Ushering in 2014...Looking Back Over 2013

 Everyone is doing a "look back" post for the New Year so I figured I'd put on my Lemming shoes and join in on the fun.

2013 was a pretty busy year for us when I sit down to really think about it.

• We celebrated the Youngest Child's 14th birthday in February. As usual, we did so at Joe's Crab Shack. She loves it, the rest of us tolerate it the one time a year we have to go there, lol. This year, she's decided on Flounders in Pensacola Beach. Their food is much better.
• I finished my undergrad in March. It took me an embarrassing amount of years to do it. However, if you consider the fact that we lived in four different states and in six different houses and I transferred schools three different times, it's a miracle that I finished it at all.
• The Mister and I celebrated our 17th wedding anniversary in May. 
• We moved from San Diego, CA to Navarre, FL in June. I also celebrated my 36th birthday in June at a restaurant that will haunt me for the rest of my life.
• We celebrated the Oldest Child's 17th birthday in July. Talk about a bittersweet birthday for a parent to celebrate.
• I applied for and was admitted to grad school in August and September, respectively. I'm hoping that I can get this degree in a reasonable amount of time.
• My grandmother passed away in October and we made the trip to Ohio for her funeral. We also got our cat, Winnie, in October. She's a sweetheart.
• In November, the Mister and the Oldest Child attended the Marine Corps Ball. It was the Oldest Child's first Marine Corps Ball. We also had our first Thanksgiving in Florida.
• December, of course, was all about the holidays. We had a really great holiday season here in Florida despite what most people think about celebrating Christmas in a warmer climate. We were actually more festive here than we had been since living in Vermont. We celebrated New Years with a bottle of actual champagne and it was pretty good.

For 2014, I'm hoping for a smooth transition into being a graduate student. I'd also like a better paying job that utilizes my skills and at a company that I can have some respect for. I'm also hoping that my kids finish out their first school year in Florida on a high note. I hope for the Oldest Child, that she opens her mind about school while she still has time and enjoys her senior year. I fervently wish that my dad's health improves. I'm not ready to think of my dad as being old and infirm. I wish for the Mister, that his job situation improves. I try to take comfort in the fact that at least it's not recruiting duty but there are too many similarities. ::sigh:: Aside from hopes and wishes...

I'm looking forward to having my second and third bookshelves built. I'm also looking forward to getting furniture for the sitting area in my living room so that it doesn't look so bare. It's going to be a tranquil and peaceful area to read and relax that's apart from the living room. I'm also looking forward to beach weather and flip flops!! Woot! And books and yarn. Lots of reading, knitting, and crocheting for 2014.