Easter and Lent

Another holiday has passed for 2013 and it was short and sweet. Since JAM is the only child he usually gets loads of goodies and this Easter wasn't any different. He got an Easter basket from Mommy & Daddy as well as Grandma & Grandpa. By the way, every year my mom gives me money to buy his Easter basket since it's easier than mailing one. Man! It gave me a glimpse of what it would be like to buy an Easter basket for two kids since I bought two complete Easter baskets. Yeaaaa I think we're waiting on trying for kid #2 haha. Anyways, I hid Easter eggs around my apartment overnight and it was so funny because he woke up before me. He wakes me up and says, "Umm, mom, why are there Easter eggs around the house?" I told him to give me a minute to wake up and he can start hunting. His face lit up and all the fun began.

Baskets full of goodies!

50 eggs all to himself :)

As far as my personal Lenten journey, it was definitely an interesting one. I gave up a few different things during lent, but my two major ones were texting and social media (with the exception of my blog and school work). I honestly didn't think it was going to be a big deal, but in a way it ended up being a little harder than I expected. I usually coordinate many family events and this year isn't any different. I got information about two events to coordinate and I thought "OK, no problem". Well, problem. I easily used to Facebook or text people for their contact information and due to the Lenten season that wasn't a viable option. You see, I'm the type of person who likes checklists. Once I got word of an event I immediately started brainstorming ideas and wanted to get in touch with certain contacts and guests, but I was limited. I couldn't check things off on my list so I started getting restless haha. I think it wouldn't have been so bad if I gave up one or the other, but since I gave up both I had my hands tied. Needless to say, come Easter I wasn't just busy with the holiday weekend. I was a mad women sending out emails, texts, and Facebook messages to complete major parts of my checklist. An annoying part of my personality, I know, but I'm just happy I could clear "to-do" space in my head haha.

The lovely cross I made on Palm Sunday

You know though, it was also interesting to see other people's reactions to my 40 day sacrifice. Family and friends were getting frustrated with me because I wasn't on Facebook or couldn't text. I actually lost a lot of contact with people who I could talk to text or Facebook for hours, but they either weren't comfortable to actually call or they couldn't hold a decent, non-awkward conversation. It showed me that there are a lot of people I associate with that can't think outside of 140 character thoughts. People still had the option to call, visit, or write me a letter, but they acted like it was such an inconvenience or the end of the world that they couldn't text me or communicate through Facebook or other social media outlets. It was even crazier to wake up on Easter and see the 50+ text messages I received from people or the 100+ social media messages and notifications I had. People were messaging me and telling me how they were relieved that I could text again and I have to tell you this, this, and this. Umm, you could have called or visited. You didn't have to wait 40 days to share all these thoughts silly. Eh, I guess it showed me that it's good to unplug once in awhile and have actual face-to-face communication. Luckily this period got me closer with my extended family as well. Instead of just always communicating through text, we have great conversations via Skype or had heartfelt conversations over the phone. It's hard sometimes to have most of my family back home in Chicago, but reconnecting like this was great. This unplugging period also showed me that I need to log more of my inner circle's contact information instead of just depending on social media to get their information. People post so much of their life and personal information on social media that I never had to personally ask for it. I guess this break period showed me that I should still keep my address book and update it once in awhile. Moral of the story, technology is convenient, but it's not everything. Unplug once in awhile. It gives you personal time to focus on yourself and get things done instead of unconsciously trying to stay on the up and up.

How was your Easter or holiday weekend?

2012

Wow! I feel like New Year's Eve crept up on us so fast! I swear it was just summer last month! But, like I always tell JAM, time doesn't wait for anyone. I'd have to say that 2012 was a pretty successful year. At the very least, I know it was definitely a time of reflection and soul searching on my half. I wrapped up my first half of the year finishing my prerequisites for my nursing program, and even applied to UNLV. I felt like I finally made it when I got accepted into an actual university, but that was short lived when I decided that the financial path that better suited my family was to complete an associates degree in nursing instead. Now, after much contemplating, I'm actually considering changing my degree all together! *sigh* oh college life. Thankfully, I have such a supportive family who will cheer me on no matter what route I decide to take.

