Year in Review / 2015

Hard to believe this is my third Year-in-Review since starting Our Happy Happenings. This past year I’ve had a couple friends let me know that they check up on the blog and enjoy reading my posts. I became a bit bashful at hearing this. You mean there are people out there beyond my mom that actually read this?! To be honest, sometimes I wonder why I have it or even created it at all. But upon giving this some thought, I’ve realized that the blog has become my online journal and scrapbook. I like documenting a trip, an experience or a project in the moment. Then, as time passes by, it is fun for me to come back to the post and revisit it. Isn’t it strange how the clearest memories of places, events and experiences are the ones we have documented in photos? I hope to be able to keep this going in some form – for years to come! As any reader might know, the Year-in-Review post is one of the longest posts in a given year. This year’s is no different. This might be the longest one yet! It is truly fun to look back at the year and recap it!

Happenings of the year …

I dread the winter months. The cold weather, unpredictable snow storms and evening darkness can make January and February feel like they drag on forever. We try to sprinkle in fun when we can. Mom and Dad came to visit in January, and I visited Paige and Stephanie in Davenport in February. We went bowling with neighbors and dined at a restaurant we’ve never been on Valentine’s Day. We also made a quick weekend trip to Lake City with Kara and Cam.

A lot of weekends were spent in Cedar Falls. As much as I love being busy and seeing family and friends, a weekend at home is always welcomed, too. They go by slowly, items on the to-do list get crossed off, and there’s no need to travel or go out in the cold. My house appreciates it, too, since it gets cleaned on a regular basis!

On the other hand, the season of spring is so refreshing. I somewhat feel like an animal coming out of hibernation … ready to be out and about, with a busier schedule and a happier mood. Our early spring kicked off with a bang as we traveled down to Kansas City to watch our Cyclones in the Big 12 Basketball Tournament. The Cyclones didn’t disappoint – they won the title! We had a lot of fun at the games, “pre-gaming” at the Power & Light District and eating some BBQ. It was great to spend quality time with Ryan’s close friends.

April brings a month of birthday celebrations. I spent my thirtieth birthday with Ryan in the lovely, musical city of Nashville. Ryan spent his birthday in Remsen, doing what he loves best – farming. He helped out with planting and enjoyed every minute of it. All of us traveled back to Remsen, too, for a little group birthday celebration. Jessica’s boyfriend Casey experienced Remsen for the first time. He survived and didn’t dump her afterwards, so we thought that was a positive!

Our nephew Jack turned one in April as well. And Big Brother William had his first Communion. We also traveled with Jillian and Jessica to Omaha for a Garth Brooks concert. I’m not a huge Garth fan, but it was a fun time with a lot of Remsen peeps. Our spring was capped off with improvements to our kitchen and the purchase of my new bike.

There’s no secret I love sweet, sweet summertime. This summer wasn’t super busy … but still eventful. I suppose that’s a good combination! Here's a quick recap!

Groepper Wedding in Cincinnati. We make the trek to Cincinnati to celebrate Ryan and Kristin’s wedding. Ryan was a groomsman, so we arrived early for the wedding festivities. They also held a reception back home to celebrate with friends and family who weren’t able to travel for the wedding. We had a great time at both events. Congrats again, Ryan and Kristin!

Races. I’ve officially run a half-marathon. The previous two Dam to Dams were 20K’s, so I hadn’t technically raced 13.1 miles. Now, I can click through all the possible “records” on my Garmin watch and find the fastest mile, fastest 10K, fastest half-marathon, fastest marathon and longest run. Pretty cool feeling! I felt like my training took a step backwards as a result of my marathon training last year. I had trained my body to run at the pace needed to run 26.2 miles. Now, as I was preparing for the half, I was struggling to push myself past that comfort zone. It was a total different mindset, and I knew my time wouldn’t be as good as past races. I ended up with a final time of 2:04.47. I rather have been at 2 hours, but that’s where my body was for this race. I forgot how hard it was to train in the spring … cold temps, winds, rain … and more rain. Yuck!

