Cataloging the highlights of 2013: from the everyday events that make our lives our very own, to the truly spectacular, completely unforgettable ones.
First up, as always, New Years 2013:
What an awesome night! Hotel Zaza was great (not deathly crowded, thank goodness) and the company made it so memorable. Oh! And I can't forget, guess who said their very first I love yous to each other on this night;)
I GRADUATED WITH MY MASTERS DEGREE!!
Yep, that's right. Southern Methodist University, class of 2013. Master of Arts in Dispute Resolution and Conflict Management. And, thanks to being fresh out of school with a graduate degree, I managed to land myself a new job. One with a decent enough salary to start paying back those stupid student loans, and has healthcare and 401k benefits! #Win
Next, let's take a peek at all the weddings and showers of the year.
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Hannah's baby shower!! And what a
cute daughter Mia turned out to be. |
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| Jess' bridal shower |
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| Jess' bachelorette! |
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Jess' Wedding! She looked so beautiful. I loved that the
pastor said he felt like he was marrying Barbie and Ken. |
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Another wedding- this one for
Nathan's friends. |
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| Katie's bachelorette party |
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| Katie's wedding. I love this picture! |
PERU HAPPENED!!
We had a great time in Lima. Visited the fountains (as you can see just above) and my very sweet boyfriend wanted to take this spur of the moment, super romantic picture. We also ate some amazing ceviche and toured the catacombs of an old church, which was incredible. Then we made our way on to Cusco, which was a very quaint town. On to Machu Picchu, where we meandered around the ancient city and we hiked all the way up to the peak of Huayna Picchu! Thousands of steps later, I was exhausted for sure but it was well worth it. I'll never forget the old, borderline elderly, Asian tourists, huffing it up and down the mountain like it was a piece of cake. This was the trip of a life time!!!
And we definitely caught the travel bug, because not long after Peru, we were off again to another place neither of us had ever been to...
Vegas, baby!!
In celebration of Nathan's brother getting out of the military, we went to meet him, his sister, and her husband out in Vegas. It was a bit of a battle trying to finagle a hotel, but Nathan managed the task with flying colors, booking us a room at the Trump. We were only there for a long weekend for Labor Day, but it was the perfect amount of time. It was great getting to meet his brother and sister, and had a super fun weekend.
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!! Our first anniversary together. I booked us a sunset dinner cruise on Lake Lewisville. You redid our first date with a sushi dinner, followed by drinks at the Gingerman! Here's to many more:)
Next up?
Ah yes, Angie's and my yearly tradition of the Texas State Fair and our gay caricatures. What can we say? We like our fried food (Mmmm, fried butter!) and people-watching (Do the scary people that come to the state fair crawl out from under a rock they live under and only emerge for this one event? Where are they the rest of the year?? I suspect WWE shows and monster truck rallies...)
Oh and I forgot to mention, somewhere around Vegas, I moved to a new apartment! So long Plano, hello Dallas. I'm loving living in Oak Lawn/Turtle Creek area (I actually get a kick out of the neighborhood cross-dressing, ex-prostitute, ex-congressman and the one-time high school cheerleader now crackhead that sets her mattress on fire in my building). My first hosting event in the new place was, of course, Halloween!
We had snacks and drinks at my place before heading out to the Oak Lawn Halloween Block Party after the torrential rains had finally ceased. Unfortunately, we lasted all of 30 minutes there, before heading back to my place for some drinking games.
Though Christmas normally ends the year, this year, we were unable to take one of our lovely family vacations so it was pretty mundane. In lieu, I will highlight my new car and my baby sister's 21st birthday!!!
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Managed to score myself a pretty nice little Infinit! I love it,
I just wish it hadn't gotten broken into 2 weeks after I bought it... |
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Yep, Bree Bree turned 21! I can't believe it! We celebrated by
having a family dinner at Japons, then meeting some friends
out for some drinks and dancing at Cowboys. It was a super
fun night that ended with a pretty trashed birthday girl:) |
As always, the year was filled with lots of ups and downs. VERY fortunately, it had many more ups than downs. And, of course, a few lessons to be learned:
Learn the times where is is more important to be kind than to be right. It's true: those who cannot do, teach. Communication is more important than you realize; be mindful of it and take care to do it with intention. Travel is good for the soul.
