Sunday, December 31, 2017

2017: A Year in Review


2017.  It's end is almost here, & I'm looking forward to the new.  But 1st here's a peek at what happened this year...

January - February:
We celebrate our 1st New Year's together + our 1st New Year's kiss.

We visit lovely Callaway Gardens.

Our 1st married Valentine's Day arrives + my 1st time ever bowling!

March:
I surprise Dan with a picnic at the "Secret Garden" for our 1/2 year anniversary.

We celebrate our 1st St. Patrick's Day together.

I go to my 1st ever hockey game + I love it!

We hike at the "Little Grand Canyon" in Georgia.

April:
 We hike 4+ miles on the Pine Mtn. trail + then visit the "Little White House" in nearby Warm Springs, GA!

We visit the world's largest Lunchbox Museum + have an impromptu arcade date night.

Help hide hundreds {& I do mean hundreds} of eggs at our church's Easter egg hunt.

I have the in-laws over for Easter lunch {+ it goes well}!

May:
Finish up my last day as a school librarian.  This unexpected long term sub job lasts almost an entire year & is such a blessing from God!

Summer break begins for me & we celebrate by heading to the Georgia Aquarium + Atlanta's World of Coke {my 1st time to both of these}!

Explore a couple of cemeteries this month + other unusual places around town.

Have our 1st of many snow cone summer dates.

 Teach the children's Wednesday night Bible study at our church together this month.  {With help from the kids, Dan puts on the armor of God one night, which in this case, is represented by aluminum foil!}

June:
Go on our 1st married double date with sweet friends.

Dress up as Bible characters to help with our church's VBS.

Explore the most epic + sprawling antique store I have ever seen.  Ever.

Swim at our apartment pools {pretty much all the summer months + once on an unusually warm February day}.

Celebrate my nephew's 2nd b-day up in Chattanooga.

Explore old abandoned bunkers in Chattanooga + make all the funny echo noises we can think of in them.

July:
Celebrate our 1st married Fourth of July + send up a patriotic Chinese lantern {which I make a secret wish + prayer on as it disappears from sight} + celebrate with friends.

More long hikes!

Finally get a washing machine!  Yay!  No more trips to the laundry mat for us!

My nephew comes & stays with us for a long weekend of summer fun!

August:
Lots of doctor visits after Dan has an eye scare.  {While it is better (Praise God!), he still has some problems with it.}

I start the school year off with a long term sub position as a music teacher, of all things!

September:
We go out west for an Arizona anniversary adventure + make countless memories there!

We celebrate our 1st year of marriage!

Take a day trip to Macon, GA to explore the Ocmulgee National Monument.

Start a Star Wars movie night tradition with new church friends.

October:
I accept a long term sub position at a rough school {it was only in 1st grade + the teacher assured me she had no major behavior problems}, but I last 6 days... & let me tell you those 6 days were full of prayers + tears + 1 screaming/cursing parent on just the 2nd day.

Visit family back in TN + explore Prater's Mill Country Fair + kiss on a tractor + view stunning Cloudland Canyon + stay a night in my mom's cabin.

Host Star Wars movie night at our place {+ I cook dinner - which seems miraculous for this girl who was afraid to turn on her oven for over a year when she got her 1st apartment}!

Dan & I help out with a game station at our church's fall festival + we dress up for the 1st time together {we're an Oreo cookie}!

We celebrate Dan's birthday with a fancy dress-up date at a new restaurant downtown.

November:
We celebrate my birthday with a day trip to Pine Mountain.

 Finally take the wedding pics I had been dreaming of for over a year + we make memories I won't soon forget.

I start yet another long term sub position {this time at a great school (Thank You, Jesus!)} as a 5th grade reading / language arts teacher.

Enjoy our annual 2 Thanksgivings - 1st with Dan's parents & then with my family.

Continue our tradition of going to see the lights twinkle & glow at Rock City's Enchanted Garden of Lights.

December:
Dan & I attend a holiday brass concert + a beautifully magical luminary walk at our city's Botanical Gardens.

We get the call that my littlest nephew is in the children's hospital in Chattanooga with a major health scare.  This is one of the hardest things about not living where the rest of your family does, because I so wanted to be right there.  I cry so many tears + pray so many prayers for this sweet little boy of mine.  It felt like we literally asked everyone we could think of to pray for him, & I'm here to testify that prayer changes things & that our God is good & mighty!  Little Miles is now home + healthy!

Dan & I get our tree + decorate it all up.

We continue our annual tradition & ride the Jolly Trolley to see all the sparkle/shine at Callaway Garden's Fantasy in Lights.

Host our 2nd annual Christmas Open House get-together.

Turn the giant elk statue at our apartment complex into a red-nosed reindeer for the 2nd year running!

Enjoy Christmas a little early with Dan's parents & then head up to TN to spend time with my family.

 Put up a tent in our living room {next to our now undecorated real Christmas tree for a little authenticity} & "camp" in so we can check the last thing off our 1 year bucket list.

My Top Favorite Posts of 2017:

In Which I Find a Secret Garden

Our Love Story {In 5+ Parts}

How I Said "Yes" to my {eBay} Wedding Dress!

Our Honeymoon Adventures

Our Arizona Anniversary Adventure

DIY Vacation Memory Jar

The Day the Eggs Made Me Smile

The Gifts in My Marriage

This is Just for Me {& Just Maybe You}

Little Letters // November 2017

Once Upon an Autumn Day

When Baby Fever Hits & You Don't Have a Baby

Thanks for being a reader!  Happy New Year's Eve!

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