My year continued on, and it was the little things that were the highlight of my year. JAM lost his first tooth! I shared all my fun tricks on how I used to loosen my wiggly teeth when I was his age, which resulted in him pulling out his 2nd lost tooth at school haha. whoops! He also wrapped up his second season of soccer at the beginning of the year, scoring at least 2 goals every game! Once that was over, we made the decision to allow him to pierce his ears. Eek! However, he took it like a champ. He finished off the year starting 1st grade and his catechism classes to earn the sacrament of communion. His 1st grade teacher said he's the top of his class completing all his 1st grade goals already and he's only halfway through the year! We couldn't be prouder. He also wrapped up a third season of soccer this fall in a higher division, which meant tournaments. This was his teams first year in this division unlike the other teams. The Little Rascals finished in 3rd place overall! Not bad considering the other teams have been in this division for 2+ years and this was their first season.

Once summer 2012 was in full swing, my dad's side of the family reunited and I hosted our first ever cousins reunion in South Lake Tahoe, NV/CA. I'd say that was definitely the highlight of the summer for sure. It was a little unconventional just having the cousins attend but that's how it always was growing up. The adults would do their own thing and have "adult time" in the kitchen while the cousins would wreak havoc. So, it only seemed right to have a cousins reunion. Maybe later on we'll have an actual family reunion, but this year's cousins reunion in Lake Tahoe was the best.

We wrapped up the summer celebrating our 3 birthdays with Mahal celebrating a milestone birthday by turning 25. Mahal and I also celebrated our 7 year anniversary of being a couple. Man, 7 years already?! It feels great to know I have such a compatible partner in life. Many people search their whole lives trying to find that perfect fit so I'm grateful every day that God has blessed my life with Mahal.

There were a few other things that I'm thankful for this year. For those of you who don't know, my grandparents are my world. This year my grandpa had major heart surgery to add to the other health issues he's gained over the years. It was scary to watch him go through it all but I'm grateful that he's getting stronger as each day passes. I know they're both is getting older, but every extra day I have with my grandparents I'm grateful for. The one thing that caught me off guard this year was when my mom randomly got sick. She was misdiagnosed with multiple diseases until she was finally diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder called myasthenia gravis. She went through a lot of treatment to ease the symptoms of her incurable disease, and that was real hard to watch her go through especially since I couldn't physically be by her side. The thought of possibly losing my mom scared the heck out of me, but thankfully she's getting better and her symptoms are slowly dissipating. I don't know where I'd be without this woman so it was the icing on the cake that she was able to fly out to Las Vegas with my step dad this year to celebrate the holidays with us.

On a lighter note, God didn't stop with the blessings in my life. This second half of the year was full of babies galore! 2 of my friends gave birth to beautiful baby girls, my aunt gave birth to the 15th grandchild on my mom's side, and my family still has 2 more additions arriving in 2013! My 2 cousins on my dad's side who are brother and sister are both expecting! He's expecting a little girl and she's expecting a little boy. I'm so excited to watch my family grow and watch the little ones have the same fun experiences of growing up in a big family like I did.

We wrap up the year by taking our first family photos finally after 6 years of waiting. The photos turned out great thanks to Amanda Ferrari Photography, and I can't wait to take more in the future. Our Christmas was perfect this year with my mom and step dad flying into town. We all headed to California to join my uncle and his family in celebrating their 1st Christmas in their beautiful, new home.

Photographer: Amanda Ferrari Photography

Last but certainly not least, I'm absolutely grateful for my Chitown and All Around readers! I started this blog at the end of May 2012 as a personal outlet and to possibly help someone out there who may ever go through some of the things I've gone through in life. I'm definitely no pro in anything in life, but hopefully sharing my wisdom has done some good in the world. It hasn't even been a year for my blog, but thanks to all of you I hit my goal of getting 50 likes on my Facebook page and I'm entering the new year with 10,000+ views on my blog. You guys are awesome and I hope you continue to enjoy my blog and spread the word about it.

I can't wait to see what 2013 has in store for me and for Chitown and All Around! I hope everyone has a wonderful, safe, happy, and healthy new year! XOXO

What topics or ideas would you like to see on Chitown and All Around in 2013?