Goodbye 2012, Hello 2013

For those of you that don't know, I got a job!  The convenient part is that it is the exact same job I was doing in Phoenix (working at a spa), but this time I "upgraded" and will be working at a Ritz.  But honestly I don't really care about that part, I'm just glad I'll be bringing in an income. I was kind of wanting to go down a different career path, but beggers can't be choosers, so this will do for now.

Today was my first day at work and it was....interesting.  In vague trying-not-to-say-too-much terms, let's just say that it is going to be a big adjustment in more ways than I expected, and I hope changes can and will be happening in the near future.  

So tonight, we reflect on what a good year it has been to us, and look to the future in hoping that it'll be memorable too. How are we celebrating tonight?  Sleeping! We considered being adventurous in DC, but naaahhhhh....New Year's has notoriously been pretty lame and just a disappointment year after year for the most part, so now I don't really bother going out of my way to do anything spectacular.  Maybe things will be different in the years to come, but this night, is not that night!

Have a safe and Happy New Year, you crazy animals.

Christmas

Christmas this year was low key and enjoyable, we were able to fly home to AZ to spend it with my family.  It was a very short trip of just a few days and a lot of traveling ( 1 hr to Baltimore airport, 4-5 hour flight, 4 1/2 hour drive to parents' house/hometown) but it was still well worth it. It was also great to be able to enjoy a short visit with my Aunt, Uncle, Cousin, and Grandpa. Grandpa has been in the hospital recently, but luckily was able to go home a little before Christmas thanks to my loving and supportive family members.

What happened to when we were students and had 3 weeks off to enjoy the Christmas season?  I feel like it came and went in a blink of an eye.  I still have our small amount of Christmas decorations up, and sometimes still listen to Christmas music- don't judge!  Not to mention I went a little crazy in post-Christmas shopping for Christmas decorations, and I'm excited for next year's decorating!

I hope you all had a lovely Christmas with your loved ones.

Got home late last night/early this morning from Arizona, and today we get this. I don't even know what it is yet. Sleet? Snow? Weather.com says sleet. Either way, Bah humbug! Let the fun begin...

Christmas nails

Christmas tree nails!  Thanks Pinterest blog post.

I only did one per hand because I didn't want to push my patience.  Wanted to do something fun before hopping on a plane and going homeward bound, tomorrow! (Woot woot)

Reuniting.

Yesterday was a day of reuniting with old friends.

I got a call yesterday from my old Seminary teacher (who now lives in PA) from high school, saying he was in the area for some meetings in the DC/ Northern Virginia.  He ended up stopping by for a quick visit, and it was great to catch up with him.  Unfortunately it was during the day so Wolfgang wasn't able to meet him, but now that we know he only lives a couple of hours away, I'm pretty sure we'll be seeing him again sometime in the future.

During my high school years, he was not only one of my favorite teachers, but also a great friend and role model. I vividly remember laughing/cackling at his jokes when no one else in the class cared for, or maybe didn't even understand his sense of humor.  His family has since almost doubled in size (I have yet to meet the new additions) and he's still the selfless person I remember from in high school.

Then, last night we met up with a childhood/teenage friend of Wolfgang's from back home in Austria. (See poor quality picture above)  It had been 7 + years since they had seen each other last, and him and his girlfriend were very nice people and enjoyable to be around.

Yesterday reminded me of how much I miss my dear friends I have made over the years, and how grateful I am/was to have them in my life.  I have been blessed to be surrounded by people who have loved me and lifted me up in so many ways.

Cheers to friends!

This weekend: DC and the temple

This past Saturday we finally made our way back to DC for round two!  We hopped on the metro and off we went, this time our destination was The Capitol, The Library of Congress, and Botanical Gardens.

Started off at the botanical gardens, which was kinda cool. Made us feel like we were in a mini concrete Hawaii, haha. They had some sort of toy train exhibit that had a big line to see; If my dad were there with us I knew he would have loved it, but since he wasn't, we didn't bother doing that part.

Next (and next door)  was The Capitol.  It was beautiful and massive!  Much better than the White House, although I'm sure I would think differently maybe if you could get closer to it (white house). I think we went at the perfect time of day, because the lighting was nice as the sun was going down, and we got to enjoy the big Christmas tree in the front too.  We also enjoyed walking around in the Library of Congress!  That was absolutely beautiful.  I only wish that we could have gone in the actual library part! You could only observe it through a high floor through glass, like a creeper.  I don't believe that it is open to the public, plus it was close to closing time, so we didn't have much time to find out anyway.  Oh well, we can always go back another time.

While in the Library of Congress, we went in the "Ancient America" (or something close to it) exhibit, which was pretty cool.  Sorry no pictures, because it wasn't allowed.  But I have to say that I was in heaven, because there were so many historic MAPS!  In case you don't know, I'm currently obsessed with maps and globes. I told Wolfgang if we were ridiculously rich, I would potentially collect maps and globes as a weird hobby.

I just love how the lighting turned out on this one 

Library of Congress

Then yesterday, we took some missionaries to the "Festival of Lights" at the DC temple, where we enjoyed the newly done hip and tech savvy visitor's center, some Christmas music, nativities from all over the world, etc. It was a pretty night with some fog hanging around the spires of the temple.

So, are you convinced to come visit me yet?

Smile, It's Christmas time.

You're Welcome.

Today the temps are in the mid 60s! Absolutely gorgeous. It's been nice to experience actual seasons, but today's weather is a nice treat. Today also marks the day that BOTH cars have officially passed state safety inspection (finally!). I'm enjoying the weather and 'celebrating' by finishing a book on our patio, WITHOUT A COAT ON. I'm sure glad that our landlord is letting us use his outdoor furniture! It's a good Monday.