2016: A Year in Review

This blog definitely took a backseat in 2016. It upset me at first that I wasn't writing here much, but I'm over it. The blog has been such an amazing outlet for so many years and if there comes a time that I wan't to write more frequently again here, I will.

That being said, I do still like to document some of the bigger moments here for my memories. So, here are some of the top moments from my year (in no particular order)!

Going to Puerto Rico with two of my best friends.This trip was so amazing after a rough winter. It was the first time Erica, Kathleen and I went away just the three of us and it was marvelous. From laying on the beach all day, to hiking through El Yunque Rain Forest, every moment was just wonderful.

The birth of my adorable nephew Jackson! I can't believe how much I love this little nugget. Jackson joined us on August 29th and has filled all of our lives with so much joy every day.

Meeting Jacob. Jacob and I met early in the year and he's definitely made this year one of the best yet. I'm so lucky to have found him :-)

Beer Camp! This was hands down one of the most fun beer festivals I've ever gone to and one of my best memories from the year. Beer festivals are always great but they get extra points when they're outside on a beautiful day and within walking distance from my apartment.

Seeing Billy Joel for the first time in Boston, and particularly, the spontaneity of buying tickets off the street 10 minutes before the concert! I truly can't describe the excitement I felt after walking through the gates and entering Fenway -- it was a night to remember for sure.

Here's a big one - quitting my job and starting a new one that I LOVE. I was at my last job for 5 years and pretty unhappy for the last two of those. In March I finally bit the bullet and accepted a new position that I was recruited for. While at the time it felt like one of the hardest things I've ever done, looking back it seems silly. This process has given me so much confidence and reignited an excitement about my professional present and future. At my new job I'm highly respected and valued as a leader, face exciting growth potential, and am surrounded by awesome coworkers who have quickly become great friends. 

Taking my first solo trip to Seattle! This was the first time I took a trip by myself and I LOVED it. I had such a blast exploring and doing every little thing that I wanted -- I ate at all the restaurants I picked out, went to bed early when I felt like it, and even joined a little tour group to hike up Mt. Rainier!

Going to Boda Borg with some friends from my sports league. This will go down in history as one of the most fun things I've ever done. And the most bruises I've ever had at once.

Stepping up my workout game. This year I completed 16 weeks of BBG and did 10 straight week of 6 am bootcamp at my gym. Who knew I could wake up in the 5 am hour?!

Playoff Celtics Game! It's funny that this would appear on my list, but this was SUCH a fun night. My old boss gave me two free super close tickets to the Celtics playoff game. They were down by about 35 points and came back to win. It was INSANE and I was screaming my head off like an actual fan. So fun.

My 10 year high school reunion. I ended up having to travel to New York for work the weekend of my high school reunion and decided to go, despite most of my friends not attending. I ended up having a blast and reconnecting with some old friends I haven't seen in years. 

Welfleet Oyster Fest! This is always a fun weekend with some of my best friends and this year wasn't any different. Oh, except that there were NO oysters thanks to the norovirus outbreak. Still, it was tons of fun and this year we made it a long weekend with a trip to Provincetown!

Meeting my mentee! For years I've wanted to find a long-term volunteer opportunity. The day I signed the offer letter for my new job and knew I'd be in Boston for at least the next few years, I signed up to become a mentor through Silver Lining Mentoring. After a long application process and some intense training I was finally matched with my mentee. I'm really excited to see how our relationship develops over the next year and beyond! I don't want to post a photo of her but here's the result of us messing around with bananagrams :-)

This year was full of so many great moments - big and small. I can't wait to see what 2017 has in store!

Ten Thing Tuesday/Random Thoughts

1. I started a book club! Since I've been at my new job I've been seriously lacking on my reading (podcasts however, are a different story). I used to have about 2 hours of reading a day (commuting and lunch time). Now I read for about 5 minutes most nights before I go to sleep. Unacceptable! I'm hoping this club will inspire me to squeeze more reading time into my days.

2. I've been running 2x a week and am officially on week 7 of couch to 5k. It's taken me about 12 weeks to get to this point because I repeated a few weeks and am not following the 3x a week schedule. That being said, I'm happy to be sticking with it and it's always wonderful to feel like running is getting easier. I'm hoping to sign up for a 5k before the year is over.

