2014 in Review

It's almost the New Year. I hope you're still having a good holiday season. Last year around this time I wrote this post about the most significant moments in 2013.

I was getting ready to write a post for this year and rereading the one from a year ago and I was surprised at what I ended up thinking: that I had significantly fewer big moments in 2014 compared to the year before.

In 2013 I had all these major events: We moved to New Mexico, I got my M.D., I started residency, we adopted a dog.

This year I think the significant things must be smaller, because although there was loss and travel and plenty of new experiences, in the way of big life changes, 2014 was a relatively steady year.

So with that said

10 Significant Moments of 2014

1. A trip to Hawaii to see family and friends. At the end of January we went to Oahu. It was primarily vacation and we got to see both some friends and some of my family. It was a nice break.

2. Intern Retreat in Taos. In February all the interns get a few days off to go to Taos and regroup. It was a nice time with just a little official residency business and a fair amount of time in the snow. 

3. A visit from Emma and Nicola. On their Spring Break my two younger sisters drove here all the way from Chicago for a visit. It was really nice to have them here.

4. A visit to Ohio. In March I spent a week in Ohio with my sister Shannon. We visited the Air Force Museum and spent a lot of quality time just being sisters. And with her cute puppies.

5. Our summer house guest. Our summer was made infinitely better by the arrival of John's sister Kellie and her boyfriend Jason. They lived here in Albuquerque for the summer, and it was so nice to have more family around. Kellie also saved my skin several times with things around the house when I was stuck working. They're in Seattle now and we do miss them. 

6. California Trip and Tiffany's Wedding. My dear friend Tiffany got married this summer and we had a wonderful trip to California, from San Diego to Santa Barbara. 

7. Grandfather's Memorial Service. My Grandfather had a long battle with cancer and passed away this summer. He was born in 1926, was in the Navy, and he and my Grandmother were married for 64 years. It was really nice to hear all the stories and memories from everyone at his memorial.

8. La Luz Trail Hike. On labor day we took a hike with a group from our church up the La Luz trail.

9. Colorado Trip and Evan's Wedding. Our friend Evan got married in Colorado in September. We went up for the week to spend it with friends and I also fit in the final step of my USMLE boards - Step 3. It was a beautiful wedding and we had a great time. And I passed my test - all in all a successful adventure.

10. Christmas in Oregon. Just a couple days ago we got back from our Christmas trip to Oregon. We spent a night at the coast, and then at my parents' house. It was a quick trip, but so great to see family and we had all our usual traditions.

And that brings us to today. There are just 36 hours left of 2014. I'll be working at midnight tomorrow for the New Year transition, and in the meantime I'm trying to appreciate some quieter moments. 

I hope you get a chance to reflect on the significant moments of your year as well.

Thanks for reading, see you soon.