Welcoming 2011

Whew... it's hard to believe that Christmas has come and gone! We had an absolutely fabulous holiday - probably one of the best to date. It was just quiet, relaxing and fun. I was spoiled by Santa (got everything on my wish list and then some) and had a lot of fun spoiling those around me! I'm gearing up now for a fun New Year's Eve at a neighbor's house and then a lot of football watching the remainder of the weekend. I'm trying not to get too used to the downtime and relaxation. We all know that it can't last forever (but wouldn't it be so nice if it could???)

I've been thinking back about my 2010 a lot these last few days. It was a great year and one in which I realized how blessed I am. (**Cue sappy music**) A lot of fun things happened. Tons of great things to be exact. But of course there were some hard things to deal with too. Eh, the way I look at it - the hard things definitely shaped me into a better person (or at least taught me a valuable lesson!)

Here are some highlights:

• In February, Tom and I traveled to Gatlinburg with some friends for my 30th birthday. 30 didn't bother me as I thought maybe it would. 31, well, that's a little harder to stomach!
• In March, Tom and I helped organize and then raced the Grady Indoor Triathlon. All proceeds benefited the local hospital. Tom and I continued the winning streak of overall man and overall woman too which was fun! Gotta love free shoes which were part of the winning swag!
• We started April with a PR in a local half marathon. We ended the month with a week of chillaxing in Honolulu. Could there be a more perfect month?
• In May, we got ready for spring. I ran another half marathon and Tom prepared for RAAM.
• In June, I raced my first 10k and came in 4th in my AG out of 70+ women. I won my first triathlon, which included a police escort on the bike and everything (a women's only race here in Columbus). I placed 3rd in my AG in a 5k. Tom was on the winning eight man RAAM team. We traveled to Orlando for some speaking engagements and relaxation.
• In July, we both raced the inaugural JCC Independence tri and I came in 2nd in my AG and 3rd OA female. Tom placed in his AG too. We also celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary! Later in the month, I PRed at an Olympic distance tri and had a blast racing the Trek Women's Series Columbus race.
• August was spent preparing for Ironman Louisville which well... didn't go quite as I expected (remember I said that there were some hard times that shaped me as a person... yup... this was one of them)
• In September, I PRed in a half Ironman by 14 minutes! I also chaired my second High Heels and High Hopes event which raised over $60,000 for women's health at our local hospital.
• October brought more PR's - Tom and I ran the Columbus marathon - he broke 4 hours and I got a little closer to that goal with a 14 minute PR. We also traveled to Austin and dreamed of living in a place with so many fit and active people someday!
• November and December have flown by, but I've realized how blessed I am to have the life I have.

Business grew in 2010 - something that many people can't say happened. Tom and I are lucky to have the freedom of working from home (him with his new job and me with the company), and we're lucky that we like each other enough to spend 24 hours a day together (yep, we do and yep, it works for us)

A tough lesson in 2010 - just because you share blood doesn't mean that you are family. Tom and I have a lot of friends that I would call family before those who are "family" by definition. And that's alright. I realized how amazing my true friends are (I found out the hard way that I can't force a friendship that really isn't there and that losing a group of friends at one time can really hurt... again, something that made me stronger) True friends are to come by. I've said it a million times... I'd much rather have 3 or 4 REALLY great friends than a world of acquaintances that wouldn't stand by my side when things got a little rocky. And cleansing your life of people that suck the energy out of you can really be refreshing.

I learned that blogging friends, although maybe people I'll never meet in real life, are the most amazingly supportive and understanding people around (some of you are crazy and I like that too...). I wish that all of you lived in Delaware Ohio (heck, I'll even considered moving to where ever you live - especially if it's warm and there is a beach nearby - one days like today when it's 20 degrees and windy, it wouldn't take much convincing) so that we can hang out, train together, shop, drink, and cause trouble (because really, what fun is it to live without causing a little trouble here and there???).

I look ahead to 2011 and it's going to be an amazing year. I'm excited to share it with you all - following your journeys and sharing mine with you.

Hang on tight because I'm sure it'll be a crazy ride!