And It’s 2014.

And another year is down in the books, time flies. Life here passes so quickly. Here’s a quick look at my 2013:

-Papa Herman had just passed away in December 2012.

-Enjoyed being a bridesmaid in Mary and Brian Evans’ wedding.

-Got my first iPhone for Christmas.

-Started off the New Year in Atlanta for the Passion Conference with Stina, Carmen, and Brittany.

-Cried at the airport as Carmen went back to Austria.

-Returned to ASU from Atlanta to work at Children’s Therapy Services the week before school started back up again.

-Met up with Sam to run a few times because we were the only ones in Jonesboro before everyone else came back.

-Ran indoor track and loved spending time with the track girls.

-Loved Valentine’s Day with my kids at Children’s Therapy Services! Precious.

-Wrote letters to Papa Ed telling him about the love of Jesus, knowing that he only had a few months of life left.

-Took a ridiculous course load of science classes as pre-req’s for OT school.

-Went to Washington D.C. and to Williamsburg, VA on Spring Break with Dad and Mia to visit Papa Ed and say goodbye to him, and to see Aunt Lisa and Uncle Clark.

-Cried leaving Papa Ed and watching him cry and not be able to talk…. Will never forget seeing him like that.

-Went to the David Platt Secret Church event back in Jonesboro.

-Ran outdoor track and tried out the steeple chase.

-Spent Easter with Christina Fink and a group of married couples at Aaron and Laura Lavender’s house. Enjoyed the fellowship.

-Papa Ed passed away, flew into Baltimore and drove to Middleburg for his funeral.

-Helped spread his ashes in the backyard.

-Finished out the semester at ASU, enjoyed living with Amalie, missed Mary being our other roommate, watched Michele stress over PT school.

-Last week of school, I ran a 5k on the track and Coach Chandler had Ashleigh and Heather help pace me- first time breaking 20 minutes in the 5k. 19:35.

-Cried my last day of work at Children’s Therapy Services- got so attached to those kiddos: Asya, Shylee, Jacob, Heath, Chestin, Adam, Matthew, Jackson

-Moved back to St. Louis in May.

-Wasn’t sure where God wanted me to be over the summer, wasn’t working, trained for a half marathon and my first triathlon.

-Church hopped with my mom, ended up liking a non-denominational church called Destiny that has really solid teaching and contemporary worship.

-Had the joy of doing Bible studies with Mia over the summer

-Went to Chicago for a long weekend for the Chicago half marathon with Kristina and Sam- had an absolute blast.

-Drove down to Southern Arkansas with the track girls for Bailey and Nathan Eller's wedding- beautiful.

-Went to Springfield, IL for my first triathlon- the Iron Abe Olympic distance triathlon.

-Went to Atlanta for D.J. and Cayla’s wedding- absolutely beautiful and so much fun to see a bunch of family that I rarely see.

-Got hired to work for as a para for Special School District at Neuwoehner High School.

-Got hired to work as the Varsity Assistant Soccer Coach at Clayton High School.

-Found out I would be in the autism department; met Katie, April, and Demarco, who I would spend countless hours with over the next school year.

-Was crazy busy but really enjoyed the boys soccer season at Clayton.

-Ran my first full marathon October 27, 2013, finished in 3:26:48 and qualified for Boston, thanks to the help of Kristina and the beets!

-Ended up with a stress fracture, and had to take some time off running, but it was worth it.

-Nana and Tilda both came in town for the week to visit for Thanksgiving Break. Enjoyed spending time with them. Aunt Kelly and the Redmond’s also came over for Thanksgiving Dinner.

-Finished my applications to Occupational Therapy school. Applied to SLU, Washington University, Milligan College, Florida Gulf Coast University, and Boston University.

-Spent Christmas Eve with Mom and Aunt Kelly, went over to Chris Costello’s to see all of the cousins- huge white elephant party.

-Spent Christmas Day with Dad- went and saw the movie American Hustle, which I actually didn’t like at all. But it was nice to spend time together. We also ate a really nice Christmas dinner together.

-Went to Ohio for Allison and Heath’s wedding.

-Went to Chicago to visit Kristina and go out for New Year’s Eve.

-Met up with mom’s cousins on her dad’s side who I had never met; went to the Cheesecake Factory at Woodfield Mall and enjoyed meeting all of them for the first time! They were seriously so much fun.

-Went to Haymarket and went out with some of Kristina’s friends and her brother’s friends for New Year’s Eve. Brought in the New Year with a beer brewed freshly in the bar. (Still not a fan of beer)

-And now here I am: January 1, 2014.

New Year’s Resolutions

So everyone does this thing where you make commitments to change all of these bad habits in the new year, but they generally last a few weeks and then they are gone. The most stereotypical is the gym memberships and the crowded cardio rooms from Jan 1^st -20^th. Within a few weeks, the regular gym-goers get their favorite treadmills back and there are no longer lines to use the pull-up bar. With this being said, I don’t have any specific resolutions, no list that I want to try to accomplish in 2014. This year, like every year of the rest of my life, my “resolution” is to fall more in love with Jesus. My prayer is that I will know Jesus more in January 2015 than I do now in January 2014. Knowing Jesus and making Him known leads to all of the other “resolutions” that I would make. If I am in love with Jesus, then I will love other people more, serve other people more, pray more, be more committed to reading my Bible, develop more Christ-like character, become more loyal, honest, peaceful, gentle, faithful, joyful. Being in love with Jesus means taking care of your physical body, so that you can best serve as an ambassador for the Lord and best serve those around you.  Any New Year’s Resolution I would make can be fulfilled by falling more in love with my Savior. So I pray that God allows my love for Him and His people to deepen daily.  Cheers to 2014.