Farewell 2014
1. What did you do in 2014 that you'd never done before?
Where to start? I had two kids in middle school at the same time. I read 101 books. I worked the beer tent at several outside concerts so my kid could play soccer. I started following my tween on Instagram. I cleaned a meth lab. I wrote a letter to someone in jail. I climbed a ropes course not made by drunk dads with power tools. I celebrated 15 years of married bliss. Woopsie... I just got lost in a rabbit hole of facebook memories...
2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I am trying to kick drinking coke. I haven't had one in 2015 (yet). I have honest to god cravings like I want a cigarette. I miss it, I love it, I want to drink all the cokes.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
YES! ZOMG I'm so in love.
This gorgeous little bug is Caroline. She came into the world full of sass in November and hasn't stopped hollering about it since. This picture you see here is after three hours of the baby dance while simultaneously patting her butt. I got to sit for 30 seconds before she started fussing. It's like Zack has been reborn as a feisty little redhead. I knew the look in my cousin Montana's eye when she was talking to me and her eyelids were drooping so I did all the gymnastics and she got a nice nap (on the floor under the Christmas tree where she dropped). It's great that she is the most chill first-time Mom I've ever come across. I was in tears while also sweating buckets when I was in this place.
My cousin Amie also had a darling little feist-monger named Crosby in March. Am has also become an expert at the baby dance, bouncing, never leaving her house, and wearing ear plugs. I've met Crosby twice and each time got only a perfunctory baby sniffing in before he told me who had top billing in his world, MOM.
They make the feisty ones extra cute.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Mmmm. Yes. One of my very best friends lost her father in 2014. It was hard to watch her go through because her dad died slowly of cancer,whereas my experience with my own dad dying was like ripping off a bandage. I felt all the feels for her whole family and all the ways that words fail me in helping someone through this stage we all go through in life. The thing is, nothing we say will make it better. Our experience won't change another's. We just have to be present for each other and jump in to lend a hand when we can.
And then there was the death of Robin Williams which hit me really hard. I've wanted to write about it but haven't been able to. It might seem slightly ridiculous to be hit hard by a celebrity death. I certainly didn't expect to be. But... Robin Williams was sort of this amazing person that lead the fight that so many of us with depression and anxiety do. His death taught us that no matter your station in life, depression can hit you and hit you hard. What was difficult for me to get over was that he seemed to be in a good place, not using drugs or alcohol, having a new hit show, a happy family, yet depression and the feeling that it's easier to just end it all still got him. He had all the resources that the average person with a mental illness might not have and it didn't matter. It felt like a huge blow. It felt like this is inescapable. It felt like every good day has a dark day lurking ahead. Blah. I'm doing better today.
5. What countries did you visit?
Fat-town and Anxiety-ville. :)
6. What would you like to have in 2015 that you lacked in 2014?
Peace of mind. Combobulation of "the schedule" (aka The Book of Molnar). To have written more. To have practiced yoga frequently.
7. Which dates from 2014 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
I'd like to preface my comments with "None because I can't remember shit, forget dates. I can remember moments." Well of course there was ALL the soccer with the World Cup to boot. There were the births of two babies into the family which is always exciting. I started to feel that Zack is finding his groove in life. In all honesty, I don't have specific
2014 moments that were specifically different. Just lots of living life which is the peace I like, slow and steady... Oh shit, see I forgot one...
I TURNED 40! I think this is a pretty clear example of how that went.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
I've got a nerdy personal achievement - I read over 100 books this year. I LOVE reading. I love making lists of books to read, reading blogs about books, and listening to podcasts about books. When Skyler got a concussion this year and was given the instruction "no reading" I became convicted to never do anything that will result in a concussion ever. I think it's best if I stay inside, where there are books.
9. What was your biggest failure?
My weight/health, why hello there 200lbs nice to meet you now fuck off. The lovely combination of connective tissue disease/steroids/shitty diet has kicked my genetic predisposition for diabetes into action. Yay me. I am working on this one so that it doesn't become an even bigger failure this year.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
I'd like to quote myself from January 2013's post about 2012:
Oh of course I did. If you've been around longer than three minutes you know I'm a hot mess. In addition to the two bouts of pneumonia and the broken nose, there was the ever present arthritis and anxiety and I'm sure more than a few cold viruses to keep things nicely rounded out.