In late summer, I ran the Park-to-Park 10K with Ryan and our neighbor Joe. Our neighbors Shannon and Dawn also participated in the 5K. I originally wanted to run the half and couldn’t muster up the drive to put in the training this summer. For the first time in three years, I got a little burned out of running. It is often hard to find the time and willpower to get out on weeknights. It felt a little bit like work, which I felt really bummed about. I didn’t train nearly as hard as I should have – but it still was a good race. My time was 56:56. I was so happy Ryan decided to run the race. It was his first 10K. He did a great job, and I hope he considers doing it again!

Happy 80th birthday, Grandma. My grandma Ruba celebrated her 80th birthday this year. As most of you know, Grandma has Alzheimer’s Disease. There are so many horrible diseases out there that rob people of a healthy body. Alzheimer’s steals a person’s mind, their memories, their personality. It is really sad. It is definitely hard to see Grandma forget previous conversations and repeat herself. Our extended family often finds humor as a way to cope.

We didn't get to attend Grandma's birthday party in the summer but we were lucky enough to spend Thanksgiving with her. While eating dessert, Dad asked her if (Aunt) Marge was coming to visit tomorrow. Grandma’s response was  … oh, I don’t know. You know I suffer from CRS. We, of course, asked her what this was. “Can’t Remember Shit,” she piped back. We all laughed pretty hard at that. At least she still has a good sense of humor!

Third annual camping trip with Steph and Kyle. The weekend included yard games, kayaking and lots of eating! Steph’s parents let us use their camper, and it was great. What a great tradition this has become with good friends.

4th of July! The entire family came to visit Cedar Falls for the 4th of July holiday. Always a near miracle getting Dad to come our way, so we appreciated it! We went to the waterpark, Ryan smoked some meat, and we stained our deck. It is always great having everyone under our roof. Makes me feel old and responsible when it is our roof!

Jillian & Wes' Wedding. In July, we celebrated the marriage of Jillian to Wes. The backyard wedding was absolutely beautiful. The fine details ... the flowers, twinkle-lighted trees and hanging chandeliers were all so elegant. And we can't forget about the bride! Jill looked absolutely gorgeous! Her dress was very pretty and fit her personality perfectly. We had so much fun mingling with extended family and friends of Jill and Wes. The night truly flew by. A celebration like this reminds me of what a wonderful family I've married into. We wholeheartedly welcome Wes to the family!

Will and Mya’s Visit. The Rubas weren’t the only family to visit us this summer. Nephew Will and Niece Mya came for an overnight visit. We went to the pool, playground, out for pizza and watched a movie. It was fun to watch them enjoy themselves. We had quality conversations with them, too. They love asking questions about just about everything. ;)

Annual SD Fishing Trip. Ryan and Dad headed back up to Lake Pickerel for the fourth year. As they do every year, they had a lot of fun and caught a lot of fish! While they were gone, I visited Mom back home. We headed up to Sioux Falls for a little shopping and a stop at Prairie Berry East Bank. This is the same winery and brewery duo we stopped at while in the Black Hills. It was a great mother-daughter weekend!

Some other highlights included Lake City for Mom and Dad’s anniversary, Kara and Cam’s bachelorette/bachelor party in Des Moines and Panora, Friday nights in our neighborhood and trips back to Remsen.

What a beautiful fall we had! Most of you know I’m a fall hater but this year I really enjoyed it. The weather was so nice; I forgot why I don’t like it.

In October, our good friends Kara and Cameron got married. The wedding ceremony was at HOPE Lutheran Church and the reception was at Glen Oaks Country Club, both in West Des Moines. Ryan and I were both in the wedding party, which was a first for us! It is always a special day for me when I get to see one of my best friends get married. Kara was a beautiful bride! In between the ceremony and reception, we took a bus-trolley to the East Village and Capital area in Des Moines. We stopped at The Continental, the bar Kara and Cam had their first date. The weather was perfect, the company was great, the details were beautiful, and the day was all-around fun.

Ryan went back and helped with harvest. If there was ever a win-win situation, this is one. Ryan loves helping with harvest. He loves driving the tractor, seeing the yield performance of the hybrids and being part of the operation. My dad and uncle enjoy having a third man helping out, too. Cousin Nathan is at Iowa State now so he isn’t as available to help as in the past. Ryan doesn’t feel like he is doing them a favor … he is excited and honored to be part of it all!

