¡Feliz año nuevo! Adiós 2013.

Another year passed, another year older...ugh! lol

This has been a busy year for me. When I look back over my calendar I realize that I've done a LOT of traveling this year. Most of it was work related, but I did manage to have some personal travel time. I spent a week in London for vacation in March. Then in April I went to Boston (twice) for meetings. The two trips were just before and after the Boston bombing. In May I went to Idaho (the DUH part) to watch my niece graduate from high school. Then in July I spent ten days in Japan as a part of a program for school administrators. Later in July I drove down to LA for a family reunion. In October I went up to San Francisco for my brother's wedding. I spent two weeks in Orlando for a conference (and vacation) in November, and at the beginning of December spent two days in Beijing for another work conference. My last trip was to Utah for Christmas. Flying-wise I racked up more than 50,000 miles. I now have Gold Status on Delta!! Bring on the upgrades!!!

2013 was also a sad year for me. I lost my first born dog, Parley. I didn't know he was sick until early February when I took him in for a routine teeth cleaning. Because he was over 10 years old, they recommended extra blood work, and they found that he was having problems with his kidneys. Basically they were operating at less than 30%. It was very surprising because Parley never acted sick. He just seemed like the normal dog that he always was. They kept him at the clinic for a few days and rehydrated him, but the vet warned that it would help him in the short term, but that he could go downhill quickly. He got sick again in late May and this time I was sure it was the end. He spent an entire week at the vet, this time he was acting sick. He had thrown up a few times and wouldn't eat for days. Crazy enough, he pulled through and got better. He ended up passing away the day before I came home from my trip to Japan. I was devastated. It's so funny how I still expect him to be around. When I get up from the couch I check to make sure he isn't underfoot. Now that I've moved homes I keep having this recurring dream where he is lost and can't find me because he only knows where our old house was. :(

I did get a new puppy to replace Parley. Hinckley, another cocker spaniel, joined my family in September. He's quite a little monster, but he's tons of fun too. He is about to turn six months old next week, and he has really started turning into the cuddler. My other cocker, Hunter, is warming up to him and they play together now. (And yes, you might have noticed my dog names...Parley, Hunter, and Hinckley. When I was right out of high school my family got a cocker spaniel, we named him Kimball. When I decided to get my own dog I jokingly said I'd give him a church name. My sister and I went back and forth with some names (Mahonri, Teancum, etc.), but when we came to Parley, I loved it! Then when I got my other two dogs I just kept it up.

I sold my house in September. It's the first house I ever bought and I lived in it for ten years. That's the longest I've ever lived in one place in my entire life. I moved into my new house the day before my China trip in early December. I just unpacked the last box the other day, so I guess I'm officially moved in. I still need to hang up pictures and buy some furniture, but that's going to wait a few weeks. I'm kicking around the idea of doing some painting and replacing the interior doors.

Overall it was a good year. I had some down times, but who doesn't? I'm still single...anyone? anyone?