Asa. We traveled home to Massachusetts for my fall break and spent five wonderful days with my family and celebrated my 22nd birthday. Once we got back to school we headed out to one of our favorite spots, Marsh Creek State Park and walked along the rocks. It was nice. The next couple weeks were full of more coffee, work, school work, cookies... etc. The last weekend of the month was a great one. Asa was down at school for a day to play for Alumni chapel and then we went to Maryland to celebrate Asa's 22nd birthday. It was such a fun weekend hanging out with him and the people from his church! The last week of October was spent helping out some family friends who were visiting UVF to do a play! It was a blast and I totally missed being involved with theater! 

at Marsh Creek State Park

November

A better month than expected. November started off with a bang with Asa and I driving home to Massachusetts to surprise my family for my Dad's birthday. The surprise was very successful... they had NO idea we were coming and it worked out great! We had a great time even though it was a very short visit. It was a month of stressing about school, final academic chapel, coffee naturally, and lots of trying to get myself to relax and not freak out about things so much. I took a Saturday off and drove to Havre de Grace, Maryland to meet Asa halfway and it was the best thing I could have done. We fell in love with the little town. It held so much charm in its shoreline and little shops! We will definitely be visiting again someday. The weekend after that I went to Maryland for the weekend and Asa and I saw the Hunger Games and wen tot Washington DC for a day. The month was also when I started helping Asa direct his Christmas Show, Baby Boy and met the wonderful cast and crew who welcomed me in. Thanksgiving is in November (duh) so I drove to the Berkshires to spend Thanksgiving with my family at a resort in the mountains. It was the relaxing week that I needed before heading back to school for finals week. 

Asa and I in Washington DC

December

The not so distant past! December feels like it went by pretty slow and I'm okay with that. Finals week flew by and I ended with good grades in my classes which is actually a really big accomplishment for me. I moved out of my dorm at the end of the semester because I am finishing online in the spring and GRADUATING in May! I can't wait... anyway... after moving out of my dorm, I went to Maryland for a week with Asa to finish up rehearsals and do the shows for Baby Boy. It went wonderfully and the cast did so great! I also loved being able to spend time with the love of my life. :) I left after six days in Maryland and drove eight hours home to Massachusetts where I've been ever since. We had a funeral for my Uncle Karl not too long after I got back, which was obviously very sad. Christmas Eve came around and we headed to Connecticut to spend it at my cousins house! We spent the evening opening presents and drinking... you guessed it... coffee! It was magical. Christmas Day was spent at home with my family and my cousins came over later in the day. We watched Frozen and played Pictionary and had a marvelous time. I really do love Christmas time! I spent the next couple days cleaning the house in preparation for Asa's arrival for New Years! He arrived this past Tuesday via plane and we've been having a ball since. Last night for New Years, my Nana and her fiancee Bill came over as well as my best friend Julie and my cousin Matthew and we all ate my dad's pizza and played games and counted down as the ball dropped to welcome in 2015! It was a wonderful time and I can't think of any better way to ring in the new year! 

Happy New Year from Us!


That's my 2014 in review! I am SO looking forward to everything that 2015 holds! Keep your eyes peeled for a 2015 goal post, a 2015 theme introductory post, and a new project that I'm starting today! We are off to go on a double date with my cousin and his lady and we are spending tomorrow in Boston! I hope everyone's year is starting off wonderfully! 

What was your favorite thing you did in 2014?




2 comments:

  1. It makes me happy to see one of your monthly recap photos is of Wawa. It is the best.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Wawa is GREAT! I don't know how I'm going to survive without it now that I live in Massachusetts again.

      Delete