A Rundown of 2010

Perhaps because of all the huge and amazing things our family experienced in 2009, I thought we would have similar experiences in 2010. Years are different though...just like people. There are exciting and fun years and there are years filled with sadness and hard things. Some years are sort of boring, not providing loads of memorable experiences and some years are a mixture of ups and downs.

2010 went by so quickly and seemed so full of things, good and bad that I wanted to recap for myself some of the events. As I thumbed through my 2010 planner a few memorable times stood out:

We started out the year in anticipation of sending Bryan off to Budapest, Hungary. That was our main focus one year ago. His call came last December right after we returned from our Korea/Japan trip. So by January we were busy purchasing missionary items and getting Bryan packed for his March 10th departure.

Those months at the MTC and then off to Hungary were filled with learning and joy and, unfortunately, also physical pain as osteoarthritis plagued Bryan's knees. He was examined by an orthopedic surgeon in Budapest, had an MRI performed, and was sent home at the end of July for bilateral knee surgery. For months Bryan has been doing physical therapy. He saw his orthopedic surgeon for the final visit on December 29, 2010 and was told (again) that he will not be able to return to Hungary. So his focus now is being a student at the University of Utah starting January 2011 and hopefully resubmitting missionary papers for another area (one he can ride in a car and not spend 10 hours a day walking stairs).

Another event of 2010 which I recall fondly, is our trip to Baltimore/Pennsylvania/DC/NYC and Franklin/Nashville in March and April. Rob, Cami and I had a marvelous time visiting Dani and Kelly in their new home state of Maryland. Every day of the vacation was filled with day trips and adventures. On our way home, we made a side journey to see Rob's brother in Tennessee. Now at the end of 2010, Dani and Kelly are here at our house to wrap up another year with us. They've been here since December 23 and we've enjoyed every minutes of these days together.

Camille got her driver's license in 2010. She wasn't all that interested in driving when she turned 16 in '09, in fact, she preferred someone drive her everywhere, but about six months later she decided she did want her license and so she took the test (more than once) and obtained her learner's permit. After six months, she was finally able to get her license and now she drives all the time. Cami and her cousin, Lindsey, spent the month of July 2010 at their Uncle Kevin's and Aunt Tanja's in Franklin, Tennessee. Cami had access to a Rav 4 and drove herself and Lindsey all over for those four weeks.

We did some remodeling projects on our house in 2010. We painted the entire upper floor and had new hardwood and carpet installed. Since Bryan's been home we've also refinished his furniture and repainted his walls and ceiling.

The garden is an annual event for me, but in 2010 I branched out and planted some different items which will become staples of future gardens. We had a record-breaking raspberry year in 2010, but as winter enfolds us today, the garden of 2010 is just a fond memory and the garden of 2011, a pleasant anticipation.

The 2010 Stake Indexing goal of 2,000,000 names has been a big part of my year. I have indexed nearly 37,000 of those names personally, but there are some stake members who have been absolutely amazing in their efforts to take us to our goal. With one day left we only have 5,351 names remaining in what seemed like an unobtainable goal even one week ago.

My niece, Amanda, was married in May 2010. This pulled family members to Utah for the event. I traveled to Arizona in September to see my Mom, she came to Utah once during the year too. We had Rob's Mom live with us for a while after she fell and broken pelvis in October.

I attended my 30th Class Reunion this summer and was also able to spend some quality time with my best friends from school a week later. I lost a couple of friends this year. Natalie Jolley passed away on August 14 and Bettie Hoenhe passed on December 10. I miss them both and look forward to those reunions beyond this life. I made some new friends this year and am truly grateful that I have such amazing people in my life to look to as examples.

Happy New Year everyone!