2019 ~ a year in review

As I sit here on Christmas morning during a very different Christmas I am reflecting back on the year.  It has been a whirlwind in every area of life.  I know I normally write a letter and send it in the Christmas cards but this year just got away from me soooooo.... Take a trip down memory lane with me....

Let's start with work.....  In January I was deep in the midst of an acquisition of my company.  Crazy busy time, but I am grateful for the event as it meant I stayed employed vs our company shutting its doors.  It's been a crazy but successful year in this regard.

Shawn and I are plugging away at life and I would say enjoying the empty nest life.  Of course we love when the kids come and visit and I wish they were here all the time but this decade of life has been my most fulfilling as a person, a wife and a parent.  I couldn't ask for better!!  Well, other than to not be sick at Christmas.....

Andrew has had a busy year himself!! He and Emily moved in together, got a dog and most exciting of all, got engaged this Summer!!   They are getting married on April 19th, 2020.  Cannot wait!!  Emily is a beautiful young lady both inside and out and I am so excited to have her as part of the family!!  She just graduated college this December and is currently teaching at Mansfield ISD.  So proud of her.  Andrew has added Bike Patrol to his LEO resume.  Some might think this is easy but you are still patrolling at night looking for criminals without the protection of your police car.   He is also looking at some additional opportunities within the department.  More on that next year....

Grayson and Taelur hit the two year mark this Summer!!  They both moved to Baton Rouge at the start of the school year.   Taelur is a certified cosmetologist!!  So proud of her!!  Grayson is networking and making contacts in the technical theatre realm.  Only a year and a half to go and then it's off to the real world!!!  Whenever I go see a show at LSU I can see how much he is loved and respected by his fellow theatre peeps! I have always said I love that group of kids whether it was high school or college.  Watching him in his element is one of the best things!!  Love these two to pieces!!  I am so excited where life is taking them!  Two beautiful souls that make me so proud!!

The doggos are crazy as ever!!  However, we are down to 3.  Autumn is still kicking it and has been very spritely despite all her ailments...  Hazel and Riley are in full adolescence....  rambunctious, snuggly, crazy and FULL of energy.  Love our four legged babies!!!  Now to figure out now to control all this hair all over....  HAHA

In addition, I have continued to focus on my fitness with CG and completely love CG Family!!  I have gained new friends that I cherish!!  I renewed focus on my fitness and more trainers that I love!!  I competed in CG games for the first time this Summer and it was SO hard but SO fun!!  We trained for weeks and if I do say so myself did GREAT!!

I have also joined the Premier Designs family as an independent Jewelry Consultant!!  Just starting out but loving it!!  Looking forward too what next year brings!

Added a new tattoo!  Gray and I both got the coordinates of Cape Cod to commemorate our trips there as we both LOVE vacationing there.

AND we got a POOL!!!  Why did we wait so long to do this???  Oh yeah, that was my fault...  LOL  We got to spend quite a bit of time in it this Summer before the temps cooled off.  But have enjoyed the hot tub since then.  Can't wait to open the pool back up next Summer!!!

Lots of crazy health things this year so am very thankful that we are healthy!!  Unless of course you consider the Christmas Plague that Shawn and I have this year.....  All in all we are in good health!!

I hope this letter finds you all in good health, happy and blessed!

Love to all
Nicole

9/11, 18 years......

Like most of you, this day brings so much emotion.  I can vividly see not only the night before but also this day and the days that followed.  We went from happily celebrating our anniversary with a great dinner to feeling helpless, hopeless, angry, crushed, confused, scared and many other emotions to having faith in humanity restored all in a matter of days.

I usually spend many nights at this time of year watching all the 9/11 coverage on TV again and again and still to this day trying to understand and comprehend what happened.  It breaks my heart over and over.  Why do I do it then??  One, to always remember, two I am still trying to comprehend that day and the hate it took to cause such devastation.  I vividly remember watching the second plane hit and thinking it was a replay of the first because there no way someone would intentionally crash two planes in to these buildings.  Everything we knew on September 10th was crushed on 9/11.

There are many posts and pictures about that day and the days that followed.  And I wonder why it is on this day we long for the days of 9/12 when we all came together as one?  Is it because the hurt and sadness is real again?  Why don't we long for those days everyday?  We remember on this day but then go back to our lives when it is over.  Yes, we need to be able to move forward and move on but we say, "Never Forget", so we should truly never forget and strive to be the people of 9/12.

Those 3000 people that perished on 9/11 would be so very disappointed in the country we are today.  They died because of the immense hatred that others had for us simply because of the country we live in.  Why today, do we have so much hate within our OWN borders for each other, not to mention the hate we seem to also have for those outside.  We MUST learn from our past and do better!  We need to love and support one another.  It doesn't matter who you are, you should feel FREE to be yourself, believe what you want to believe, disagree even with others, but just because someone is different than you doesn't give you the right to be a bully or to promote hate.   We MUST be better America!!

Use the memory of this day to drive kindness back in to our country and our world.  And don't think I am only one person, it takes one act of kindness to start spreading kindness across the many. 

Think about the below.  How quickly our whole lives changed!!!  Let's be better so people don't think they can do this again one day.   NEVER FORGET!!

8:46 a.m.: Hijackers deliberately crash American Airlines Flight 11 into floors 93 through 99 of the North Tower (1 WTC).

9:03 a.m.: Hijackers deliberately crash United Airlines Flight 175 into floors 77 through 85 of the South Tower (2 WTC).

9:37 a.m.: Hijackers deliberately crash American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon, near Washington, D.C.

9:59 a.m.: The South Tower (2 WTC) collapses.

10:03 a.m.: After learning of the other attacks, passengers on United Airlines Flight 93 launch a counterattack on hijackers aboard their plane to try to seize control of the aircraft. In response, the hijackers crash the plane into an empty field near Shanksville, Pa.

10:28 a.m.: The North Tower (1 WTC) collapses. The 16-acre World Trade Center site is in ruins, with collateral damage affecting all adjacent properties and streets. A rescue and recovery effort begins immediately.