It’s my birthday. On birthdays, as is tradition, I like to talk about the year past and get a little misty-eyed and reflective about the days gone and the days to come.

I will be the first to say that this isn’t really how I envisioned my year going, or my birthday, for that matter. No drinks with friends or visitors to our house. No family celebration. Me and my takeout ice cream cake sitting at home with my husband.

But let’s backtrack a little.

Last May, I quit my job in Great Falls. Charles had been offered a position in Duluth, Minnesota, and we had decided to go. I’ a teacher, so quitting in May just means not coming back the next year. So that’s what happened. Leaving that job was rough. I loved (loved, loved) my coworkers and it hurt so much to leave. I didn’t realize how great things would get, so I just felt sad. Towards the end of the month, as a cheer-up, Charles had a friend come to visit and we traveled to Banff for a few days of hiking and fun.

At the beginning of June, Charles and I went to Duluth to buy a house. This is when we had the three-week saga of the house that wasn’t meant to be. I then returned solo to end up making an offer on the house that would be ours! Unfortunately this was just the beginning of the saga. School let out, and we did a lot of local travel, saying goodbye to Montana for a while (lol, didn’t know we wouldn’t be able to come back because plague).

July was moving month…except we didn’t have a house to move into. Things were still up in the air, and with our mortgage looking like it was going to fall through, we moved to Minnesota and put everything we owned into a storage locker. Charles’s buddy Tony joined us for a roadtrip through Glacier National Park followed by helping us drive to the aforementioned storage locker. Nuts. All of this was nuts. I would never do this again.

August was really when things got crazy. Our house came through and we could move in…the day before our wedding. We went to sign the papers the day of the rehearsal. Then we got married! After that it was off to a fabulous honeymoon in South Carolina, then I started work the day after we got home. I got home at 2am the same day as I started work orientation. Yikes.

The rest of the year was meant to be relaxing, and it was to a certain extent. We spent most of the fall and winter doing some light home improvements. We painted and installed furniture and made too many trips to Ikea. We hosted Thanksgiving at our house. We went to see my parents for the holidays. I really embraced my new job and have really thrived there. We found local businesses that were great, and made new friends.

March…was a rough one. We lost our baby dog, Biscuit. We went into extended lockdown (we’re still in extended lockdown), and it’s just been hard. Trips are cancelled. I haven’t seen my family in months. It’s just been hard. This hasn’t been the way I wanted to end my personal year.

But things are getting better. We brought home our new baby puppy (she’s sleeping on my lap while I type this) and I feel like we’ve settled into a better routine. Our lives aren’t going back to “normal” anytime soon, but we are doing better in general. I will admit, having a dog who needs to be supervised and has to have at least a one walk outside a day. It’s been helpful. I have to get up and put on real pants and leave the house, even if it’s just to walk a couple of blocks around the neighborhood.

I’m super appreciative for the people who did try to make the birthday special. We got an ice cream cake from a locally owned ice cream shop, and I ordered dinner from a local restaurant that’s just up the street. I’m excited for warmer weather and to get outside (socially distanced, of course), even if it’s still 50/50 if it will snow more here.

Usually, I try to make some goals for the next year, but I don’t really have any…or want to have any. Right now I’m taking things a day at a time. It’s been a big adjustment for someone who loves planning, however I think it’s been good for me to experience it on the other end. In the meantime I’m working on content I love, hammering through a million hours of video games (yep), and hanging out with my pup and my husband. I could complain, but there’s a lot of good happening now too.

Thanks for hanging out over the past year and I’ll see you throughout 28. Here’s hoping it’s even better.