Wednesday, December 31, 2014

coming full circle :: 2014



hello       
                         I hope your new year is off to a wonderful start
                         And I hope to talk about 2015 soon
                         But right now I am looking back at this past year. . .


2014  ::  sensing, learning, adventuring  ::  here I try to unfold the months that left me full


January  ::  grandparents move for the second time in two months  ::  snowy weather hits with a hint of sub-zero temperatures  ::  shell pink fountain pen ink  ::  piano practice with Beethoven  ::  Gramma's dementia/beginning Alzheimer's shows stronger  ::  choreography begins for the Helen Keller ballet  ::  self-defense class in good company  ::  driving and babysitting more than usual  ::  epsom salt baths

February  ::  snow week  ::  weird day of 60 degree weather  ::  ACT take 2  ::  celebrate temporary freedom from practice tests by reading The Fault in Our Stars  ::  winter of the peanut butter cookies    ::  special feature of Swan Lake at the movie theater  ::  first laser tag experience (leave eager to return)  ::  family considers moving neighborhoods, looks at a couple of houses  ::  fun dancing to "It is Well With my Soul" in church youth talent show

March  ::  research colleges while half-watching the Academy Awards  ::  purchase black dress for the homeschool winter dance that comes in handy for a variety of other events throughout the year  ::  open my own checking account  ::  the pups turn #1  ::  learn lots of lifts for the ballet  ::  play the wonderful board game Spy Alley  ::  Third Day/Skillet concert with my favorite Third Day enthusiast  ::  adventures with Whole Thirty eating  ::  watch (and love) the movie About Time 

April  ::  complete Tabernacle project at Bible study  ::  day trip to Omaha to see play of The Screwtape Letters (excellent!)  ::  house painted with a fresh coat of beige and dark brown trim  ::  surprise sprinkling of snow  ::  placement test at local community college complete with logarithms and an anticlimactic fire drill  ::  especially busy week with two college visits and a piano recital on top of normal activities  ::  sit through four-hour-long opera at local movie theater  

May  ::  ballet run-throughs begin  ::  listen to friend play the violin beautifully in a philharmonic performance  ::  college visit at my parents' Alma Mater  ::  grad parties for good friends  ::  grocery store run with my sisters (my first time accomplishing this feat I had long imagined:)  ::  decide against moving, opting instead to finish the basement ::  fall out of a leap—thankful ankle bruises were the worst consequence  ::  savor Croute Appenzell at Andre's    

June  ::  begins with a bang—Middle Sister and I spend weekend on church youth choir trip and Youngest Sister at church kids retreat  ::  ballet dress rehearsals begin  ::  get a round brush stuck in my hair (I don't recommend it)  ::  finish reading Soul Keeping by John Ortberg (I do recommend it:)  ::  plentiful rain makes for green world  ::  ACT practice and final test time  ::  first experience becoming addicted to an app—achieve 2048 tile after a bit too much practice at that game  ::  Pilates  ::  camping with dance friends  ::  art museum visit 

July  ::  picnic while seeing Shakespeare in the Park perform A Winter's Tale  ::  cleaning out basement  ::  refreshing visit to Anthropologie  ::  new waffle iron allows for cashew-based waffle making  ::  thoroughly enjoyable discussion-based Bible study  ::  Helen Keller ballet! preparations with costumes, make-up, and dances, then show week with three performances—such a joy to dance Helen's stunning story  ::  read Son by Lois Lowry, the satisfying last book in The Giver quartet 

August  ::  experience first official interview  ::  become a member of the teen advisory group at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art  ::  substitute teach in 3rd grade Sunday school class with my dad—kids' conversation turns to Frozen and quiets once my dad teases that the sequel will be called "Thawed"  ::  basement officially begins to be finished  ::  ALASKA! (posts here, here, and here)  ::  home to attend the first homeschool graduation meeting  ::  knit lace shawl  ::  Youngest Sister gets her first pair of pointe shoes

September  ::  transition from piano lessons to guitar lessons—keep practicing both, get to know music better as a whole  ::  senior year in full swing  ::  observe the ever-delightful Joyce DiDonato give a master class  ::  cook chicken, egg drop soup, and fried rice for a Tuesday dinner  ::  drive myself the mildly long distance to a teen advisory group meeting  ::  Dallas trip over long weekend—squeeze in a couple of college visits, a couple of museum visits, and a baseball game

October  ::  enjoy watching more hometown baseball games  ::  apple picking and nature walking  ::  write and edit application essays  ::  senior pictures taken by a sweet mother/daughter duo  ::  explore contact improv in lyrical dance class  ::  substitute teach in ballet and beginning pointe  ::  decide on paint colors for the basement  ::  80's themed homeschool fall dance with a bunch of fun friends  ::  begin reading War and Peace  ::  "Blue October" climaxes as the Royals sweep into the World Series, make it to game seven, and end with an almost-there loss—so much excitement!

November  ::  events at the Nelson— help plan teen bonfire and volunteer for TedxYouth@KC ::  visit day at a college that included high tea  ::  prepare audition materials for a dance program and learn a lot from the process  ::  night out attending symphony concert with my dad  ::  [finally] visit new Ikea  ::  guitar teacher says versatile line, "There are no wrong notes, only wrong resolutions."  ::  stop by tea shop with my mom, come home with Sencha Claus green and power chai  ::  refill fountain pen after leaving it alone for a few months  ::  listen to 3.14 hours of War and Peace while baking 2 pies (I do love pi and good stories:)

December  ::  listen to Youngest Sister play beautifully in her first cello recital  ::  annual babysitting of two boys and a little girl—thankful for the opportunity to watch them grow  ::  puppy girl attempts to jump from my bed to the yarn on my dresser (is she part cat?!)  ::  memory care unit Christmas party with Gramma  ::  finish reading War and Peace on 12/13/14—rather momentous!  ::  watch The Theory of Everything (especially fun to see as a physics enthusiast:)  ::  hit by the flu, out for a few days  ::  youth choir Christmas presentation  ::  ping pong tournament  ::  turn #18 with ice skating, bubble tea, and raspberry cake  



Thankful for every word,
                                            picture,
                                                            &  moment
That made this year shine.

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