Ryan also ventured to Leech Lake in Minnesota with our neighbors Casey and Shannon for some fishing. Unfortunately, the weather was cold and windy, and the walleye were not biting. They still had a lot of fun together. Shannon is from northern MN and has spent lots of time on those waters and planned the whole trip. We have such good neighbors!

We also traveled to Sioux Falls for an Iowa State basketball game against Colorado. The stadium only seated 3,000+, which made it a very intimate setting. We were on the second row, floor seats behind one of the baskets. The ISU bench was right to our left, so we were extremely close to the players. Very cool!

Some other fun things we did included a visit from Steph and Kyle, Schnoes Family get-together at Brian and Jess’, a girls’ weekend with Jess, Mom and Paige and a Kansas City shopping trip with Kara.

Obsessions of the year…

Reading. For whatever reason, I decided to make more time to read this year. I am able to read in a car now (used to make me sick) so I put a big dent in the Hunger Games series on our trips to Nashville and Cincinnati. This summer I read Pioneer Girl, which I had on my library-watch list since it was released last winter. This is the original manuscript from Laura Ingalls Wilder. Reading it instantly brought me back to her children's books I read as a child. I love the free spirit and resilience found in Laura and the people of this time period. Could you imagine traveling from Wisconsin to Kansas by covered wagon?

Also read the amazing story of Louis Zamperini in Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption. I saw the movie beforehand so I knew the general timeline of the story; however, the story was so much deeper than the movie portrayed. The book gave insight into Louie’s tribulations and how he overcame them – both physically and emotionally. Nothing short of amazing. The book provided historic facts about the war, which were interesting and helped you imagine what it was like to … be a bombardier in the Army Air Force in WWII, survive a plane crash into the ocean and be lost at sea for 47 days, become a tortured POW at a Japanese prison camp and lastly, come home and struggle with post-traumatic stress of past nightmarish experiences. How does one survive all of this?

I read the book, Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors, which is the story of a Uruguayan Rugby team and their friends and family who were involved in an airplane crash in the Andes Mountains. Talk about an ordeal! This story provided a detailed look at the 72 days, surviving on the mountain. I also later read Miracle in the Andes: 72 Days on the Mountain and My Long Trek Home by Nando Parrado, a survivor. As Alive went into great factual detail about the ordeal, Parrado’s version was first-person and expressed the emotional aspect of the experience. The desperation, the frustration, the drive to live. It was well written and moving. How many times I’d stop and think to myself … I couldn’t even imagine…

And that’s why I love true stories. More than just reading this year, I rediscovered my passion for non-fiction. A good, gripping story that actually belongs to someone. After watching the movie Foxcatcher with my parents this year, I found Dad researching the story on his iPad. This is exactly what I do. After watching a movie about a real person or story – I find myself wanting to know more. If there’s a book to the story (which there usually is), there’s more to uncover. I’ll be on the hunt for more of these types of stories in 2016.

Netflix. Two words. Breaking Bad. Talk about a well-written show. The characters, the settings, the acting, the camera angles … all of it … was top notch. I typically watched a few episodes a week. As the drama intensified and the plot thickened, I began watching 1-3 episodes a night! I was a bit sad when it all came to an end. Ryan got into the first two seasons of House of Cards. I started to watch it with him, but he left me in the dust. I also watched the entire series of The Wonder Years over several months. I remember liking this show as a kid but I was too young to really remember much of it. I fell in love this time around. I love the writing, the narrative and the characters. The relatable, simple moments of life are captured so well in this series. The later seasons didn’t live up to the earlier ones, but I still thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing. We haven’t watched a lot on Netflix lately, but I’m sure we’ll pick it back up over the rest of these winter months.

Instagram. I haven’t been much of a Facebook user in years past. Instagram has become my choice for a social media app. I am selective with who I follow and who can follow me. I share with people who actually know me. I equally enjoy seeing photos of people I actually really know, too.

Kickboxing. I completed another 10-week round of Next Level Extreme Fitness. It went pretty well minus losing an entire week to a horrible cough. I’m not very good at kickboxing, but it is fun and a great stress reliever! Another 10 weeks kicks off on the 4th!

