“My dreams were all my own; I accounted for them to nobody; they were my refuge when annoyed - my dearest pleasure when free.” ~Mary Shelley

As I sit in the stillness of this quiet morning sipping my coffee from the cute mug the girls got me for Christmas, a lot of thoughts about the year we are leaving behind tonight come to my mind.

Memories of family, time spent with friends, saying goodbye to loved ones, a couple of scares here and there, but most importantly lots of laughter.  Every year, no matter what kind of year we've had, I feel immense gratitude for the people in my life.

Gratitude for Stan who no matter what, continues to hold my hand through the ups and downs of life. He balances me out and brings me peace in the most turbulent of days .  We might drive each other crazy at times, but I know that at the end of the day I can lean on him and he has my back.  His caring personality and sense of humor are in most days the light at the end of my tunnels.

Michelle is my source of peace, my inspiration at the end of my days and right up there with Stan the one who makes me laugh the most.  Her sense of humor and laughter often reminds me of the best times I've had in my life so far, her laughter is contagious.  This girl keeps me in my tippy toes with her pursuit of happiness and her pondering mind, but I too love that about her, it completes the picture of who Michelle was born to be. 

Bella is bella. I remember being on vacation and a lady saying to her "you know, a name tells a lot about a person, and your name suits you well." And she couldn't have said it better.  Bella is the epitome of happiness, contentedness, kindness and unselfishness. She is the most spiritual and faithful human being I have yet to know. She never has an ill word to say about anyone and always tries to see the good in everyone and every situation. If half the world looked at life the way Bella does, we’d be okay.

I am also extremely grateful for having my parents in my life who despite of dealing with the reality of aging, continue to be a great source of love, support and inspiration for me.  Every time I pick up the phone to call them, I want to bottle up their voices and the love they send through the phone line.  I am just so grateful.  My brothers, well, they know how much I love them and how much I admire them and despite the long distance, our bond has only gotten stronger through the years. They are my biggest support system aside from Stan and the girls. 

Also, speaking of awesome and supportive people in my life, I feel incredibly blessed with our amazing community of friends who continuously show us love and support, especially in times of need.  We might not have extended family close by, but we have never felt alone, and that will always mean the world to us. 

This year was a special year for me. I dared to by myself. How'? You’d ask! 😉 Well, I decided to explore my creative self in different ways but taking a few leaps of faith and I am very glad I did. Vulnerability could be frightening at times, but it has taught me a great deal about myself this past year. I have grown a lot and matured a lot. I have learned to love myself just a little more for who I AM, in every sense of the way.

In the beginning of the year I launched a new video recording series at the church where I work called “Fridays with Father.” I had the yearning of this project in my heart for quite a while and one day I decided to approach our Pastor, Father John Dearhammer and asked him if he’d be interested in participating in a project of that type. Luckily he enthusiastically agreed and on Friday, January 26, 2018 the first episode of Fridays with Father was recorded. Every Friday, either late morning or early afternoon, Father John shares his wisdom on different topics regarding spirituality and the world around us and with his gift of speech this project has been quite successful. I am on the other side recording and trying to operate two “not very high tech devices” to make the video as good quality as possible, but we always have a lot of fun working on these videos and the topics have lead us to some really great conversations. The people who follow this series faithfully await for new recordings and some even help us come up with new new topics. The Facebook Live videos (which is the format that initiated the series) has been the most watched format, but we also upload the reflections on YouTube for people who do not have access to Facebook or are unable to watch the Facebook Live video. In the link below, Father John talks about the link between technology and spirituality and offers great advice on how to stay connected with our faith through technology. Looking forward to more spiritually filled recordings in the months to come.

In May I started my blog!!! 😍 This has been a very exciting and frightening ride for me. Exciting, because I LOVE to write. Frightening, because by sharing my personal stories and dreams it makes me vulnerable. I have learned that vulnerability is a powerful tool and it has only made me stronger as a person. We live in a world that constantly judges, and growing up being a people pleaser has not always been easy for me. Writing and sharing my thoughts has been very cathartic and I am slowly learning to free myself of the what if’s that have accompanied me my whole life. This has been a liberating and rewarding experience for me. I am most definitely looking forward to sharing more of me and my adventures of this crazy adventure called life.

In late Summer I started working on two projects! TWO, that’s right! I started writing a book and I become a Local Coordinator for an amazing and exciting student exchange organization called FLAG, Foreign Links Around The Globe.

I can’t reveal too much about the book yet because it’s still very, very fresh in the making but I can wholeheartedly say that it has been (so far) one of the most amazing and rewarding experiences of my life. Working on this book project has been a lot of work, lots of sleepless nights and time at the computer after a long day at work, but I am beyond excited to share with everyone the gem of stories behind the cover of the book. ❤

Now, let me tell you about FLAG. You know those projects you decide to embark on and then you encounter obstacle after obstacle but the project is too good to turn your back on and just give up? Well, this is exactly how I’ve felt about Foreign Links Around The Globe from day one. After applying for this position, a series of interviews, some training and many tests later, I became a certified Local Coordinator for FLAG. I thought everything would just land on my lap after the certification went through and things would run smoothly but I should’ve known better by now. If things don’t require hard work and hustle, are they even worth it? Well, soon after I had my certification in my hands and a prospect family that wanted to become a host family for an International exchange student, I found out that our School District did not have FLAG as one of their approved programs. I know better than stop at “NO", so I started brainstorming ideas on what to do to be able to offer this amazing program to our community, contacting people, talking to all the right school officials and with the right resources, information and the help of my amazing Chapter Director, Jennifer Graves, FLAG passed all the requirements and is now an official student exchange program in School District 211. I am bursting at the seams with excitement about the possibilities of this program. Being an International gal myself, and being married to someone from a different country and culture as mine, I know first hand how incredibly rewarding and inspirational learning about other countries and ways of life can be. I have many plans, hopes and dreams for this new adventure of mine and I am incredibly looking forward to a year of International adventures with people from our community. If you would like to host an international student for the upcoming school year, I am your person! Click the link below for more information. 👇

Tonight, we will be turning the last page of the last chapter of 2018 and I will be welcoming 2019 with a grateful heart, a positive mind and ready for the many adventures to come.

May this new year bring us love and peace to our lives and our world.

2019, we are ready for you! ❤