2021 in Review

 1. What did you do in 2021 that you’d never done before? During the shut-down, we stayed at home for two weeks with zero obligations. We'd never done that before and probably never will again. It was unlike vacation or staycation or anything like that. There was nowhere to be, nothing to do. No expectations of us, either. 

2. Did you keep your New Years resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I always resolve to try and eat healthier and exercise more. And I do a little bit better every year.(Same old, same old)

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? My sister, Anna, gave birth to Mavis in July and my sister, Rose, gave birth to Azalea in June.


4. Did anyone close to you die? My great-great Aunt, Helen, passed away at the age of 102. I didn't know her well, having only met her as an adult, but she was such a sweet lady.

5. What countries did you visit? Ha! None and hardly anyone else did, either.

6. What would you like to have in 2022 that you lacked in 2021? More freedom and autonomy. Better health.

7. What from 2021 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? The great awakening of so many in regards to health, freedom, and faith. 


8. What was your biggest contribution of the year? My biggest contribution was to my inner circle. Not out of selfishness, but out of realizing that real change starts with the individual and then radiates outward. I think it's tempting to try and skip over some of the mundane in order to jump into a spotlight or ministry, but I've come to believe that we cannot succeed in the public sphere if we don't have our hearts right before God and if we aren't honoring our basic obligations. 

9. What was your biggest failure? I don't really feel like I've failed in anything this year. I'm not saying I was amazing at everything, but I have worked hard these past couple of years to put first things first and to accept my inability to juggle everything. I either succeed in whatever I'm trying to accomplish or I keep showing up and keep learning and keep plugging away and that's a sort of success in and of itself.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? No. Thank you, Lord, for keeping us healthy and safe.

11. What was the best thing you bought? I bought an inexpensive pair of high-waisted jeans that I wear almost exclusively now. I could probably toss all of my other jeans and not even miss them!

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? Luke has impressed me lately with his work ethic. He's working two jobs now and taking college classes. This has been a hard year of growing up for him. He's the oldest in his friend group and it's so, so difficult to have to leave childish things behind when the people closest to you aren't there yet. It's been a struggle, for sure, but he's getting there.

Gabe is coming out of his shell, has agreed to join the Lego Robotics team at our new co-op, and has been working hard at learning programming.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? The vast majority of the American People.

14. Where did most of your money go? Savings. We have some more projects around the house that will need to be addressed and we're determined not to go into debt. Our driveway needs to be repaired or repaved and eventually we'll need to redo some of the shoddy work that was done in our addition. The non-hardwood floors and all of the tub and shower tiling is bad, bad, bad.


15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? We got to go on vacation!!! It was an amazing time. I love to travel as it is, but I'm also soaking up and enjoying every second that I can with my boys because they are growing up so dang fast.

16. What song will always remind you of 2021? Way Less Sad by AJR


17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? Happier
ii. thinner or fatter? Same.
iii. richer or poorer? Richer.


18. What do you wish you’d done more of? Hiking and crafting and taking pictures.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Sitting in front of the TV. Somehow we stayed busier in 2020 than we did in 2021. We liked having fewer obligations, but we forgot to fill that time with things that really matter. 

20. How will you be spending the Winter? Blogging, scrapbooking, reading, and spending time with friends.


22. Did you fall in love in 2021? Nope, same loves as always.


23. What was your favorite month of 2021? May for sure! We visited Death Valley, Red Rocks, Zion, and Bryce Canyon just to name a few. It was absolutely epic.

24. What was your favorite TV program? We really enjoyed the series Hanna.

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? Nope. Not a hater, such a waste of time.


26. What was the best book you read? Nonfiction: Fault Lines by Baucham and Live Not By Lies by Dreher. Fiction: In Five Years by Serle


27. What was your greatest musical discovery? We really like the music of AJR. It was nice to listen to something unique and upbeat.


28. What did you want and get? A new homeschool co-op suddenly popped up not 5 minutes from our house! That's pretty exciting. Also, I *think* we've found a good church.

29. What was your favorite film of this year? Dune

30. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I turned 41. I don't recall us doing anything big. Ben made me a spa board for the bathtub.

31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Spending more time in nature. I keep saying that, but I have a hard time making it happen. I'm pretty much the only one in the family who wants to hike so I feel like my time in nature comes at the expense of family time.


32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2021? I slowly edged my way out of the slobfest that was 2020, but not as much as I'd like. Hoping 2022 will be better in this area.

33. What kept you sane? Like-minded friends and family. We don't need a lot of people, but we do need people who "get it" when it comes to the big things in life. 

34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? The people I admired most this year were those who were brave enough to speak out against the nonsense in the world despite having something to lose. Some were heath care professionals, some were educators, some were politicians, some were entertainers, some were just regular people. 


35. What political issue stirred you the most? Government overreach, vaccine mandates, CRT, and the progressive Christianity that's infiltrating the American church.

36. Who did you miss? We got a nice long visit from Chelsea and her family in April which was amazing. Still miss them, though. Paul and Amanda have been the biggest hole in our lives. I also have been missing my Fridays with my nieces and nephews since they returned to school this Fall. 


37. Who was the best new person you met? I'm not sure about best, yet, but I think we have a good group of people in the new homeschool co-op, and good people in the church we've been attending. I'm looking forward to getting to know them better.

38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2021: Truth matters. Yes, love and kindness matters, but we have to be careful to define those words in a way that honors God and his character and that means truth cannot be left out of the equation. 

39. Best quote of the year?

 “The real damage is done by those millions who want to 'survive.' The honest men who just want to be left in peace. Those who don’t want their little lives disturbed by anything bigger than themselves. Those with no sides and no causes. Those who won’t take measure of their own strength, for fear of antagonizing their own weakness. Those who don’t like to make waves—or enemies. Those for whom freedom, honour, truth, and principles are only literature. Those who live small, mate small, die small. It’s the reductionist approach to life: if you keep it small, you’ll keep it under control. If you don’t make any noise, the bogeyman won’t find you. But it’s all an illusion, because they die too, those people who roll up their spirits into tiny little balls so as to be safe. Safe?! From what? Life is always on the edge of death; narrow streets lead to the same place as wide avenues, and a little candle burns itself out just like a flaming torch does. I choose my own way to burn.”

― Sophie Scholl, member of the White Rose Resistance Group during Nazi Germany