See ya, 2013. It's been real.

As 2013 comes to an end, the most prominent thought in my mind is not how great of a year it's been or how much I'm looking forward to the new year. Instead I find myself thinking about how long it will take me to get used to writing 2014 rather than 2013. I'm giving it until at least March. And I'm being generous.

Just kidding, sort of.

2013 was a great year overall. It had its rough patches, but compared to the tragedies and hardships from 2010-2012, I'll take it. 2013 was the year of yoga,

coming to terms with myself, hard work towards personal goals and my job (the latter is not necessarily by choice), crazy happenstances, and stepping out of my comfort zone.

I met new people (some of which my life would have been better without, but that is all a part of my theory of balance), made some personal changes, became addicted to Candy Crush,

Why?!?!! Fucking Candy Crush.

and took chances I never imagined myself taking five years ago. Like randomly sending out an email to a trivia company and getting hired. This is the same girl that wore black sweatshirts regardless of weather and hid behind her hair in high school, didn't party in college, and is still to this day the most chronic mumbler on the planet. And I love my late nights, starting random conversations with whoever seems interesting, and talking loud and clear - so I hope - into a microphone. Go figure.

I've considered making a few New Year's resolutions for 2014, but all that comes to mind are the typical exercise more, eat healthier, and drink less that all American women seem to begrudgingly vow to adhere to every January. Honestly, I don't think it's healthy for me to make a solid resolution because of my tendency to become obsessed with these little goals, viewing them as challenges and taking them too far. If I'm trying to make progress with gaining weight, reducing anxiety, and learning to go with the flow of things, my 2014 resolutions will need to reflect that.

My 2014 Resolutions:

1. Live in the moment and appreciate it for what it is.

2. Yoga, on and off the mat. Yes, that may sound cryptic, but it makes sense to me. Yoga is not just a form of exercise, it is a state of mind.

3. Embrace social opportunities.

4. Write. Whether it's blogging, creative writing for my personal enjoyment, or finally getting a job that allows me to use this skill (fingers crossed).

5. Do what makes me happy. I've found that I'm a much more pleasant person now that I eat more, care less about my appearance, and enjoy a drink or two regularly for either social reasons or to unwind before bed with a small glass of wine. I really debated "cleaning up" my diet, cutting out stevia and packaged foods that I enjoy, and giving up alcohol, but is it really worth it? No. I'd lose weight and be cranky. Plus, I'm 24. I need to embrace my youth while I can.

Now I'm off to MC some bowling event, give out prizes, and countdown to the New Year. I expect to be highly entertained. I hope everyone has a happy and safe New Years' Eve! Peace out, 2013!

Christmas 2013

Christmas always comes and goes too fast. All of this insanity for one day, then it's done and we fall into the frigid winter months with nothing to look forward to until Spring. And living in New England, that doesn't guarantee a significant climate change.

End rant. Cue Christmas recap.

I believe it's true that we learn something new everyday. I spent my entire Christmas Eve prepping food, baking up a storm, and attempting to clean up before church. I cooked quinoa, baked gingersnap cookies and peanut butter cup cookies, baked gingerbread protein bars (I followed Peas and Thank You's amazing recipe), and diced veggies, all while intermittently cleaning up after myself, from 9am straight through 3:15pm. What did I learn from all of this, you ask? I learned that when my family insists at 3:10 that I attend Christmas Eve mass starting at 4pm and I'm a flour-covered mess still in my pajamas, I transform myself into a presentable human being in less than 15 minutes, makeup and all. 

Pretty impressive if I do say so myself. And a valuable lesson learned.

P.S. Is my sister gorgeous or what? I wish I had half her looks.

The end results of my morning chaos:

Gingerbread bars unpictured, they just aren't attractive desserts when your best camera is on your iPad.

Needless to say in my mad rush, I never even thought to wrap my Christmas gifts. So that meant returning home from work to run to the basement and discretely wrap everything before my family arrived. Barely got it done.

Now that we're all older, my family just does all of the gifts on Christmas morning. It's cute that my mom still writes "from Santa" on our gifts. I really hate when people buy me gifts, honestly. I'd rather see them use the money towards themselves or someone else. I have everything I need already; however, I was not at all disappointed in my gifts.

Rocking my festive Santa pjs, my gifts spread on the floor (don't mind the dog bed haha), and my new boots

Crappy pictures, but we had to hurry to get dressed and head to the cemetery to spend some time with Dad on Christmas. Christmas sure is different without him here. He had so much Christmas spirit, he was like a little kid. I love and miss him so much...

What a goon. 

Our family is pretty small now. Including the four of us, we had 10 people for dinner. At least it gives me the chance to be a little more creative with side dishes knowing there are less people to please.

This year's experiment was a recipe I threw together on the fly. Red quinoa, red cabbage, sugar snap peas, mushrooms, and scallions lightly sautéed in a wok with a dressing of sesame oil, soy sauce, Ginger, Dijon mustard, apple cider vinegar, pepper, and garlic. I had three servings of that shit, no shame. Along with two small sweet potatoes, tons of roasted asparagus, and fresh green beans. I hate that ham is the traditional protein for Christmas dinner, I just can't eat it. It grosses me out.

We spent the rest of the evening playing Who's on my Head and just hanging out enjoying each other's company. We ended the night watching Just Friends.