Golfing. This summer Ryan and I were able to go golfing together a few times. Ryan is a pretty decent golfer, and I’m horrible, so he was sharing little tips on how to do better as we played. Even though I’m horrible, stringing a couple good hits together really get me going. Once I play, I get the itch to play again.

Biking. Over the summer, I tried to put some miles on the new bike. Living 2 miles from work is definitely a luxury, which enabled me to ride my bike to work. Even better yet, there’s a direct trail from our neighborhood to my office building. It takes me about the same time to ride my bike to work as it does to drive. The fellow bikers or walkers are much nicer than the drivers on the road! Someone saying good morning to you has a way of starting your day off right. I know this will probably be the only time in my life that I’ll have this opportunity so I soaked it up and rode at least one day a week.

On a related note, Jill graciously offered Ryan a bike of hers to use. I no longer had to ride solo, and it was fabulous. We rode the trails together and even rode with a couple of our neighbors who are cycling enthusiasts. I foresee more of this happening next summer.

Other news of the year…

So long, freelance work. After spending roughly 6+ years working on various freelance projects, I’ve decided to hang it up. I’ve never done a lot of work, but a handful of projects a year can take up a lot of time considering I only work on them in the evening hours and on the weekends. The weekends go by so quickly, and we are so busy, I simply don’t have the time or energy to put into these side projects.

I have always enjoyed the challenge and diversity client work brings – especially logo designs – however I know it is time. I’d rather be doing things I need to do or want to do instead of sitting in front of my computer.  I’ll still be open to taking on some selective projects for family and close friends, as needed. A special thanks to all my clients over the years for hiring me and, in turn, building my portfolio. I’ve become a better designer because of the work and interactions I’ve had with each and every one of them.

Say hello to our Honda Pilot. From early on in our relationship with our neighbors Ron and Jen, they have said my Honda Accord would be a great car for their son when he starts driving. Well, that time came this fall when he passed his driver’s permit. We weren’t necessarily ready for a new car (or more like the car payment that comes with it) but decided we’d be willing to sell it to them. It was a mutual benefit for both parties. We took the entire Friday off the day before Kara and Cam’s wedding and stopped at Smart Honda in Des Moines. A few hours later, we had signed the paperwork to lease a new Honda Pilot. The lease makes sense for me considering how little I drive my vehicle. I really like it – but am still intimated driving it! Way nicer than I’m used to! I’m most impressed with the technology. Such cool features!

As excited as I was to get in a new vehicle, I was sad to see my Accord go. I bought it a couple months after graduating from college. My old Grand Am was out of commission, and I needed a new vehicle. I did some research and went shopping and fell in love with my Accord. It was more than I wanted to spend and had higher miles than I was looking for – but my gut told me that it was a good choice. I’ve never regretted this decision. The car has been reliable and trustworthy. It was the first major purchase I made as a poor recent graduate. I’ll always remember that experience of putting money down and driving it off the lot. It is fun to see Mason, our neighbor, enjoy it. She’s in good hands!

New Bosses. Ryan and I both are both under new managers in 2015. Ryan’s previous boss Jeremy took another position in Nebraska. We were sad to see him go. Ryan’s new boss is Won. They are getting along well. My previous boss, Mike, stepped down to be an art director along with my coworkers and myself. My new boss is Sarah. Change is different and sometimes hard, however, this one was one for the better.

Travelin’ man. With Ryan’s new role, he is traveling much more than before. Weeknight stays in Johnston, travels to Northwest Iowa, upper northeast Iowa. Some weeks he's gone for up to four days. This is definitely an adjustment for me! I don’t necessarily like being alone at nights and the worry-wart in me doesn’t like him traveling so much. Such is life, however, I guess!

No babies on the radar yet. This year we got the same question from multiple people – friends, family, friends-of-friends – when are you two going to start having kids?! That’s a good question! We don’t have the answer and probably won’t announce it once we do. Parenting is a hard job and changes your life completely. We totally realize this. It is on our minds, but at the moment, we’re very happy with the life we currently live.

WHEW! Well, that about completes it. 2015's a wrap! As always, grateful for another blessed year. Looking forward to 2016! Happy New Year, friends!