2012

First it has been a long time since I have posted. A few updates at first, I have gotten settled in the job at the American Cancer Society (ACS). I have had a full case load for a little over a month now. Some of the cases are a struggle for me, and some days personally the job is a struggle because I think about Jessica a lot. I know though that losing her is one of the things that has driven me to do this job and do it well. I enjoy the job and am looking forward to what the New Year holds for me at the job.

Michael and I have moved into our new apartment and we absolutely love it. One of the things that I love the most is that there is a separation of rooms, I can be sitting on the couch reading my book or watching TV and Michael can be playing his game or working in the “office”. Part of me feels like such a yuppie to say we have an “office”, but it has been a blessing. We are going to be here for at least 14 months maybe longer, but we are definitely going to start buckling down and looking at what it is going to take to buy a home.

I have very excited about what 2012 has in store for us, and because of that I have made resolutions on how I am going to live in 2012. This past year has been a whirlwind for Michael and I, especially for myself. We moved into to 2 new places, we got married, I changed jobs, Michael got a promotion, and we have learned to grow and struggle through financial strain, stress and the never ending on-call that his job requires. I feel that as a couple we have done very well and have grown together.

I also feel that 2011 was the healthiest emotionally and mentally that I have ever been. I know that I have taken care of myself in ways that I neglected when I was in college. I have learned that I need to strive to be the best for myself and to be the best wife that I can be to my husband. That means that I have had to learn to stop, slow down and realize that I can’t do everything myself. I have learned to lean on Michael in hard times, and have learned to allow him to be my rock and my protector. I hope that 2012 I can continue to grow, and strive to continue being a better wife for my husband.

I have made the regular resolution that I have going to start taking care of my physical health more. I started this resolution shortly before the Holiday season started, but I am planning to continue it even more. Over the summer because of the nature of my working schedule and just how I felt about myself I really neglected my body physically and I engrossed myself in poor eating, drinking and sleeping habits. Before my wedding I had dropped a significant amount of weight and I was taking care of myself, but shortly after that I just quit caring. Once I started the job at ACS I became determined that I was going to start treating my body better, because it is true what they say you only get one body. I know that in the future Michael and I are going to start a family so I want to be as healthy as I can be to start that process and be healthy for my future children so that I can be the best mother to them I can be. I have started eating so much healthier and have drastically reduced the amount of meat I consume, I now flatter myself a vegetarian but there are times that I still like a bite of some sort of meat. I have changed my diet to where I consume protein in other forms and I have really begun to eat more vegetables and fruits. This has been a lifestyle change for Michael as well, because I have started to cook more meals without meat. I do however still cook some meals where I just pick the meat out because Michael likes it.

I have also made a resolution to take care of our money and finances better. This year we are going to seriously start looking into buying a house and starting that process. Since I finally have a job with a decent salary that is not requiring me to spend half my pay check on gas, we have been able to save. We have agreed that this year we are going to put money in savings to spend on a house, and we have both decided that we are going to up our retirement because we know that is going to be something essential to us. We know that if we save know then in the future we will have less worry and grief.

I am thrilled to see what 2012 holds for myself, my marriage, my job and for my family. I know that as this year passes we will grow, we will learn and we will have so much fun doing it. So here is to all Happy New Year and let us make 2012 the best year we have had so far.