Happy Now-Jan. 1

Happy New Year!  I have a great feeling about 2012.  So far, we are off to a great start!  This post is several weeks overdue, but I have my top ten Happy Now moments from the last few weeks of 2011.

1.  Dinner with the Chaffees--On our last Sunday in Utah before the Christmas Break, Darren and I were invited to dinner with the Chaffees.  It is always wonderful to see them, and I feel like I am meeting with family rather than friends whenever I am with them.  While there, the Chaffee women recommended the TV series "Downton Abbey" to me.  Darren and I just finished watching the first season via Netflix, bless Darren's heart.  We both really enjoyed it, though, and can't wait to start watching Season 2 next week!  Thank you for the wonderful meal, evening, and recommendations, Chaffee family!

2.  Holiday Farewells to Students--Every now and then, I think about a scene from the movie "Mr. Holland's Opus" in which Mr. Holland is teaching his first day of a high school music class.  At the end of the day, Mr. Holland says something about how he never imagined as a student that his teachers looked forward to the final bell as much as he did.  I certainly felt that way on the last day of teaching before the holiday break.  I was as giddy as the students at the prospect of having a week and a half off.  I expected the students to rush out the door without a backwards glance when the final bell rang, and most of them did.  A few students turned back, however, with some very kind words.  Their expressions of gratitude and holiday wishes made me pause in my attempt to follow the students quickly out the door with a much-needed reminder of why I love to teach and why the classroom is a pretty great place to be after all.

3.  Road Trip--I have many fond memories of the road trip between Utah and California, most often made with my family while I attended BYU.  The trip has come to represent excitement as I am either driving home or returning back to an academic adventure.  These most recent trips with Darren have been no different.

4.  Family Gatherings--The holidays are all about family, aren't they?  Over this holiday break, Darren and I were not only able to spend some wonderful quality time with my immediate family, but with extended family, as well.  I look forward to every opportunity I have to get together with my cousins, aunts, and uncles.  I felt fortunate to be able to see my Dad's side of the family over the holiday since Darren and I had missed seeing them at Thanksgiving.  Here's to a 2012 with many more family gatherings!

5.  Christmas Eve Chili--I love holiday traditions.  One of my favorite Christmas Eve traditions is eating a bowl of my mom's Christmas Eve chili.  It smells and tastes like Christmas to me more than anything else.

6.  Christmas Morning Wake-up Calls--I am 28 years old, but I still find it absolutely necessary to get an early start to the festivities on Christmas morning.  One may think this should fall to the youngest sibling, but alas it has fallen upon me over the past few years to wake my brother, parents, and now husband when the agreed upon time has come to begin opening stockings.

On a slightly unrelated topic, I wanted to share a Christmas day picture of me and Darren before we left for church.  We had taken several, but I didn't like any as much as the impromptu dip Darren did at the end. :)

7.  Wedding Cake--I previously mentioned loving holiday traditions.  Truth be told, my love of traditions is not limited to holidays.  My parents agreed to save part of the top layer of our wedding cake in their freezer for the past year so that Darren and I could have a bite on our 1st anniversary.  Despite some hesitation on Darren's part to eat a year-old piece of cake, I was bound and determined to carry out this tradition.  It was about a month after our first anniversary, but we ate (and enjoyed!) a piece of our wedding cake.  I was surprised by how good it still was!  Darren and I both had more than the anticipated small bite.  My mom, who did not get the chance to try any at our reception, also had a taste.  I would definitely recommend this tradition!

Chris, our photographer for the evening, got artistic with our rings before we took bites out of the red velvet piece of wedding cake.

We're about to take our first bite.

8.  Zumba with Mom--Several weeks ago I mentioned how much I enjoyed taking a Zumba class with some teachers at my school.  When I found out that a local gym in CA would be hosting two Zumba class while I was in town, I immediately proposed the idea to my mom.  While the music and steps were different than my experience with Zumba in Utah (but still confirmed that I have ABSOLUTELY NO Latin blood in my veins), we still had a great time.  What a fun way to work up a sweat!

9.  New Year's Resolutions--Every year, I love making New Year's Resolutions.  There's something about starting fresh with a clear image of how you want to improve certain areas of your life that is invigorating.  Many years ago, my dad used a scriptural reference (Luke 2:52) which talked of Christ growing in "wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man" to suggest that we make resolutions in four main categories of our lives: intellectual, physical, spiritual, and social.  I have my resolutions set and am ready to put them into action.

10.    Midnight Fireworks--Darren and I started driving back to Utah yesterday afternoon, on New Year's Eve.  Once we were on the road, we set the goal of trying to be back to Springville by midnight so that we could ring in the New Year in our little apartment.  We were about 20 minutes late, but it worked out for the best.  When the clock struck midnight, our car was cresting a hill on the freeway from which we could see surrounding communities for quite a distance.  Our first moments of 2012 were greeted by several fireworks displays in the Utah valley.  We counted nine in all.  It was a magical moment and a great way to start off a new year.

A very happy New Year to you all!

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