A Weekend of Half Marathons!!

I know it has been a month since I last wrote.  I am sorry...again:-)

I just wanted to write a quick little post (which I am going to try to make my M.O. from now on...the long ones are too daunting)

I wanted congratulate a few of my dearest friends Em(and her boyfriend, Dave) and Erin on completing and in one case CRUSHING their half marathons this past weekend!!  I too completed (my second) half marathon (but on the west coast, not the east), hence the title of this post.  

My little floozie friend (this is an endearing nickname, I promise), Em completed her half marathon in 1 hour and 38 minutes!!! Which put her in 3rd place in her age group!! Congrats to you my little lightning bolt!!  I received word from Erin that she lived through it, she felt better than she thought she would, and most importantly HAD FUN!! I am sure she dominated it (and is just being modest).  I am SO proud of you girls (and guy)!!!  I wish I was there doing it with you, but I really really really was there in spirit.  I was thinking about you all A LOT as I ran on the other side of the country.

This is a picture of John and me after my run.  He was the most AMAZING cheerleader you could possibly imagine.  He rode around on his bike all morning  while cheering, taking pictures and offering anything I might have needed.  I am not sure how this all happened, but he somehow rode 19.5 miles on his bike while chasing me around as I ran 13.1...riddle me that one:-)  I love you Johnny...thank you for being my biggest cheerleader in everything I do.  P. Daddy would be so proud...although he would probably say you need a little work on your vocals:-)

One Amazing American

Okay, so here I am again, over 2 weeks have passed since my last post, but hey, it's better than 3 months, right?  I don't have to great of deal to report, other than the NFL draft is finally over for the year (as of yesterday).  This means that summer break is slowly approaching and I CAN'T WAIT!  I also went to my first Oakland A's game on Easter Sunday (April 12th) with a few coaches and their wives, and then again on April 14th with the QB's coach and his wife (who I have spent a bit of time with- and ADORE) to see the A's beat the Red Sox in 12 innings(always enjoyable-sorry Anna and P. Daddy).  Here is a picture of John and me at my first A's game(after the Seattle Mariners won). 

The weekend (April 18th/19th) following those two games brought AMAZING weather to the Bay Area.  We had temperature in the mid-high 80's, which apparently is very rare for here, but I was definitely not complaining!  We went for runs, bike rides, hung out by the pool, and enjoyed our new lounge chairs on our back patio.  We had an absolutely picture perfect California weekend.  

Unfortunately, John had to go back to work and get ready for the draft, and I had a very exciting week ahead of me.  I volunteered to be part of the organizational process for an absolutely fantastic fundraising run.  It is called Pat's Run.  For those of you who don't know what it is, here you go:  It is a 4.2 mile run that is held in Tempe, Arizona one week, and San Jose, California the following week.  It is put on by the Pat Tillman Foundation and the significance of the locations and distance are as follows: Pat Tillman was born and raised in San Jose and went to college in Tempe and went on to play in the NFL for the Arizona Cardinals.  Although his jersey number for the Cardinals was #40, his number at ASU was #42, hence the 4.2 mile run.  

I am sure many of you have heard the name Pat Tillman before.  If not, here is a very brief version of his life (basically what I knew prior to getting to experience working for his foundation).  Pat Tillman was a handsome, strong, All-American type, California boy.  He played football and was an extremely hard worker.  His hard work led him to an education and football career at Arizona State University and then to his professional career with the Arizona Cardinals.  He played there for a few years, but after being touched by the events of Septemeber 11th, Tillman turned down a multimillion dollar contract to enlist in the Army and serve our country.  He was killed, we later found out, by friendly fire in Afghanistan.  As if the fact that this young man gave up money, fame, and a comfortable life, to serve our country wasn't enough to pull at my heart strings, what I learned about him over the past couple of weeks, put me over the top.  

