Bonne Nuit 2013

Well 2013, it's come to this. Just a few hours left until the clock hits midnight and you'll be nothing but a distant memory. To be honest, I'm kind of relieved to see you go. I'm ready for a fresh start, even if the new year is just an arbitrary date on a calendar.

You know how every few years, a year comes down the pike that just feels incongruous? Where you meet with "square peg, round hole" issues at seemingly every turn? Where the harder you push, the more you feel like you're spinning your wheels? Yeah, 2013 just never really happened for me. I have vague memories of 2006 kind of being like this too and I suppose, every seven years or so you're due for a year that's not really bad, but certainly not great either.

Aren't you happy you swung by to spend some time with Debbie Downer this New Year's Eve? ;)

But while I might not have been thrilled with 2013 on a whole, that only motivates me to make 2014 a really super year. And there were moments of 2013 that really sparkled and sang. I mean, how could a year that started off like this be all bad?

NYE 2012

 Without further ado, some favorite memories of 2013:

Season tickets for Broadway Across America at the Orpheum in Minneapolis with Sarah.

The advent of homemade bagels. The advent of a Ankarsrum mixer for Christmas so I don't have to incorporate all of that blankity blank flour into the stiff dough by hand has been much celebrated.

A trip to the lower peninsula of Michigan with Mom to visit brother and girlfriend.

 

This is kind of a lowlight really, but let's not forget this cheery little picture from, oh, April 19th. I was talking to my dad today about hoping that 2014 would be a better weather year. "Yeah, but that's kind of a low hanging fruit," he said. I mean, how could 2014 not be better. Honestly, it's been so blasted cold for so blasted long now that I catch myself thinking that's the end of January. Today, we're a destined for a high of about -12. You guys, I'm not sure how much more of this I can take.

 

I probably spent more time in running shoes in 2013 then I had for the entire rest of my life. Watch out world, because Santa brought me some high tech running tights and a Garmin Forerunner, so I can really nerd out with split times and all sorts of other details you never wanted to know about my runs. Happily, my test of Garmin proved that I'd been pretty accurately calculating my distance, which is a relief because I'd hate to find out what I thought was a mile was actually 6/10s of a mile or something and also because on Sunday I signed up for my first half marathon. Gettin' crazy.

Whenever I have a not so good day, I just have to think back to the Baby Crafting Weekend Shower back at the end of June to reaffirm that all is right with the world. Did I mention that this very weekend is New Year's Crafting Weekend?! And that I get to meet the crafting babies, Princess Grace and C. Liam Neeson, in just a few short days?!? (Spoiler alert: not the babies' real names.)

2013 was also the year of the mitten. Every time I turned around, I was knitting more mittens. Every time I finished a pair, I vowed I would never knit a mitten again. Surprise, surprise, I just cast on another pair of mittens last night.

It was the year of the snowmobile too. At long last, Andy purchased his dream machine. Who knows what adventures await in 2014?

What were your favorite moments of 2013?