The best month of the year

I could go on forever about how much I love this month- I had a great marathon, the weather cools down, school gets out/Ryan's home, the house gets decked, there are multiple feasts, three different high school friends are coming back home to visit, and of course...surprising Ryan with a few gifts on Christmas morning.

A few other bonus moments of happiness this month that will help cement it as the best month of the year:

Watching the annual Christmas parade with some old friends and doing our best to embarrass Riki when he walked by!

Ryan earned his first level blue belt, and Riki earned his second level brown! (Keni is up for the next belt level change, with the most exciting promotion ever.)

Finally finishing our lanai after SIX months of renovation, and years of waiting...

Thank goodness Ryan can show his dad how to assemble the new patio furniture.

Getting to sit on our new patio dining table (with my beloved Moroccan-inspired decor)

Finally getting around to trying to expand my succulent garden!

Boys (aka 'Nerds') Night out to go and see the latest Star Wars flick

I don't think I could ask for any more this month. Well, other than I need the motivation to finally do something about getting healthier for 2018. Only I can go vegetarian AND train for a marathon and not lose a single ounce. ;-D It's a special talent I have (called 'overeating')! 

2018 looks to start off pretty well too. I'm actively job hunting (yes, again), we have a fun trip planned for the first quarter of the year, and I'm taking a brief hiatus from a position I haven't enjoyed that is helping to reduce my anxiety. So I have hope that my ability to stop complaining (a favorite past time) and my efforts to start trying to enact positive change will soon come to fruition.

Enjoy the last few days of 2017...here's hoping we all can start changing things for the better sooner rather than later.