2022 Recap

Happy New Year! I always wonder how far into the new year is it safe/acceptable to keep saying that! A friend reminded me that I haven’t written anything so far this year, so I’m here to remedy that situation. So far, the year is off to a great start for me. I found out last week that I won a free vacay from work. I’ve never won anything that substantial, so I’m on cloud 9 thinking about where we’ll go. More on that in a future blog post, but y’all, we’re super excited. I hope that the new year is off to a great start for y’all too. Be sure to comment below to share some good news that’s already happened this month for you too!

So, last year was a tie with 2016, the year we lost my dad, for my personal worst year ever. We lost my mama in September, so anything good that did happen earlier in the year was quickly overshadowed when that happened. To say that I miss her is an understatement. If you’ve never lost a parent, consider yourself lucky to not be a part of this club. But, taking a walk through the entire year is therapeutic for me, and a reminder of some of the highlights from the year. So, here’s a recap of 2022. Hope you’ll enjoy reading about the year that was 2022.

January/February/March

I knew that end was near on my contract assignment at Wells Fargo. I wasn’t too sad about it because the job I was hired for ended up being not at all what I was hired for. I did make great money though! I spent the majority of the first quarter interviewing for new roles. Seems like I was interviewing every day. Here’s some selfies from interview days. More on where I landed later.

April

To know me is to know that I love wine and visiting vineyards. We visited Veronét in Kings Mountain. I wrote a blog about it, so you can get more info! Beautiful vineyard and only about 45 mins from Charlotte. Although it wasn’t my favorite regarding the types of wine they make, the vibe and views are amazing.

May/June

Started my new dream job and lots of beach time. Thankfully I wasn’t on the unemployment list too long. After leaving Wells Fargo, I started a few weeks later as an Internal Communications Consultant. Basically I’m a writer, so I finally get to do what I love everyday. The saying is true, when you do what you love, it doesn’t feel like work.

We vacationed in Hilton Head and Wilmington. It was our first time in Wilmington. We liked it so much, we went back, and plan to go again this year. NC beaches are incredibly beautiful. See previous posts about both destinations, and do check out both. If you twisted my arm and forced me to choose, I’d definitely choose Wilmington, but a beach is a beach and Hilton Head is beautiful too. We’re actually going back this summer.

July

I love a good festival. We went to the Watermelon festival in Pageland, SC. First time there. Think we’d go back. It was something to do on a Saturday. We went to our first rodeo, also a part of the festival. Next time we know to get to the rodeo early so that we can get a seat because I couldn’t see anything standing since I’m short! For it to be called the Watermelon festival, we didn’t see many watermelons being sold. In my head, I thought we’d get to try all types of foods made with watermelon, see all kinds of things watermelon related being sold, all of the watermelon things, but nope.

August

The national holiday that is my birthday is August 23. This year we celebrated in Hilton Head, which was our 2nd trip there for the year. Lots of beach time, good food, and a beautiful cake when we got home. Fun fact, hubby got the cake before we left for the trip, but I thought we should wait until we got back home to eat it. Why? No good reason, and I regretted not taking it with us. Kept thinking about it the whole time!

September

September 21. I normally remember the date because it’s the last summer. I always thought it was also the first day of fall, but this year I learned that it’s actually the 22nd. But now I’ll always remember it as the 2nd worst day of my life. My dear sweet mama died on this day. We talked every single day. But the night before we didn’t get to talk, and I’m so sad that I didn’t get to talk to her one last time. Not that I would have even known it would be the last time, but at least I would have gotten to laugh with her one more time. You can best believe that every time we talked, we laughed about something. Miss laughing with her so much. I called later than my usual 7:30 time and she didn’t answer. I figured she was talking to her BFF, went to sleep thinking we’d talk the next day, but instead woke up to missed calls that I thought were from here, but instead was my sister telling me that she was gone. We got there a few hours later and nothing has been the same since. My sisters and I worked together to give her a fabulous homegoing celebration. She looked beautiful and peaceful. And now, I try my best to not let the sadness get the best of me and remember the incredible memories her. My advice, love and cherish your parents while you have them. The thing about the last time is you never know when the last time will be the last time.

October

For the first time, we went to Octoberfest. It was a day of drinking, and I’m too old for that now, so I don’t think we’ll be going back again. It was something to do on a Saturday and a beautiful day out, but nope I can’t hang anymore!

November/December

Thanksgiving without my mama was tough, but it was good seeing family. One of my mama’s best friends invited us to dinner, and we went to our usual spot, so we had plenty to eat, but I’m mad at myself for not bringing a plate from Aunt Linda’s!

I have an unexplained train fascination, so hubby bought us tickets for the Polar Express train ride. It was fun and we stayed overnight in Cherokee. For hubby’s birthday we went to Vegas. I had never been at Christmas. The hotels had some next level holiday decorations. So beautiful! If you love Christmas decorations, definitely add Vegas to your list and visit around Christmas.

We stayed Uptown on NYE. Had grand plans to watch the crown drop/raise, whatever it is they do here in Charlotte, but after a delish dinner and lots of champs, we were asleep before midnight and missed everything. Oh well, the food was great, and there’s always next year!

I’ve also missed my Wrangler since I traded her in for an Accord in 2018. So I got a new one. Four door this time. The reason I got rid of the last one is because it was 2 door, super small inside, didn’t feel safe driving in bad weather, but the four door is nothing like that and I’m happy to be back in the Jeep family!

So that’s the recap. Please share some of your highlights from last year and something good that’s already happened this year. We all deserve great things this year!