A well read young man (in every type of book you could imagine), he graduated from ASU, with a major in marketing,  in LESS than 4 years and a GPA of 3.84. He was intelligent. With his spare time, he took classes in special education so that he could better understand a friend who had learning disabilities.  He was caring.  He often volunteered in the community at places like the Boys and Girls by doing things like reading to children.  He was selfless.  He was once offered $9 million to play for an NFL team other than the Cardinals(one that had just won the Superbowl), but he turned it down JUST to stay with the losing Cardinals.   He was loyal.  He married his high school sweetheart.  He was committed.  He drove the same non air-conditioned truck that he drove in college while playing for the Cardinals.  He was down to earth.  In addition to being a professional football player, he completed a marathon AND a Half Ironman.  He was a competitor.  Even while making millions, he rode his bike to and from training camp practices.  He was had a young, free spirit.  He turned down a large contract (again) to proudly wear the US Army uniform.  He was patriotic.  These are just a handful of examples of who Pat Tillman was...from a person who didn't even know him.  Imagine how he touched the lives of those who ACTUALLY knew him?!

I don't want to get into the full biography of Pat Tillman, because if you really want to, you can crack open a book, or google him to learn everything you want to know.  I just wanted to share some of the things I learned about Pat Tillman over the course of last week, which shaped my opinion that he was a truly exceptional human.  He was the textbook definition of a role model.  Imagine if we had a country full of people who demonstrated even a small fraction of the qualities that Tillman did in his 28 years of life?  Wow, how much better off would we be?  That is the idea behind his foundation.  Or at least that is what I take from it.  If the foundation can raise money to give young people a chance to lead through their actions, I am all for it.  Even if you take the money raised out of the equation...this man, who unfortunately is not with us anymore, brought together nearly 5,000 people(most of who didn't even know him personally)...two weeks in a row, not only to celebrate his life, but to remember the person that he was, and hopefully inspire them to make positive changes in their own life. Now, I am not suggesting that everyone go out and enlist in the army, because as much as I appreciate and respect EVERYTHING that our brave young men and women do, it is definitely NOT for everyone. But, I challenging you today, just today, to take one aspect of who Pat Tillman was, and incorporate those qualities into your own life.  Trust me, you will feel better about yourself, and you will make the world a better place at the same time.  Heck, what could be better than that?   And who knows, maybe you will even want to challenge yourself again tomorrow:-) 

Never Forget #40

Holy Stinkin' Moley

Oh my goodness.  I am the WORST blogger in the history of the world.  My lack of blogging activity spiraled out of control after I returned from my February trip to the East Coast, for my dear friend Carin's wedding!!!!-which was AMAZING!!!  I returned, and felt that I had SO much to write about, and then I started to feel guilty for not writing for the whole MONTH prior.  So I didn't log on.  Then, before you know it a month and half had passed, then two months...and now, here we are at 2 and a half months...and I am completely ashamed!! I know I have promised this in the past...but isn't admitting the problem the first step? :-)  I have overcome my fear of the blogging gods striking me down for logging in without writing for 2 and a half months..and here I am making my post..and as far as I can tell, I am still alive!!  First, a quick note about my trip back East:  It seems like forever ago, but here goes the best recap I can come up with!!  I got to spend lots of time with my family doing the usual things, like lunches with Dad and Matty at Starbucks, hanging at home with Mama, dinner in the city with Lulu, and lunch at THE BLAZER (ahhh heaven) with the best big bro in the world, Danny.  Even though none of those things seem spectacular or earth-shattering, those are the things that keep me smiling when I think about my family while I am so far away. Also, while they are not earth-shattering events, they are the things that mean the absolute most to me.  I also somehow convinced most two of my Aunts and Nana to come meet in Connecticut for a dinner at our perfect meeting spot, Bertucci's.  I always love catching up with Aunt Susan and Aunt Leigh about all of their latest news and life happenings, and of course seeing Nana always means the world to me.  She is the most amazing lady (any of you who have ever met her, know this first hand).  Coincidentally, she turns 84 today!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY NANA!! If I could have half the youthfulness that she has when I am 84, I will be one happy lady!!  

P. Daddy and I also got to see my awesome cousin Larry, and his pops, Uncle Larry, for a dinner date one night and a movie/dinner date another night!!  How lucky am I to get to have TWO dates with THREE absolutely unbelievable guys at one time, and still have my wonderful husband to talk to at the end of the night!! Wow, I am blessed!!  

