another year gone

2008 feels like it FLEW by - wasn't it just yesterday I was packing up for the last Disney trip? That was almost a year ago - crazy, I tell you. Here are some of my favorite memories of 2008:

January
>>Disney World with my family - minus getting sick halfway through the trip. I especially liked the night we ate at the Garden Grill and got visited by the Mouse himself.
>>Getting surprised on New Year's with a haircut and tickets to see PS I Love You. I wonder who did that? ; )
>>Seeing KEITH URBAN and Carrie Underwood at Mohegan with my friend Carey.
>>John & I having our pictures taken in a photobooth at the mall - you don't understand that I bugged him to do this for MONTHS, and I was so excited when he caved. He even has the picture hanging on the wall in his room.

February
>>Having a dozen roses and a teddy bear delivered to me by you-know-who on Valentine's Day.
>>Getting a new job - a steady and well-paying job (even if it didn't work out in the end).
>>Seeing my first Wolfpack game at the Civic center - and having front row seats! (They won, in case you were wondering).

March
>>LIFEHOUSE AT THE WEBSTER. Thanks to my fabulous friend Amanda, we were right in the front row. It was an amazing show, as they all are. Especially because they played From Where You Are. Swoooon.
>>Spring break...just because nothing else significant happened in March.
>>Taking the cutest picture EVER of Cooper.

April
>>Going to Disney with my grandma - she had so much fun, it was awesome to see her so happy. Clearly, it is magical there.
>>Seeing my brother and sister perform in Epcot - their band did an awesome job,  and it was just so cool so see them play in my favorite place in the world.
>>Breaking my elbow - it's the first broken bone for me! I guess rollerblading & me do not mix well.

May
>>Gillette's Castle - it was a rough day for John & me, but it was so nice to have that day together. We even carved our names into the bridge there.
>>Getting MILO! Possibly the best thing that happened all year. He kind of filled in the hole that was left, and he quickly stole both of our hearts.
>>Memorial Day - annual picnic at my house. I love watching the parade, this year we watched it at the nursing home with some of my residents. The picnic was a lot of fun, always good to see friends & family.
>>The start of BBQs for the residents at the nursing home - I really loved them all and it was great to see them outside and enjoying the sun and warm weather. They brightened many rough days for me, and I'll never forget them for it.
And, I just want to add, that despite this being the hardest and most emotionally draining month of my life, it was filled with some pretty awesome people.

June
>>Seeing Drew graduate from high school.
>>Buying my first brand new car! It's a great feeling knowing I can do that for myself.
>>Chopping ALL of my hair off - hey, it's what I do after traumatic events. ; )

July
>>One year with John - I'd never felt so lucky in my life and every day I find new things to be thankful for.
>>Going to Mystic for  a weekend with him. Seeing the Aquarium, Seaport, and giant striper fish that scared the crap out of me at the beach!
>>4th of July - one of my favorite days. Watching the fireworks, spending the day at the river with my family. I MISS SUMMER!

August
>>Seeing Backstreet Boys with the girls - it was a really fun concert and you can bet we sang our butts off!
>>Roasting marshmallow's with John's nephews - it was such a fun night and I got some awesome pictures of the boys.
>>Drew's going away party - off to college for him! We especially had fun learning gang signs from Aunt Sonia later in the night ; )

September
>>New York City! It was awesome spending the day with Amanda, Kirby and Alynda! We had the best time getting lost and wandering around the streets of NYC. I'll never forget that day.
>>Quitting my job at the nursing home! I loved the residents, but hated the way the place was run. I needed to get out of there just because it was so stressful, and was so relieved when I finally put in my notice.
>>Birthdays, birthdays, birthdays! My mom, John's mom, Jacob and Gabriel all had birthdays. It's fun seeing little kids on their birthdays, it makes me wish I was little again too.

October
>> Taking the kids hiking at Wadsworth Falls. We had so much fun that day, and it made me even more thankful to have John and his family in my life.
>>Making Milo a LOLCat. Enough said ; )
>>Starting my new job! Less stress = yay!

November
>>Thanksgiving/my birthday - this month was crazy busy/stressful with school, and the long weekend at the end of the month was a fabulous break from it all.
>>Being legal!
>>Going to Mohegan Sun with John and my grandparents - they had so much fun they didn't realize it was 2:30 in the morning. Silly grandpas =)

December
>>Massive snow storm! We shoveled for two days straight, and now I still have a sore back from it. Thanks, mother nature.
>>Griswold Inn with my family for an early Christmas dinner.
>>Christmas. For obvious reasons.
>>Meeting little Ursa, the newest (and temporary) member of my family.
>>Isabel Noel's birth. She's really cute. And has a lot of hair.

Things I'm thankful for this year? John. He is too good to me and sometimes I think I don't deserve it. And for Milo, for saving my heart when all I needed was something to love. This year was hard, but all I have to do is look at John or Milo and then I know how I got through it.

Bring on 2009!