3. I'm trying to avoid my seasonal depression by doing fall activities. Apple picking is always the best and I WILL carve a pumpkin before October is over. I also have a few fun weekends coming up!

4. I've been on a Netflix documentary kick lately. I watched the Amanda Knox one and 13th -- recommend both. 

5. After avoiding a salon for...way too long...I finally got my hair cut and dyed it back to my natural color. Away with the highlights!

6. I feel like I'm really in need of a big trip. The last big trip I went on was almost two years ago to Israel. By big trip I mean greater than one week and preferably overseas. I've gone on plenty shorter trips in the US in the last two years. Where should I go? The two places I'm thinking of the most are Japan (always) and Italy.

7. My nephew is 6 weeks old! I can't believe how big he's getting!

 

8. I took a wonderful trip up to Vermont the last weekend of summer. Here are some pics:

This picture sucks but this road looked magical!

 

9. I miss playing volleyball! I played beach volleyball over the summer then took a few months off because of travel. I subbed last week and had a blast. Can't believe how much I've come to love this sport. I'd really like to sign up for a real team that practices during the week! Where can I do this?

10. I don't know how I used to write in this blog so often. I can barely make it through this list of 10 things! I guess I'll just end it here...!

Jackson Nicholas!

On August 29th my perfect nephew was born!! Jackson Nicholas Clement arrived at 10:46 am at 8 lbs 14 oz and 20 inches. He's such a munchkin!! I was in San Francisco for work and decided to change my flight home from Boston to New York in hopes of being there when he arrived. I'm so beyond happy that I got to meet this little man just a few hours after he was born. I love him so much already and can't wait to see him grow!

Clearly I haven't been keeping up with posting, but there are still some things I want to be able to look back on and read...and this is a big one!

Life Lately

Life's been pretty great lately! I haven't been taking TOO many photos, but here's just a bit of what I've been up to.

I started a monthly restaurant club with some of my friends from my sports league. Check out those beautiful margaritas!

I went to Pittsburgh for work and we went to a Pirates game. We had the whole owners' suite and the owner even came in to talk to us -- who says nonprofits don't have perks?!

I went to a super fun beer festival called Beer Camp here in Boston. It was a gorgeous day and I tried about 1,000 new beers, including a bunch of 2016 collaboration beers made especially for the festival.

I've tried a couple new restaurants and eaten some delicious food:

I watched some fireworks in Somerville and was in awe at this incredible sunset:

 I've gone to a lot of BBQs, drank good beer, and kicked butt in corn hole (see background :-))

I've found my favorite form of meditation: cutting up my favorite food :-)

I said goodbye to one of my good friends who is leaving me to move to Florida :-(

Goodbye parties = a lot of drinking, so I recovered with this great combination of snacks.

I've spent lots of time after work with some of my new awesome coworkers! I can't believe I now have a work-related social life. Suddenly I have 15 new friends who are around my age, like to do fun things, AND share the same career/life passions that I do. I feel so lucky! What took me so long to make a job move????

 I've tried to counter balance all the eating/drinking/partying with some runs on the beach.

And I spent a few days snuggling with this adorable pup who visited us!

Unfortunately not all has been wonderful. My lovely grandmother passed away on July 3rd so I spent some time in NY saying goodbye to her. My grandma Dotty was so spunky and almost brutal in her honesty. She loved her grandkids with her whole heart and was constantly showering us with gifts and treats like makeup, jewelry and hand-knitted blankets and hats. I'm even wearing one of her necklaces in my new headshot for work. 

She was an incredible artist and passed on her love of watercolor painting on to me. In college she used to subscribe me to art magazines and was always sending me new paint and brushes. Although I will miss her greatly, she was in a lot of physical and emotional pain and I know is in a better place now with my grandfather. They were married for 63 years and I don't think she ever truly recovered from her heartache after he passed in 2011. 

My grandparents at age 17/18

I'll always remember how much she loved me and my family. I feel lucky to have had so many years with her and memories of her.