I also got to be part of my very  best friend's birthday celebration at a Saki bombing sushi restaurant in the city.  Although, the restaurant wasn't exactly "my style" being able to sit next to my Meggaroo and share her birthday with her, was something that I am extremely grateful for.  When you live somewhere far away, being there for people's birthdays are something that you realize you may have taken for granted before.  Thank you Meg for sharing your day with me!!  

While home I was also able to catch up with a few grad school friends (and my DEAR friend Millie) over dinner, which was a welcomed surprise component of my trip.  Speaking of friends, I was very lucky to have my two best friends from college Josey and Jana in New York at the same time I was there.  Jana of course lives there, but Josey planned a trip to see Jana and me knowing that I would be home. 

Josey and I hadn't seen each other for a very long time, and it was wonderful to see that the second we "got back together" things were just the same as they were 6 years ago in our old row house in Lancaster, PA.  Both Josey and Jana were such a HUGE part of my life for my college years, and I am extremely grateful that they are part of my adult years as well.  I love you guys!!  

Finally, CARIN and RYAN's WEDDING was on February 28th, 2009 at the Baltimore Museum of Industry and what an event it was!! Despite being sick as a dog, I had such a blast!!  Carin had been planning this event FOREVER and it showed!! Everything was perfect.  The venue was breathtaking, the flowers and her dress were flawless, the table settings were unique and beautiful, and more than anything else, Carin was PERFECT!!  She looked absolutely beautiful on her special day and I felt so honored to  be able to stand up there with  her as one of her "maids" to help her leap into the next phase of her life. Thank you for asking me to be part of your day Carin!! I can't say it enough, it was AMAZING!! And it makes me so happy to see you happy!  

Following the wedding, after getting to squeeze a FANTASTIC afternoon of Floozie time in with the world's most adorable couple (Em and Dave), I headed back up to NY to catch my flight back to CA, only to get caught in a MAJOR snowstorm that resulted in my flight being cancelled...it was majorly stinky because at that point I was desperately missing John, but at least I got to spend an extra day with my awesome fam!!

Phew!! That was exhausting!! So, I got back March 3rd, and got to catch up with my sweet husband and got to see him do an awesome triathlon called the Diabloman, which was basically a swim at the bottom of Mount Diablo (google it), a bike ride UP the majority of the mountain, and then dismounting the bike 3.1 miles shy of the summit and then running the remainder of the way up.  Sounds fun? No. It didn't look fun either, but I was able to "chase" him the entire way up the mountain in the 4Runner throwing Powerbars and Gatorades at him as needed.  Even though the race wasn't exactly my cup of tea, it sure was John's because he came in FIRST in his age group!! YUP!! That's my hubby!! SO PROUD!! :-)

During the week following the race, we got a visit from my other, new Dad because he was in town doing a press conference for a new football league that he is part of.  It was so awesome to be able to spend a day or so taking walks, catching up, having dinner etc.  It was definitely a VERY welcomed surprise.  Whenever I hang out with my "in-laws" I am reminded of how happy I am that I don't have those looney in-laws that everyone seems to have and always talks about.  Sorry for all of you who have them, that trend somehow skipped me!! Again, blessed.  

In March, I also got to go to my very first NBA game!! It was the Golden State Warriors v. the NJ Nets and holy cow did we have amazing seats(one of John's friends totally hooked us up-thank you Ron!!).  We were LITERALLY three rows from the NJ bench and I have to say, NBA games are SUPER exciting in real life!! Of course, it may have had something to do with our proximity to the court, but hey, if that is the last game I ever go to, I went out on a high note!! And to top it all off, the Warriors won!! 

The Friday after the Warriors game, twin sister from another mother, Erin came to town to visit!! How did I get so lucky that she wants to waste her spring break visiting me?!?  I obviously wanted to make sure it was a trip to remember, so we started it off with some major fun!! The day after she arrived we hopped in the car for a little 3+ hour trip(she is a trooper!!) to Yosemite National Park!!! 

