One thing I love about this time of year is the chance to reflect back on the year that was, and think ahead to the year that will be. This is the reflecting back – that public facing summary of what the year has done and been; of how we’ve all grown and changed. Some years I look back and feel like I have nothing to say. Some years the news is sad. Some years I worry that I’ll sound braggy if I’m honest. My mother-in-law gave us some old Christmas letters my husband’s father wrote during the Gulf War. They are a lovely snapshot of my husband’s family at a pivotal point. I can only hope that writing down what I see from the vantage of the end of the year eventually feels the same for my children!
The year started in Washington state, in the only cold weather they got last year. We were all together for over a week – a very unusual thing for us. We were celebrating my brother’s wedding, and thoroughly enjoying being together as a family. We hiked in the winter woods. We took a trip to Portland. We went to the Mineral Headquarters Tavern for the first time ever in our lives. Every time I am with my family, I’m forcibly reminded how much I like them. I often wonder why we live so far apart, but then I remember the family ethos of adventure and independence and have a sneaking suspicion I’m also training my children to move continents away when they’re older.
While I was in Washington, I got a call about an interview at Google. It was extremely exciting even to make it to the interview round. Since I was working in staffing and recruiting software, I knew by reputation that Google was one of the hardest places in the US to get to interview at. Over the next few months there were back and forth conversations with them.
Meanwhile, shortly after a Patriots vs Seahawks Superbowl where I couldn’t figure out who I wanted to win, the snow started to fall. You might have heard that Boston had just a dusting of snow this past year. (AHAHAH! Yeah.) It was epic, as week after week another foot would fall on banks where the last snow had not melted a jot. By the time of the last major storm, as we dug out, I had the incredibly uncomfortable feeling that if we got another major storm I would not be able to dig out because there would be nowhere to put the snow. The claustrophobia got so bad we rented snowshoes so that we could be outside, with horizons wider than the trapping paneled walls of our house. Even when spring should have been advancing – on the last weekend of the maple tap – we walked the woods in the snow and had an epic snowball fight.
Which meant that on the first week of March, when I went into Cambridge for my interview with Google, what should have been an hour long trip took about two. I’d given myself extra time, and I needed every second of it. The interview went very well, and not too long after, I found myself signing an offer and planning to work in Kendall Square. I still can’t believe my amazing luck and good fortune!
There was a little time before I had to start, though… so we took an impromptu trip to Cozumel to celebrate.
Ahhhh… there is something about a tropical island vacation that is everything you want out of a tropical island vacation. Thane opened the door on chapter books. Grey read extensively. The kids learned how to snorkel (on the surface). Adam and I got some quality snorkeling time together too. We played games. The only even minor blot was that on one of my dives I seemed to come up with water that wouldn’t leave my ear. It was actually a barotrauma (very rare in snorkeling) and I have since permanently lost very high notes in my left ear. (Or rather, I have them all the time as a persistent and extremely annoying ringing.) I still think it was probably worthwhile!
The summer was absolutely full of camping, the way I like my summers. I went camping five times – our standard three trips, plus a camping offsite for work, plus a week long trip with just my husband to New Brunswick which was very cold and very wet but where we went sea kayaking and saw some really really cool fossils. Camping with the kids has only gotten more fun. They read and play and hiked and rode bikes. I love camping, and camping with these guys continues to improve.
Which was another cool thing about this year – the kids both really learned how to ride their bikes! We went on a bunch of bike rides this summer, and watched them as they went from wobblers who fell down all the time, to fast and confident riders. We did a nine mile bike tour of Boston (which Thane was truly not ready for and which took years off my life) … but we did it! I feel like bikes are truly resurging. My children will be more independent for this skill!
During that trip I took with my husband to New Brunswick, we had lots of quality time together in the car. (We listened to some awesome podcasts together!) But then we got to talking about “what we wanted to do” yadda yadda. And at some fateful point, Adam announced that he was going to do a renovation of our dining room. We got a great deal on our house, in no small part because the decor was disastrously 70s. Drop ceilings and cheap paneling covered the 120 year old plaster walls. We just needed to take down the paneling and drop ceiling and maybe redrywall. Might take a couple weeks. It actually took three months of Adam working nights, weekends and taking Fridays off to work more. It turns out there was no insulation in those walls (despite our having hired a company to blow in insulation – they drilled holes and messed up our siding, but didn’t blow in any insulation). So that added a bit. He reframed a wall. Drywall is hard. But it looks amazing now. And makes our living room look bad….
Around the time the drywall was being mudded and sanded, my brother came to live with us. The wedding that had kicked off the year was not a durable match, and his contract in Denver had come to an end. On the drive back from New Brunswick my husband invited him to come live with us and as the summer crossed to fall he did. He’s been kicking off his Steampunk Vicar officiating services and is looking for a IT helpdesk type job while he contemplates the next chapter in his life.
Another new start in the life of the Flynns. I won’t pretend that Grey’s decision to play trumpet hasn’t made me extremely pleased. Even better – he’s been incredibly dedicated in his practicing. He’s practiced on average once a day since Thanksgiving. He can now play “Ode to Joy” very well (which is *not bad* for two months in on a new instrument!) I’m trying VERY HARD not to get ahead of myself with this one.
There has also been a lot going on in the life of the church. This year I am teaching 2nd – 5th grade Sunday School (which is usually pretty fun). I’m also running a mission study taskforce. We’re using the New Beginnings process, which is a significant investment in prayerful thought and time. Because I’m crazy, I’m also running the Christmas Pageant this year. If your Christmas Card is late this year, that’s why.
This year has been a phenomenal one for me. It’s been full of the kind of adventures I like best, the people I love and new opportunities. I think 2016 is going to have a very tough time topping it, but I’m willing to give it a chance!
May your reflection on your year be filled with as much joy, and may your year ahead be even better!
I usually select about 100 pictures to choose from when I’m making my calendar. Here are this years top pictures!
My Truant Pen 