Peace out 2016

Dear 2016,

You were sort of a drag.

On a personal level…you took my dear pup, Faith, who was by my side for nearly 16 years. You tested my mothering skills to a level I thought I couldn’t handle. You brought an invasive surgery for our son Scout (don’t worry he is fine), turned our son Sawyer’s world up-side-down.

On a national/international level…

You cut short the lives of so amazing talents (prince, bowie, harper lee, gene wilder, Muhammad Ali, Arnold Palmer, Carrie Fisher, Alan Rickman, and the list goes on).
You took countless innocent victims during police shootings, bombings, terrorist attacks, and violence.
You brought flooding, hurricanes, earthquakes, and large plane crashes in Egypt and Columbia.
You gave us a presidential election that left a sour taste in nearly everyone’s mouth.
And seriously, the Cubs even won the World Series (just kidding that was pretty cool…for them).

But because I am an optimistic person, I also want to remember all the positive things that took place over the last 365 days. So, while the above might be daunting, I really am thankful for another year of health, love, and happiness.

2016, here is what you were awesome at:

You took me to Captiva Island for our first family of 4 vacation and Scout’s first visit to the ocean.
You gave me one heck of a visit to Arizona, where I got to experience Scottsdale and the beautiful Sedona for the first time.
You let me experience some super fun concerts including Beyoncé, James Taylor, the Lumineers (Sawyer + Scout’s first concert), and Dierks Bentley (I even got to go on stage).
You brought the marriage of my sister to my new brother-in-law, Brian.
You gave me a 5-year wedding anniversary to celebrate with my husband.
You introduced the adorable Allie Maxine (Congrats to our best friend’s Megan + Tim).
You gave Sawyer the opportunity to learn to play soccer, T-ball, and martial arts, and he excelled at all of them.
You gave us hope through the news that both my sister-in-law Cindie and my father-in-law Derek are cancer free.
You brought exciting new adventures to my best friend Trina as she accepted a new job in Kansas City (missing her like crazy!).
You brought along my 7-year anniversary with O’Reilly Auto Parts (hello extra week vacation).
You brought Scout’s 1^st birthday, with a celebration with friends and family.
You gave us Sawyer’s new pet Larry the mini turtle.
You honored John’s uncle Mike with a Missourian Award and John’s grandpa Sam with the SBJ Man of the Year Award!.
You took my cousin Meghan off the market with her engagement to Nick…making me a bridesmaid and my boys ring bearers in the process.
You brought John and me back to Dallas for Scout and Sawyer’s first trip to Texas and a wonderful visit with our friends the Tarwaters (plus getting to meet their new addition Palmer).
And the one I am very optimistic about is You finally gave John and me what seems to be a positive roadmap to Sawyer’s needs, meaning two amazing new schools and a therapist to help us a long the way. His world is right side up.