New Years Flash Back..

Happy New Year Peeps!
Man its been a while since I blogged. Almost a whole month. The holidays are crazy.. but we all know that. Anyway.. As I was thinking about the New Year this morning I was thinking back to the killer New Years Eve party my friend Jessica and I threw back when I was still living in Texas. I think it was probably one of the most fun New Years ever. Nowadays new years is mostly just eating junk food and watching a movie until 12, kiss and then bed, lol. Man, I feel old, lol. Anyway, I don't count the new year as one of the more exciting holidays anymore. But that year was great.. and so I went to find the couple pics I've scanned in from that pics I saw that it was New Years Eve 1999.. which means it was 10 years ago last night. 10 years! That's so crazy to me. It was a lifetime ago..

(me and my 3 besties in 1999, Anna and Emily

home from College and Jeska my roomie)

How different the world seems to me now than it did then, how much I learned, how much has happened.. So I thought I'd recap the last 10 years.. if only so I dont forget it all 10 years from now, lol.

ok, since New Years Eve 1999...

May 2000 my boyfriend finally got it together and left on his mission (he was 23, wasn't sure it would happen) I thought I'd never survive.
Having nothing left really keeping me in Texas, and a cousin who recommended USU, in Aug 2000 I packed up and drove the 940 miles (14 1/2 hrs) to Logan Utah and started a new life in a town where I knew absolutely no one.
Found a job and an apartment. Ended up with a group of girls who made everyday fun, were always there for me and changed my life. They helped me accept who I am, and teach me who I could be. Everyone needs a group like that.
The next 2-3 years I finished up my classes in psychology and loved them. Felt like I found my calling. I also had to find a new apartment due to lack of money and my girls all getting married or moving on. Stumbled into my 2nd lucky roommate chance. In Caroline I found a kindred spirit I believe I'll never lose. May 2002 missionary came home.. did not work out.. Started to re-evaluate life.. Caroline and I both made it through the rest of school together, through finals and heartaches and life changing decisions and nights of laughter and mornings of commiseration. She decided to serve a mission and I made the decision to walk away from a wonderful boy, a friend who loved me.. to marry a friend that I loved. Amazingly hard decision.. but right.
Tom and I had been friends since we met before he left for his mission in 1997 and as the years passed and I dated others it become more and more obvious that we were supposed to be together. I graduated in May of 2003 and we were married in August 2003. We bought a house in November.. felt so grown up and old. The next spring we went on the trip of a lifetime and saw London and Paris and I couldn't stop mentally berating myself for not throwing caution to the wind and going on a semester abroad to London the year my friend Anna went. An entire semester in London.. sigh.. it still makes me wistful thinking about it. Lets call that one of my biggest regret for the last 10 years.
Well for the next 3 years i mostly worked and lived life.. took some trips to cali and texas and seattle... nothing super crazy happened..
tried to get pregnant.. and tried and tried... and then october 06 I finally found out I was. :) June 07 she showed up and changed life forever.. August 07 my mil took all the sisters/sil's to NYC.. almost didn't go.. so hard to leave my lil girl for the weekend.. but did it.. awesome experience, glad I went.. had wanted to go to NY since I was in High School and had decided I wanted to be on Broadway when I grew up, lol..
June 08 we made our first move as a family when we bought a new house. Love the new neighborhood and house, but it was strangely sad to leave behind the house Ainsley was born in. Sept 08 made it back to NYC, this time with Tom and all the other married Christensen's. Spring 09 we went to hawaii!

Our first big vacation just the two of us.. we almost took Ains with us, and we missed her like crazy.. but it was fun to have some time just the two of us. And this fall/winter.. took Ains to disneyland for the first time and found out baby #2 is coming to change out life again..

wow.. after all that I feel like I've had quite a full 10 years.. I may be older.. fatter.. but at least I'm wiser.. lol.. and happier, more fulfilled.. I love my life. Along the way a lot could've happened differently, so grateful for what I have, and am looking forward to another great year.. who knows what it holds in store.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!