This seemed like a hard year, you know with Trump in office with all the political ugliness and strain that unleashed. Then, on a more personal note, Becky getting Hashimoto's has been a real struggle because of her depression and other symptoms. And another thing happened that I don't feel I can divulge here but which really gave me sorrow. These things cast a pall over the year.
But good things happened too. I decided to become more environmentally and politically active. I stepped out of my usual safe bubble and helped get signatures for a candidate. I joined the environmental group at my church. I started a zero waste facebook group for Catholics, I got more involved with helping the homeless in our area.
We didn't take a big family vacation this year, but Rick and I went on a nice long weekend to Staunton for our anniversary, and then we had a surprise trip to Boston while W was getting his kidney out. Oh and I almost forgot, on inauguration day last January, we took a weekend trip to St. Michael as well. So that was 3 weekends away this year with Rick. I really enjoyed those trips. I mean, the one to Boston had a lot of anxiety and just sitting around hospital rooms, but we also got to eat out one night at a nice restaurant and we visited the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum one afternoon. So in spite of W's surgery, we still had some fun. We've decided it's time for us to travel more. Rick even got me a calendar as a little Christmas gift: a 2018 Let's Travel calendar.
Some first for 2017:
I met Leonie Westenberg, a long time on line friend from Australia! That was cool.
I made yogurt for the first time.
I saw Man of La Mancha for the first time. B was in that production and it was very well done.
What else happened?
Dylan turned two this year.. He loves to dance to Barbara Ann and Surfin USA both of which he can request by name. We broke out the old Signing Time dvds and we are all learning or relearning sign language along with him. And he's getting potty trained! His mom is still trying to find her way, but she's such a help to me in terms of housework and now she's driving. Oh yeah! We got another car this year.
Sean became my 4th graduate from home school high school. He attended the Berklee 5 week in the summer, but decided not to audition to the school after all. He's teaching himself code and has been designing games as a hobby recently. He's getting really good at playing the harmonica. He got a job at Chipotle.
Joshua finally got around to taking an accounting class and discovered he liked it. Something Rick and I had been saying for years.
I started watching lots of homesteading videos and I find them engaging and relaxing. I love the whole subculture.
I got more involved with actually being a guardian to my sister Eileen. I found us a new lawyer for her and we even went to court to change our guardianship arrangement.
On more of a downer note, our cat Milky passed away this year. And when I went camping with the AHG troop at the end of September, I hurt my knee so badly that pretty much all of October hurt! We are still trying to get B stabilized with her Hashimoto's. That's an ongoing thing. Trying to be gluten free and zero waste is an up hill battle due to the fact that I am so crazy busy and not at all naturally inclined to do lots of home cooking. But I'm trying to change things. I honestly can't wait until I am no longer teaching at the co-op. It just doesn't fit with me anymore.
Granddad has terrible balance and keeps falling. He was just in the ER last week. Now he and Peggy are thinking of moving into a retirement home and thankfully they are looking at ones much closer to us. Granddad would get upset that we didn't visit him often but to drive to north of Baltimore and back in this area's traffic meant that pretty much the whole day was shot. Now if they move closer we really can visit more. So that is a good, late in the year development.
2018 will be my last year of homeschooling (well, 2018-19). And it will be the year of my 30th wedding anniversary, God willing! (I had to say that just in case I jinx things and we wind up in a car accident or get cancer or something. . . .oops maybe saying that jinxed things!) Anyway, Rick and I are thinking about taking a grand trip somewhere next fall. That will be fun to plan.
And we are going to concentrate on fixing up our yard this year. That is a worthy project that I am looking forward to as well.
I am ready to ring out the old year and ring in the new! I plan to roast chestnuts and drink sparkling apple cider and be in bed by 11:00 p.m.
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