 I really could never describe the wonders of this place, so I am not going to even try...but trust me, YOU HAVE TO GO!!  

We spent the first day checking out the usual touristy spots (Bridalveil Falls, Half Dome, The Tunnel View, etc.) and then on the second day we went to a less traveled part of the park called Hetch Hetchy Reservoir.  We weren't sure about the decision to spend our second day there, but it was SO close to the cabins we were staying in that it was very appealing.  We took a risk, and holy cow, it was worth it.  While all the famous sites of Yosemite were worth seeing, the Hetch Hetchy section of the park provided all the beauty(maybe more) of the main part of the park, but it was also SO much more peaceful.  Well worth it!!  

After we got back from Yosemite Erin and I took some shorter trips to places like the Jelly Belly Factory so we could see how those little wonders are made (yeah, we are really 8 years old).  We also hit up Old Faithful of California, which is one of 3 faithful geysers in the entire world.  It was a little bit of a weird location, but hey, if you get to see a geyser, some fainting goats, llamas AND the beauty of Napa, who really cares how weird it is:-)  On Erin's last day, we slept in a little, took a walk around Alameda's paths, went over to Berkeley (just so she could experience it), and then went over to San Fran to meet one of Erin's old friends for dinner.  All in all, it was an AMAZING trip that I will never forget, and hopefully Erin won't either.  My evil plan of brainwashing her to move out here might slowly be working:-)

I think that pretty much brings us to now.  A few weeks have passed since Erin left, but there isn't really anything SUPER exciting to catch you up on...plus, I am tired of typing.  I need to get back into good blogging shape.  Luckily my next ones won't have to be as long because there won't be so much time in between this one and the next!!! Much love!!

A Week of Firsts

Eight days since my last post?! Eeek!! I have been struggling to settle down and find words to describe the excitement that came into our life over the course of this last week.  On Monday ESPN News released the story that my handsome husband was promoted to the position of Special Teams Coordinator for the Oakland Raiders!!! Now, I am relatively new to the football world, and I know next to nothing about the history of the NFL, but from what I have gathered, this organization and its owner(Mr. Davis) played an instrumental role in developing the league that will play its 43rd Superbowl in two weeks.  So, it with a heart that is absolutely exploding with pride that I share the news with the blogging world, that my own Johnny is the Special Team Coordinator of this history filled organization!! WOW!! I have only witnessed his hard work and determination for 2 years, but if he worked in the past, even a fraction as hard as he has over the past two years(which I know he has), then this promotion is a long time coming.  He is such an unbelievable human and an unbelievable coach, and he deserves every good thing that has come to him and every good thing that will come to him as a result of the WAY he does his job and of course his hard work.  I love you Johnny and I am SO proud of you:-)

Now, the other (more recent) first.  Today, we watched the 44th President of the United States of America (and first African American President) take his oath of office and deliver his Inaugural Address-and what a BEAUTIFUL address it was!!  Now, I know many of my friends and family who I love completely are big Obama fans,  and I am not going to knock you or him because I know how sincere you all are in your love and respect for our new President...but, anyone who knows me knows that it is my personal belief that the success of our country is to be found in the Libertarian Party(please please please at least read what it is all about before you judge), not the Democratic or Republican Party...but that is neither here nor there...