This year I didn't break anything and didn't get full-fledged pneumonia but I distinctly remember a breathing treatment, the usual aches and pains, and the diabetes shit.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
It's so hard to narrow down. I lurve me some retail therapy. Right now I'm loving my lucky brand blue leather tote bag something fierce. I love good skin care products (shout out to
Glossy Box. We can talk about this later). Oh and xanax is an insane bargain at $2 for a month's supply. Sanity in a little red Target bottle for $2.00. I don't think anyone could argue that that is the best.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
My dear husband received his college diploma this year and I would like to celebrate that behavior.
Also,
Jon Stewart's behavior makes me celebrate on the daily and
John Oliver is coming along quite nicely in the snarky Brit category, let's celebrate that.
13. Whose behavior appalled you?
Mmm. Let's go with North Korea. Oh oh. Nope. Nope. It was someone else. See question 1.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Soccer and video games.
15. What did you get really, really, really, excited about?
I'm pretty hard to excite. Snark and stoicism are my bailiwick.
16. Fav song of the year?
As discussed in previous blog posts, I have little knowledge or taste in music and so I feel comfortable sharing that I loved Taylor Swift's new album 1989.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or
sadder
b) thinner or
fatter
c) richer or poorer - I'm not entirely sure. No big leaps in either direction, we can say that.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
I wish I would have followed through more.
Edited: I wish I'd read more of the blogs I used to love so much. I especially miss
Swistle. Google reader basically killed blogging. Damn Google and your awesome power. I'm going to read all of Swistle's back posts right.now!! Squirrel!!
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Sweat. Are summers getting hotter or am I just starting my dream job of crotchety old lady early?
20. How did you spend Christmas?
The four of us opened gifts in the morning and then Matt made breakfast. I took a nap (duh) while the kids made use of their new electronic babysitters. Then we got up and went to enjoy dinner with our besties Mike, Amy, Nate and Claire. They employ a strict pajamas only Christmas gathering which is only one of the reasons we love them.
21. Did you fall in love in 2014?
Mmmm. Not in the traditional sense. I fall in love with my family every day (
even if I don't always like them). I just knew I would love new babies so that wasn't so much falling.
22. What was your favorite TV show?
Okay, confession time. I am a television whore
(like you didn't know that). I love nothing better than a rainy Saturday spent bingeing on an entire season of one show. HBO, Netflix, and BBC-A are in the lead for best series this year. Have you seen
Orphan Black? Give
Tatiana Maslany all of the awards right this minute. All of them. She plays what...ten characters in the first season alone?
23. Do you hate strongly dislike anyone/thing now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Mmmm. No. I'm sticking with the same grudges as usual I think.
24. What was the best book you read?
Oh you want me to choose between my children huh? Well don't tell them I said so but checking my goodreads feed, I had several 5 star level loves. Truth Within Dreams, Attachments, The Means of Reproduction, Honor Among Thieves, Lean In, Just Mercy (oooh this one might be the winner. tears produced is usually a good sign), I Am Malala, Life After Life... Clearly I like a good memoir.
Just for kicks - worst books might be... Green Girl which I actively disliked and The Unthinkable Thoughts of Jacob Green (mostly because I cannot remember what this book was about at.all)
25. What was your greatest musical discovery?
It's safe to say I make no musical discoveries. Can we count audio books? I love a good audio book.
26. What did you want and get?
More naps.
27. What did you want and not get?
World peace continues to evade me.
28. What was your favorite film of this year?
I'm becoming more open or perhaps better impressed with books that have been turned into movies. I really enjoyed Gone Girl and The Fault in Our Stars. Our family most watched movie of the year was Pitch Perfect. We all watched that one over and over.
29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 40. We traveled to New England and I think on that day, my Mom had a big BBQ and I got to visit with friends and family that I don't always have time to see when we're flying through.
30. Who did you miss?
Mom although we managed to get together several times last year. Hopefully she'll have moved down here by the end of 2015.
31. Who was the best new person you met?
Skyler started middle school and I've enjoyed getting to know her new friends.
32. Tell a valuable life lesson you learned in 2014?
Apparently the answer to life (besides 42) is diet and exercise, diet and exercise. When you begin to doubt that, the answer is diet and exercise.