2015 Year End Review

I could say, "where has the year gone?" However, it's not quite over yet now is it? We have this one last day to accomplish all those goals, resolutions, and other unrealistic aspirations we set for ourselves a year ago. Ehhhh, yeah. . .one day's not going to do it for me. How about you?

What is it about New Year's Eve? It feels like both an ending and a beginning. (you know like how Sundays feel like the end of the week when they are really the beginning . . .or maybe the opposite of that.)

Before I get more philosophical and start worrying with what I want to accomplish in 2016, let's talk about 2015 first and close out this year.

Let's start with what posts were most popular each month this year.

January

Muffin Tin Jewelry Challenge Reveal

February

Creative Spark Winter 2015 Reveal

March

Reveal of My Shipwreck Dandy Destash Box

April

Journaling by 5s (Inspired by Shannon Green)

May

Happy Mail to the Max

June

Oh, the Excuses Just Keep Rolling In

July

(this was the ONLY post this month. Oops)

There were no images, just a video as I was suffering with vision issues.

Complications and Keeping Busy

August

Creative Spark Summer 2015 Contribution and Other News

September

Our New Home | The Beginning

October

Our New Home | Pool and Property

November

DIY Chalkboard with Mirror Tutorial

December

(the only post this month, other than this one!)

A Quick Catch up for December 2015

Big events for the year:

• Got a booth at a local antique store
• Bought a new house
• Lost several family members and dear family friends
• Turned 40
• Have felt just completely lost in my head most of the time
• And SO much more

2015's Words for the Year
Once again, I tried to set some goals for the year in some manner. Here's the picture I created to illustrate my intent.

As far as how I did. . .the new house and all that definitely distracted me from my aims.
I definitely felt more grateful this year and tried to remind myself often how blessed I am.
I'm not sure that I was very courageous, but I did take some steps in that direction.
Staying focused really did not happen much at all. Nope.
I can't say that I was very confident either. That's definitely one I want to continue to work on.
My creativity didn't really seem to fluctuate at all. Pushing on. . .
In all, I had hoped that the above words would help me empower myself. But, I dropped the ball.

2015 will forever be the year that we bought our "forever home." We searched for it on weekends, struggled to get the price and inspections where they needed to be, packed and prepped for the move, and began to settle in. I'm sure the coming year holds even more unexpected and happy surprises.

And now, it's time to roll in the new year in style. . .Roll Tide Roll!

How did 2015 treat you?
Have a happy, wonderful, and safe evening as you welcome in 2016.

A Quick Catch-up for December 2015

I have absolutely no excuse. Let's say the chaos of the holidays has just gotten in the way. Let me quickly share some of the happenings around here in picture & caption form, then I'll be caught up and can get back to the business of blogging. Sound good? Let's go. . .

Fall finally came to the Gulf Coast, if only briefly.

Though we've discovered lots of stuff on the property, these kumquats were still a happy surprise.

For the first time in about ten years, we got a Christmas tree!

Both of the cats found that they liked the tree too. That was fortunate!

I traveled with my nieces to Auburn, AL for South's BEST regional robotics competition. And, their little Catholic school fared fairly well in the competition. YAY St. Vincent de Paul!

After I got back from Auburn, Pat had to head up to New York for work. He left me in charge of cleaning the pool each morning. As I went out there one of the mornings, I realized this guy was caught in the trap that had been left out for the armadillo that's been tearing up the yard. After some phone calls and texts to Pat and a couple of anxious hours, the little possum made his way out of the trap.

I've gotten very little creative work done lately except for a couple of art swaps and a few resin pendants. I was stricken by the colors on this piece of deli paper I was using as a palette.

Though this fall and winter have been way warmer than usual, we have had a few cooler days here and there. We were invited to a friends to enjoy a pot luck and bonfire. Fortunately, it was one of those rare cold evenings.

The nieces came over for a few days this week and we made some easy Christmas treats. They were so, so easy!

It's been rainy and overcast here for DAYS upon days. Taking a walk around the property, I discovered more varieties of mushrooms than I even knew existed. It was amazing.

There's been all that and more going on the past several weeks. I do apologize for my absence and hope to be getting back on the ball. The end of the year is near, and each new day is a new start.

I had a wonderful Christmas yesterday and am looking forward to second Christmas with my in-laws tomorrow. How have the holidays been treating you?