2023 Wrap Up

Well, it's the holiday season and 2023 is coming to an end. I thought it would be nice to reflect on my year, the good the bad, and the ugly, wrap up this chapter, and close it.

Just a quick little catch-up:

Well honestly, my last blog (which I just got up today) was scheduled to post on the 15th of November, but for some reason, it glitched out and that didn't happen. We recently just had Thanksgiving. This was our last Thanksgiving in my mom's house, as our house is almost finished, then we will be able to host the holiday get-togethers. We originally planned to have the usual crew: our bunch, my sister's bunch, my dad, and my husband's parents... but plans had to change the day before Thanksgiving as the house had been struck by sickness and we have a few immuno-compromised family members. So, thanksgiving ended up just being my bunch and my mom. It was very low key and we stayed in our pj's all day. While it wasn't what we had hoped, it was still wonderful.

This past weekend, Adam and I had a little getaway, just us two. We needed it and it was absolutely wonderful. He planned EVERYTHING! He rented the cutest little cabin in the woods, which had a jacuzzi, a fire pit, and wonderful views. We cooked in (well he cooked), watched movies and caught up on some of our shows, and just relaxed. We also went to a nearby little town that was having a little Christmas craft festival, did a little shopping, and hit up an Art gallery. We purchased a few things for our house and for memories. The drive there was.... interesting lol. The cabin was on the Buffalo River, out in the middle of nowhere. We had to drive the new car through the river, which was questionable whether or not we would make it and drive it up some crazy steep rocky roads... which again was a true test for my new SUV on if it would make it. We did, but it was a little questionable and nerve-racking at times. One of the best things about our little trip was there was no cell service, which meant no one could contact us and we were able to truly unplug and relax.

Recap of 2023

This year has been a whirlwind for me. It went by so fast, yet it seemed to drag on forever. So many things happened, good and bad. I did more traveling this year than I have in many years. Aside from our many weekend travels to Tulsa, Little Rock, Ft Smith, etc., and traveling for conferences for work, I spent a week in Minnesota, a Week in St Johns U.S. Virgin Island (which was an amazing trip!), a week in NYC (again, AMAZING!) and then Kamdyn spent a week in Florida! Kamdyn (severe ankle sprain) and Brozden (broken foot) both dealt with injuries at the same time and formed the Crutch crew hahaha, right at the end of summer.

We had many ups and downs with our home-building processes and ended up dropping our original builders, selling our land, and then working with a new builder. Our home has officially been started and is going up so quickly, and the location is actually on land that we wanted to buy several years ago, directly behind my mom's property. We will share a back fence, which is super cool and we love it. It's hard to believe that we originally started this process almost 3 years ago and nothing ever would get started with our previous builder... and now our new home is slated to be finished in February!

I had some major internal struggles with my mental health, and am still working on some things. I typically have kept quiet about things in the past, and have for years, but I did find myself being more vocal this year to specific people in my life. While I can't say ive opened up as much as I should, progress is progress, and I'll take it. I'm still a work in progress, but I'm slowly trying to work on things. I have figured out that I have several things from the past that I just have never dealt with and I need to (you can only ignore things for so long), I also struggled a lot with my brother's death anniversary this year. Ive also struggled a lot with my self-image a lot and that has caused me some mental/emotional issues as well (welcome to adulthood, right?)

We've also had to do a lot of advocating for our kids within their school. We have had some major ups and downs when it comes to that but I think everything is starting to work its way out and level out. Fingers crossed.

Both of the kids have continued to grow in their extracurriculars, which is just amazing to watch as a parent. I love watching them do what they love and succeed. I feel like this year was a good year for growth for both of them. They both have matured... and well brozden was grown so tall!

oh, and let's not forget about me totaling my car and getting my new one :) I wanted a new car, but I didn't plan on getting on like that, but I love my new car!

I am really looking forward to 2024 and I think (and have hopes) that this year will be better than 2023 (not that 2023 was bad). I'm hoping to work even more on my mental, physical, and emotional health. I have several books I'm hoping to read. I can't wait to decorate my new house and get settled in and start my new morning and evening routine. If you know me, you know I love a good routine moment. That being said, it's been difficult for me to keep to my routine where I'm at. I'm looking forward to Christmas with family, and a nice break from work (not that I hate my job, but who doesn't love a good break).

We have a Gym meet for Brozden this weekend and a school dance performance for kamdyn this weekend. After this, we have something literally every weekend from here to the end of the year, AND it's costume season, which means every second of my spare time I'm working on costumes. That being said, I won't be putting out a second blog this month. I'm going to be busy working, relaxing, closing 2023, packing, and preparing for 2024.

Wishing you and yours a very happy holiday season and a wonderful new year. I'll see you all next year!!

-Rothrock Mom