Days of Grace: 93/365

29Dec09

1. An easier morning than yesterday.
2. Menu planning and grocery shopping for the New Year’s holidays.
3. Not getting exhausted during said grocery shopping trip.
4. Some of the cats getting excited over their new toy, a Christmas present from Greg’s brother and sister-in-law.
5. Buttery garlic bread.

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2009 in Review (Part 1).

29Dec09

January meant tradition and history as Barack Obama was inaugurated as the forty-fourth American president.

One weekend in February, all we did is cook and stock our freezer.

And in March, I had a hilarious bus ride during a blizzard.

Then came April and the big trade – Jay Cutler for Kyle Orton – between my two NFL teams, the Bears and Broncos.  (Too bad it took so long for Cutler to shine…)

My office didn’t get splattered by dead deer bits in May, we just saw a deer hanging out on the railroad tracks out back.

Anxiety came back to haunt me in June, but I fought it off and had a great time at BlogHer ‘09 in July (sans alcohol).

Aunthood is certainly different this time around, as I wrote about the birth of my twin nieces in August.

Anticipation of seasonal affective disorder starts around Labor Day…and this year was no different.  (It really hasn’t been too bad this year, even considering what happened to me in early December…)

October was actually quite eventful, with a consulting gig for the American Heart Association’s Heart of Diabetes project and the hardwood floors being installed.

I explained the history of blogging, as I know it, in November.

And this month, I was both hospitalized and had surgery for the first time in my life.  (I’d like to not repeat this experience – ever.)

Tell me, what did you blog about that meant the most to you each month this year?

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Days of Grace: 92/365

28Dec09

1. A warm welcome when I did make my way into work.
2. Knowing when it was time to call it quits for the day before I overdid it.
3. A 1/2 mile walk.  (Have to start somewhere.)
4. Finally finishing off The Cider House Rules (and loving it).
5. A Bears victory over a division rival, even if they’re not making the playoffs.

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Back to work.

28Dec09

Today, I will return to the day job.

I have to admit, I needed the mental break, though I wish it hadn’t involved recovering from invasive surgery.   Working for a struggling company can be quite stressful.  Because I have been so focused on recovery and the holidays, little thought has been made towards work.  It’s been quite nice.

Priorities have been shifted – I know what’s really important.  I’m not staying for a full eight hours, not this week anyways.  I need to keep getting better – it is all about me, not about the company.  If that means going home to rest after four hours, so be it.   The only thing I lose by doing that is a full paycheck.

***

On the flip side, I haven’t done much writing either.  I’ve taken a mental break from that as well, but I’ll be getting back into it this week.  There are deep thoughts regarding my whole acute illness experience that I’d like to get down on paper (or in a blog post or three), though they’re not quite ready to be written, apparently.  It’ll come, I know.

***

Back to work.  It’s been a long three weeks.

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Days of Grace: 91/365

27Dec09

1. Even more sleeping in.
2. Even more reading.
3. Cats happy to have the attention of people other than me and the husband.
4. One more round of get-togethers, this time at our house with the husband’s brother and sister-in-law as well as family friends, even if the Broncos lost.
5. Egg nog (sans alcohol).

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Days of Grace: 90/365

26Dec09

1. “Sleeping in” until 7:30 am.
2. Brunch with friends, local and not-so-local.
3. Which included my favorite two-and-a-half-year-old friend.
4. Avalanche hockey game with brother-in-law and his wife, where we saw a winner.
5. Sufficient down time between brunch and hockey game.

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Days of Grace: 89/365

26Dec09

1. Baking (cranberry upside down cake).
2. Reading (still my latest John Irving novel endeavour).
3. “A Christmas Story”.
4. Family, immediate and extended, on the husband’s side.
5. Trivial Pursuit and Uno.

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Days of Grace: 88/365

24Dec09

1. House is cleaner than it’s been in a long time.
2. Eighth annual coq au vin feast was absolutely delicious.
3. Me and the husband having the feast as our own special Christmastime tradition.
4. “It’s a Wonderful Life”.
5. Looking forward to relaxing for the next three days before returning to work, after all the cleaning and other chores of the past three days.

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Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

24Dec09

Beware of scary Santa.

This ornament haunts me as much today as it did as a small child.  It is almost as scary as that clown in this year’s Garmin GPS Christmas commercial.

May your Christmas be free of disembodied Santa heads and creepy clowns.

***

Oh, and from my family of humans and felines, we wish you all a wonderful holiday spent with family and friends and Chinese food (for those who do not celebrate, oh I know that’s ripe with stereotype).

Meow.  Meow.  Meow.  Meow.  Meow.

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Days of Grace: 87/365

23Dec09

1. Finding a new low-carb breakfast option.
2. House getting into the shape I’d prefer it to be.
3. Catching myself before I overdid the cleaning, laundry, etc.
4. Blackberries (not the mobile device).
5. Constantly improving blood sugar levels.

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