TOP NINE OF NINE

#1: Christmas in Wyoming: All 10 of us made it back home to Wyoming for some Christmas festivities. It's not very often that the entire family is together, so I look forward to those special occassions when it happens. There was sledding, presents, homemade ice-cream, movies, games, karaoke, bedtime stories...all sorts of good stuff. #2: Southern Adventures: In May I went with my friends Calvin, Karissa, and Wayne on a trip to North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. It was a whirlwind trip and we went nonstop for a week. There were plantations, beaches, rainstorms, lighthouses, alligators, kayaking, historical sights, restaurants, and anything else you can imagine. It was a fantastic trip!!!#3: Kindle: In June I gave in and purchased a Kindle. It has opened a whole new world of reading for me and has rekindled (ha, ha) my passion for books. #4: San Diego with Charla: Me and Larcha spent the weekend at a Spa right next to the ocean in February. Needless to say, we're going to make San Diego a yearly tradition!#5: Lake Tahoe: Four of us from work spent a few days in Lake Tahoe this past August for an Awards ceremony. If you're going to be 'working,' you might as well be doing it next to a beautiful lake. Congratulations Dormisha and Suzy!!

#6: My new Casita: I finally (after years of contemplating and many months of looking) bought a home in November. It's a fantastic investment and I love coming home to it every night. Hooray for moving out of the ghetto!

#7: Katie's Wedding: My good friend, Katie Mathis (now Sillman) was married in July. I love watching good friends find someone that make them happy....and I love that the four of us were all together for it. Two weeks before her wedding the four of us went to California for a final girls weekend.

#8: Melissa, Texas: In March I flew down to Texas to spend some quality time with my nieces and nephew while my brother and his wife went to Dallas. I love being an aunt!

#9: Wicked: In September my friend, Wayne, and I went to San Francisco to do some sight-seeing and to see the musical 'Wicked.' It was AWESOME! I wish I lived closer so I could watch it again and again. Wayne is a great traveling buddy and the weekend was filled with all sorts of random adventures!

So there you have it - Some of my 2009 highlights. There were other travels and experiences, but it just seems inappropriate to list more than nine :) I'm ANXIOUSLY looking forward to a new year and all of the adventures that will accompany it!! Bring it on, 2010!!

MANOR FAMILY

In July I completed five years living in Las Vegas. When I decided to move down here I didn't know anyone, didn't have a job, and had somehow found a place to live with people that I hoped I would get along with. That was on a Friday. On Monday morning I found several listings for Social Work jobs in the classifieds. On Monday afternoon I went to a couple of interviews and was offered a couple of positions. Neither of them felt right and I almost didn't want to go to my last interview because it was the same kind of work but just a different company. I am so grateful that I did......Some people say that work is just work and you should keep it separate from your personal life and family. I agree to a point, but when you are living in a city with no family, sometimes your work becomes your family. When I started working at Manor Health Care Center it had just come under a new Administration and there was a lot of 'housecleaning' to be done. It was a rough start with a lot of blaming, anger, and replacement of some questionable staff. Some days were a challenge, but the drama kept things interesting. After a couple of years, things just started to fall into place.

Now, we're a family. We sometimes fight like brothers and sisters, but at the end of the day, there is mutual respect and true advocacy for those who surround us. There's an actual feeling of love that takes place, which is something I have never encountered in any other place I have worked in. When you get 16 Department Heads together, all with separate opinions and personalities, that direct almost 250 staff members, all with different opinions and personalities, things can get interesting! Sometimes things can get awkward. Sometimes things can get blown out of proportion. But mostly, things get resolved and people get over it, and then there is respect. I've been blessed to be in the job that I'm in (almost too blessed), and I will always be grateful for the day that I walked into Manor Health Care Center with that short haircut and reassurance that I had made the right choice. It grew into a family for me, and there is nothing better than being surrounded by family :)

THE BEST IS YET TO COME

Here are some things I'm anxiously looking forward to:

1. Christmas - a WHITE Christmas with fireplaces, and family, and food that is already made
2. Not being sick - Since September I've had ear infections, sinus infections, colds, allergies - it's been a rough quarter
3. Tax returns - My backyard needs landscaped and getting a house took all of my savings, so hurry up Uncle Sam
4. Jack mastering the dog door - you have no idea how anxious I am about this one
5. Warmer weather - I know I shouldn't complain since it's 40 degrees warmer here than most places, but my blood has become thin and I miss being outside
6. Traveling - going home at Christmas doesn't count - I need a REAL vacation with sights and foreign languages and souvenirs
7. Having a church calling - It's been almost 2 months since I moved into the ward and I get restless when I'm not kept busy - and Visiting Teaching doesn't count (even though I am enjoying it)
8. Our annual Christmas buffet luncheon - We do this every year with the Department Heads at work - it's a buffet at Red Rock Casino, our gift exchange, and then the rest of the day is off - it's marvelous
9. Budget cuts to be over and done with at work - it's been disheartening watching people be effected by the economy - especially since we've been working together for years
10. A new year - new friends, new experiences, new goals, new beginnings - I love new years :)

GOT THIS CHECK

Today I made my first mortgage payment. I know I'm sort of a nerd about it, but I love having bills that you can watch decrease over the course of time. Not so much credit cards, that have the tendency to go the opposite direction, but things like cars and houses. There's nothing quite as satisfying as sending in that 'last payment' and knowing that something is actually yours. To me it feels like progress, and in a life full of monotonous moments, progress is a good thing. Bring on the bills!!

GROWN UP CHRISTMAS LIST

Amy Grant has this song called 'Grown up Christmas List' where she says she wants:

No more lives torn apart
That wars would never start
And time would heal all hearts
That everyone would have a friend
That right would always win
And love would never end.

Pretty much I just want Subway to deliver. I think my 'List' is more reasonable than Amy Grant's. She can be so selfish sometimes......

GOLDFISH

Tonight a friend of ours moved into the third room in the house, and when she came she brought along this fish. It made me think of the time when I was little and wanted a pet so badly, so my parents finally got me a some goldfish. I would talk to them and change their water regularly - I was just excited to have a 'pet'. Then, as you can image, I came in one day and found one of them floating upside down in its bowl, and when I asked what to do with it I was told to flush it down the toilet. I still remember the sick feeling I had as I heard the 'thump' of it hitting the water, and then watched it go down in circles. It's the same feeling I get when I hit birds with my car (dumb pigeons never move). Who is it that came up with the idea that dead fish should be flushed down toilets anyways? Wouldn't it be easier to put it in a plastic sack and throw it in the garbage? All I know is that I've never looked at those kind of pets the same, and I hated the fact that the same fate was going to happen to the other one. I don't think I'm going to get my kids goldfish. It's just too rough. Good luck, little guy!