A Look Back on 2010
Two Thousand and Ten or Twenty Ten, whichever way you pronounced it, it was a big year.
I began the year on a quest to lose 20 pounds in 20 weeks. I’m proud to report that I was successful. I’m not so proud to report that, in the remaining 32 weeks, I’ve gained those 20 pounds back. I’m even less proud to report that those returning 20 pounds brought some buddies along. Looks like I’ll be beginning 2011 with the goal of losing 25 – 30 pounds.
2010 marked the first time we attended blogging/social media conferences. The first conference was Disney Social Media Moms 2010. Actually, B attended this one. I hung out with the kids and rode on rides. To be completely honest, I think I got the better deal. No offense to those of you who were chatting with B and enjoying the conference, but NHL, JSL and I got to go on Disney World’s rides! It’s really hard to beat that. Despite some injuries, problems and some face-remembering fears, we all had a great time. Even better, we’ll be attending DisneySMMoms 2011. And by “we”, I mean B again while the boys and I ride more rides. Small World, here we come! (By the way, if I don’t remember meeting you from last year, please don’t be offended.)
The Disney trip forced me to reexamine some of my long-held religious practices. I think I’m much happier with my modified practices than I was previously. I know that B’s much happier, though she likely misses getting total remote control custody from sundown Friday to an hour past sundown Saturday.
The high of the Disney World trip was followed with a low of constant nosebleeds. First, I got them once a week. Then, they got more and more frequent until I had to have my nose electrically cauterized. That’s as fun as it sounds (unless you think it sounds like a blast in which case you have issues). Sadly this only worked for awhile and then I had to get my nose chemically cauterized. This procedure hurt less and wasn’t as intense afterwards, but still is something I’d rather not go through again.
Towards the end of March, it became apparent that my grandmother wasn’t going to be alive much longer. She passed away in mid-April. I had previously taken custody of her photo collection with the goal of scanning them all and distributing DVDs of the photos to everyone. This scanning project uncovered some incredible photos. I only wish my grandmother was alive to tell me the stories behind them. The scanning project also turned into a genealogy project using various tools.
April also saw the launch of Dad Revolution: a joint blog hosted by about 10 dads. (The actual number fluctuates.) It’s been a bit of a rocky go at times, but I’m proud to have my posts alongside the rest of these dads!
Towards the end of May, I realized my blogging limitations. Determined to break them, I did an Eden Fantasy review, attended an Eden Fantasy party at BlogHer 2010 (NSFW) and even had a “Frisky Vacuuming” guest post on Blogging Dangerously.
In May, I began a project near and dear to me: My Bullied History. Here, I detailed how I had been bullied from elementary school through high school. I even showcased a piece of writing I had unearthed from my freshman year of college when the bullying was fresh in my mind.
In August, just before BlogHer 2010, we got a diagnosis for some of the behaviors we were seeing in NHL. The doctor said that, since I shared some of these same behaviors, I likely had this condition as well. This led me to question how much of me was from my experiences as a child versus the “condition.” In the end, it was a moot point as further testing showed he didn’t have this condition at all. A rollercoaster of emotion, to be sure.
Speaking of BlogHer 2010, we attended that conference in New York City and had a blast. I’m intentionally not going to say much about it because I know that if I try I’ll go on for about a dozen paragraphs. Suffice it to say that we highly enjoyed the panels, meeting with fellow bloggers and meeting with company representatives.
BlogHer 2010 was also where I cheated on my long-term relationship. And by that, I mean I used someone’s DSLR camera instead of my trusty point and shoot camera. We tried to repair relations, but after its flash broke, I got my own DSLR. My point and shoot will be given to NHL to use in photographic excursions with me.
Of course, 2010 also saw a lot of cooking (including duplicating a chickpea recipe I’ve been wanting to make for years), video game playing, math learning with NHL, milestones with JSL and more.
What will 2011 bring? I’m not sure, but if 2010 is any indication, it’s sure to be a wild ride.