Welcome, 2017!

Happy New Year! Many of you might think that your Christmas cards got lost in the mail, but that wouldn't be true.  As with most of 2016, life happened and the cards didn't get made, let alone mailed. This is probably the first time in 20 years that I haven't mailed cards.  2016 was really just that kind of year, one where nothing went quite as expected.  I can't say I'm sad to see it go. Here's a recap since my last post - foundation repair in March, National Board renewal portfolio completed in May, 20 year high school reunion in May (yay!), dad's medical emergency in June (boo!), Guns N Roses in Kansas City for Dave's birthday, new carpet for the house scheduled, annual River Trip weekend with friends in Tahlequah, new carpet delayed, annual classroom unpacking and meeting new teammate, resignation from Sylvan Learning Center, new carpet finally installed - the day I returned to work full-time, living in boxes for weeks because carpet was installed at the start of a school year (i.e. CRAZY timing), supervising my first student teacher, Cowboy football most Saturdays, a short road trip with Diana to Paris, Texas, over Fall Break, then the holiday season. Dave completed his first year with Wilson Chevrolet following the merging of Ron Shirley GMC and the Wilson lot, and we've adjusted to his new schedule.  I did manage to do a little Young Living business, too, but "adulting" definitely had to take precedence over travel.

2017 already looks quite different.  I'm happy to say we have several things on the calendar for the next few months.  Dave and I will return to Montego Bay, Jamaica, in March.  We enjoyed Sandals Royal Caribbean for our honeymoon, but we decided to try the sister resort and original Sandals, Sandals Montego Bay, this time.  I'm looking forward to beach time!

In June, I will be traveling with colleagues to Europe with EF Tours. This has been planned for over a year now, and I'm excited that we are now within the correct departure year!  During the two week tour, I will get to return to some of my favorite spots in Germany, see some new sites in Munich and Dachau, and make new stops in Lucerne, Venice, and Paris.  While I've visited Paris before, I'm hopeful for a different experience this time around, and I am excited to visit Versailles, a stop I missed back in 2011. Disneyland Paris does not look promising at this time, but there's still time!  If the schedule allows, I would certainly take a train out to the park for a few hours.  It is the prettiest "Magic Kingdom" in my opinion.  Dave can't make this trip with me, so I'm excited to meet some new friends in our travel group!

2016 posed a lot of challenges, but one annoying bit is that I didn't get a chance to visit a Disney park during the year.  I told Dave many years ago that I need to be on Disney property at least once a year to be happy, and while that is a joke (somewhat), I really was disappointed that 2016 broke the Disney streak I had had going since 2007.  Knowing this, Dave gifted a summer trip to me for Christmas!  We've only begun to plan for the beginning of August, but it will be a great trip to take just before school starts back up. We've booked the Boardwalk Villas, so we get to try a new resort, and I know new attractions have opened since my last visit.  It's a good thing my husband understands my addiction!

Here's to a happy 2017!