2010: A look back

2010 was a good year, but a very intense year. In 2008, we moved in together, got married, and then suffered through the acquisition of J's company, followed by his inevitable layoff. In 2009, we moved halfway across the country, J started business school, and I found a new job and started building a life in a city where neither of us knew a soul. After two years of transition and big life changes, we were kind of hoping for a low-key 2010. That didn't exactly happen. There were highs and lows, happiness and heartbreak, lots of travel, lots of house guests, and we definitely made some memories along the way.

January

• We ring in the new year in NYC with Kristin & Dan, and spend the first hours of 2010 sliding down a snowy hill on trash bags, with frequent champagne hydration breaks.



• UT goes to the National Championship and loses; despite the loss J is adamant about naming our firstborn son Colt. It will be many months before I can persuade him to compromise on a name that doesn't conjure ponies, pistols, or... Longhorn quarterbacks.


• J starts interviewing for his summer internship.


• J celebrates a birthday.


• I get super busy at work, which will last through July.
  

February

• I work a lot; J studies and interviews a lot.


• It snows in Austin. Twice.


• 48 hours prior to of one of these snow incidents, I am poolside in a bikini soaking up the rays and 78 degree temps.


• During the other snow incident, I get stuck on a plane, on the runway, for SEVEN HOURS at DFW. All in preparation for a 37 minute flight from Dallas to Austin.

March

• Our first guests of the year! Three of my Seattle girlfriends visit during South by Southwest.


• J volunteers at SXSW's interactive show.
  

April

• My best college girlfriends visit.
  
  
  
• J's parents visit.



• We attend the formal event affectionately known as the "MBA Prom."


• My brother proposes to his girlfriend; she says yes!
  

May

• J completes his first year of business school.


• My parents visit.



• I host my sister's bachelorette party in Vancouver, BC.
  

June

• I complete the Danskin Women's Triathlon (my first!) alongside one of my best friends from college, and beat my goal with a finishing time of 1:50:01.


• We take an amazing trip to South Africa for two weeks to watch the World Cup, drink lots of wine, and, oh yeah, dive with great white sharks. (And, yes, I realize I never recapped this trip. Here's a little preview...)



• J moves to Charlotte, NC, where he will spend the summer interning at Bank of America.
  

July

• I visit J in Charlotte, and we drive down to visit Charleston, SC, over 4th of July weekend. This is my first visit to the true south; I eat shrimp and grits at High Cotton in Charleston and we tour the Boone Hall Plantation. Fascinating!



• J visits me in Austin mid-month.


• I travel back to Oregon to attend my sister's bridal shower.
  

August

• We celebrate my sister's wedding; I have the honor of standing beside Laura as her matron of honor and gain a new brother-in-law, Mike.



• My girlfriends from my post-college days in San Francisco visit.



• J returns home from Charlotte.
  
• I celebrate a birthday.

September

• I get promoted!


• I visit my girlfriends in Seattle over Labor Day weekend, while J enjoys a guys' weekend in New York; apparently we are on a mission to wrack up as many frequent flier miles as possible.

• We celebrate our two year anniversary with a weekend trip to Dallas, where we indulge in several delicious meals and visit the 6th Floor museum, the sculpture museum, and the arboretum.


• Laura and Mike, visit us in Austin; we have a great weekend, despite UT's loss to UCLA. This is the beginning of the end for UT's football season.


• Meanwhile, Oregon begins its record breaking football season; J still thinks there is no way Oregon could ever beat UT.

October

• J's parents visit again.


• We find out we are expecting.


• We visit J's cousin in Dallas and attend the Texas State Fair.


• J's best friend from high school visits.


• Number 1 ranked football teams get knocked off left and right as Oregon inches to the top.
  

November

• I have a miscarriage; two weeks later I am diagnosed with a molar pregnancy.


• I undergo surgery to remove the tumor-like mass and begin weekly blood tests to make sure that everything clears out of my system.


• J continues interviewing.


• We travel to Portland to celebrate Thanksgiving with my parents, my brother and future sister-in-law, and my sister and brother-in-law.
  

December

• Oregon wins the Pac-10 title and clinches it's position at the National Championship


• J completes his third semester of business school-- the toughest yet.


• We travel back to Seattle to spend Christmas with J's family, while squeezing in lots of visits with friends and a quick trip to see my family.

• We close out 2010 at my good friend Aja's house, surrounded by good friends, while playing rowdy board games.