Thursday, December 31, 2015

Year In Review

2015 has been a good year. A year full of change and adventure. 

January

*I decided to apply for an "educators only" trip to Finland. It was a last minute decision, mainly for the fact that if I got it I would need to get a passport and that would fulfill something on the #my26by26 list. Best spur of the moment decision ever. 


*Right after coming back from Christmas break, drama at work hit the roof. 7 other teachers decided to give early retirement notice (including every teacher on my team) which prompted me to start applying for every single opening for an elementary teacher in the state of Utah. By the end of January I had turned in 9 applications and that number would continue to grow by the end of February to over 20. 


February

*Remember that application to Finland I turn in at the last minute? I was accepted to the program!!


*Usually Valentine's Day isn't my favorite (you know, the whole being single thing puts a damper on it sometimes...) but this year my best friend and I had tickets to the Glorianna concert in Ogden and had a blast.

March

*Another spur of the moment decision to go to Logan for the last Aggie Basketball game of the season- Stew's last game. They lost, but that is one of those moments you can't get back. 


*My birthday rolled around which meant the end of #my26by26. When I made the list of 26 things to do in a year before I turned 26, it was just a silly list. By the end, my life had come to revolve around it. It grounded me and made me grow in ways I never could have foreseen. After my birthday, the first few weeks felt kind of empty, like I had no direction, nothing to guide me. 

April

*Easter is always one of my favorite times of year. The Saturday before Easter is a long standing tradition with the Jensen/Gardner clan- picnic- rain or shine!


*I accepted a 4th grade teaching position in the Canyon School District. (I would later give that up, but at the time it seemed like the right thing to do.) 



May

*May started off with a trip to Logan for graduation. I am so thankful that this cute girl and I were roommates 5 years ago. I am SO thankful that we have managed to stay best friends even though most of our friendship has been spent living more that 100 miles apart. I am so proud of her for graduating and becoming the best kindergarten teacher in Davis School District. 


*I was talked into applying for a district level job mentoring interns and students teachers. By some miracle I got the job, packed up my classroom, put most of it into storage, and jumped into the unknown. (I love it by the way.)



June

*FINLAND!!!!



July

*Just a few days after getting back from Finland, Jessi and I headed back east to spend 10 days with Tiff and Curtis. As much as I hate them living so far away, it was fun to go back and spend time with them. 

*Because my great-uncle passed away, my family made a quick and unexpected road trip to southern California. Even though it was a sad occasion, it was great to see extended family and spend some time together as a family. 



August

*Camping! I love spending time outdoors with my family. 

*Because of the crazy job situation I ended up moving out of Provo. And it is wonderful. 



September

*Daphne and I went to a Bee's game. This may not seem like a big deal to most of you, but I missed this girl so much while she was on her mission. No one understands my love of baseball quite like she does. 

*Dad's moose hunt ended opening morning with the perfect hunt. 



October

*Dad's big event as fire chief was purchasing a new ladder truck for the Tooele City Fire Department. Growing up in a fireman household, this was exciting for all of us!

*Deer hunt weekend comes in a close second to Easter weekend. I didn't have a tag this year, but for the first time in a long time we filled multiple tags.



November

*While I have loved my new job as a CFA since I started, I really came to LOVE it. I have settled in and kind of know what I am doing now. It has also led me to apply for graduate school in administration. 


*Thanksgiving this year was wonderful this year. Aunt Jamie has moved back to Tooele and so the whole family is together a lot more often than it has been in the past 20 years. This picture is over a year old- at the time it was one of the only times we had all been together in a LONG time. Now it happens almost monthly and I love it. 



December

*I was called to work with the young women in my new ward and it is fabulous. The decision to attend the family ward was a difficult one, mostly because its not what "young singles" do in the church. But it has been such a good move- for the first time in a long time I feel like I am going to church to build a testimony, not to find a husband.

*Christmas. I love Christmas. I love the spirit around Christmas. I love the lights and the decorations. I love shopping for Christmas presents. I love Christmas break. I love it all. 

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