Glancing Back, Looking Forward

I can't believe it is 2009!! And it is the 8th day of 2009! What in the world? I think I actually wrote 09 for the first time yesterday and had to think about it for 5 minutes before I could do it. Now that 2008 is over I think I can finally be grateful for all that happened...good and bad, funny and not even close to being funny, happy and sad, stressful and joyful. I think I learned a lot about myself, my husband, my family, and the world around me.

January 2008: Ryan turned 26, Ryan found out he got into dental school and scared Taryn to death by coming to the hospital where she was doing clinicals to tell her!

February 2008: Bought a beautiful couch that Taryn still LOVES , Ryan started his dream job- Logan High JV Baseball coach, Taryn was officially accepted into the OSU Medical Dietetics program and realized she would be moving across the country a little sooner than she thought (STRESS!).

March 2008: Celebrated being married for 2 years, the Hansen family dog, Chancey, passed away after being part of our family for 15 years, saw the Lord's hand guiding our life through unimaginable blessings.

April 2008: Taryn turned 22, found joy through simple things in life and loving time with our families, Taryn attended her final class as a Utah State Aggie.

May 2008: Not too much happened....just moved 1800 miles across the country! Had a great time with the Hansen family driving to Ohio, visiting Nauvoo, and seeing Wicked and Wrigley in Chicago.

June 2008: Visited Kentucky, settled into life in Ohio, met some great new friends, and Ryan got a job as the dairy boy at Kroger.

July 2008: Loved playing tennis and running in the mornings, Taryn tried to enjoy free time, Ryan was still stocking shelves, and Taryn started a Long Term Care rotation for school and actually enjoyed it.

August 2008: Visitors!! Breanne and Derek, Kyrsten and Sam, and Taryn's mom all made it out to Ohio! Saw Niagara Falls and Palmyra, New York. Taryn started a WIC rotation for school and loved it.

September 2008: Hurricane Ike hit Ohio, started partying with the other 1st year dental students (Cafe Rio night), went to Pittsburgh and Washington DC on a sports extravaganza, Ryan received his White Coat for dental school, Ryan started dental school, Taryn started her final (after some debate) year of college, became true Buckeyes by attending our first football game.

October 2008: Engulfed in textbooks, dental tools, hospital charts, and assignments. Still found time to work a little and play a lot. Dressed up as bikers for Halloween complete with Ryan's handlebar mustache.

November 2008: Missed our families, spent our first Thanksgiving away, were thankful for our great friends here in Ohio, missed our families some more, and started counting down the days until our plane left.

December 2008: Survived our first finals week of dental school, spent the holidays with our families in Utah and Idaho, ended the year with grateful hearts and a New Years kiss!

Now that 2009 is here, it is back to school and back to real life. Being home for the holidays was such a great vacation and I can't wait to go back! Since we have been back in Ohio Ryan had his birthday (yes, he is 27 now!), we had our hearts broken as the Buckeyes lost to Texas, and started back to school; all while being terribly sleep deprived from traveling. I am never good at making New Years resolutions and actually writing them down. I think it is because I usually don't fulfill them and I really hate to fail at things. So this year I am resolving to just be happy. Most days I think I can at least do that.