So this is the new year

Time to say so long to a year of intense change and upheaval. A year whose highs were unbelievable, and whose lows were gut-wrenching. A year in which:

• I finished and left my long-term project assignment at the California Child Support Automation System, leaving behind many good friends and esteemed colleagues, and some of the best years of my career.


• I moved on to a new project at the California Public Employees Retirement System, bringing with it an unprecedented level of responsibility and stress, not to mention relentless overtime hours.


• My sister fought through breast cancer, beginning in early spring.


• My mother fought through oral cancer, beginning in the fall.


• I lost over forty pounds from July through December.


• We completed Baby Step 3 in the Dave Ramsey program, meaning we now have all our debts paid off except for the house and have an emergency fund with six months of expenses in it.


• We tried enrolling Aria in Kindergarten at a public open school, but after it became apparent that it wasn't a good fit for her or us, we made the decision to home school her.


• Audrey completed the transformation from toddler to little girl, leaving behind nearly all vestiges of babyhood - and we suddenly find ourselves in a new era of parenting.


• Oh yeah, and way back when, at the beginning of the year, I became a Sun Certified Enterprise Architect.

It's hard for me to have any perspective or feelings about what the upcoming year will hold, because for the moment, I'm just dog tired. I'm tired from working so much, emotionally drained from the roller coaster of my family's cancer battles, physically exhausted from the work of getting into shape and losing weight, and almost totally checked out mentally after my work has thrown me a seemingly endless array of unsolvable problems. Oh yeah, and I'm sick to death of budgeting and "living like no one else so that later we can live like no one else."

Despite all that, I'm immensely proud of what we've achieved this year. The word "grateful" doesn't begin to express how I feel about having a healthy family that is, for the time being, cancer free. I love my kids more than ever, and I am feeling even more connected to my amazing wife. I'm incredibly thankful to be employed at a job that I still like a lot, especially during this time when so many others are having a tough time finding work. And I'm overwhelmed with thankfulness that God gave me the strength and willpower to get my flabby ass in gear and finally lose weight.

So, over the next couple weeks, it will be time to set goals for the new year, and start figuring out how to get to the next level. But for now, I'm just going to reflect on how far we've come, stay thankful, and try to rest.

Happy new year everyone.