I know that we, as a country, have elected Barack Obama to be the 44th President of the United States and even though I don't agree with his policies, here is what I know...I know that he has given hope to America...he has unified the majority of the country...he has inspired us to come together, and be better people...and if that is ALL he does for the rest of his time in office, then that is something to be commended...because the mental change that I have already seen in the American people might just be enough to make us change as a country.  We all know that often times, the right attitude is all you need to improve your situation....and maybe this is one of those times.  I know this is probably all entirely too optimistic, but I am trying to keep with the hopeful feeling that his day has brought.  I did not vote for Obama, I do not agree with some of Obama's ideas for what America needs, but I DO have to applaud him for his ability to unify our country.  Wow-job well done so far!  I TRULY want to believe that he will "fix" the problems with this country as he has promised.  I am obviously no genius...so maybe he knows something I don't.  I just hope that America doesn't lose this desire "to be better" that we are all feeling today.  That is what I hope above all things.  I am glad this day is finally here.  I am glad that people can stop blaming George Bush for every single problem that exists in America.  Believe me, I too have A LOT of problems with some of his decisions, but I do know one thing for sure...he kept me, and everyone that I care about safe for the last 7 years, and I think that should be commended rather than disgraced by those who feel the need to count down the days until he is gone from office.  Above all, I am glad that it is now cool to love our Commander in Chief rather than hate him.  I think that attitude will be a lot more productive.  So, I know that many of you are rolling your eyes right now, but I want to say a big thank you to George W. Bush for all the things that he has done well-there are some.  I also want to say a big thank you to Barack Obama for such a memorable and monumental day in American history and for being someone and something that Americans can stand behind.  I am undoubtedly grateful for that.  I love our country, and I will stand behind you, President Obama, and respect you because you are the person that American has chosen.  It is my hope that you can repair this country, as you promised the American people you would.  You can be sure I will be watching:-)  God bless our country, our President, his family and all of the American people!!

Golden Globes v. 24?!?!

Awards season is here!! Last night were the Golden Globes and unfortunately I didn't get to watch them because my second love, Jack Bauer, was premiering on Fox's new season of 24!! How could be possibly have both airing at the same time!?  I happy to report that 24 is BACK! I don't just mean back on TV, I mean it ROCKS!! Last season was just kind of ho-hum, and this season opener had be hiding under the covers and having mild convulsions while trying to catch John up on all of the seasons that he has missed.  If you didn't get to watch, you should buy last night's episode on itunes and tune in for two more hours of goodness tonight!  Man, am I glad that it goes to one hour per week next week because I don't think my heart could take that much action. For now, we will be glued to the tv for an hour on Monday for 24, 2 hours on Tuesday for The Biggest Loser, and starting January 21st, Wednesday for LOST.  It sort of seems like a lot, but if you factor in the fact that we won't be watching any football after 3 weeks from now, we will actually be watching LESS tv than before. There is a lot of smut on TV, but I highly recommend these three shows.  Highly addicting, and highly entertaining!! 

Anyway, I decided a good compromise for missing the first two hours of the Golden Globes was to watch the pre-show to see all the dresses and jewels(because that is really why I watch these things after all), and the last hour to see the big winners!   Eva Longoria definitely rocked the most stunning dress in my opinion, and Renee Zellweger was by far the worst...ewww, it was nasty.  And imagine, if it looks that terrible on someone who pays people to make her look pretty, imagine how busted it would look on you and me?!  Man oh man.  I am sorry Renee, it is not a reflection of you or your work (mostly Bridget Jones), it was just a big old bad dress!

Alright all, things are batty around here with all of the big decisions happening in Raiderland.  I have to say, I started off not being too crazed by it all, but now, the decisions are all so close that I feel like if I think/talk about it too much my head might fly/spin off like one of those spinning tops that you used to play with as a child.  It will all be a lot clearer in a week or two(hopefully) and I will be able to return to normal-ish life and I will be less like a extreme hermit, and more like my old semi-hermit self....promise:-)

Bye Bye '08!!

I am so sorry that I have not written in WEEKS!  It has been a wild, wonderful few weeks full of happy things.  There are worse things to be distracted with...for sure!  Since my Pops and Larry left, myself and the other Raider elves(aka the Raider wives) have done some really good charity events including gift wrapping, Christmas parties and Children's Hospital visits.  All of these events were very fun and VERY rewarding experiences.  I know everyone has very busy lives, but if you can take just an hour every couple months to do something for someone less fortunate than you...it will change your life...and more importantly, someone else's.  And now I will get off my soapbox:-)

After spending a fantastic first Christmas morning as a married couple with Johnny, I spent Christmas Day at a fabulous new friend's house while John was at work.  Then, I took the red eye to NY to spend some time with my family while John played his last game in Tampa Bay.  I had a wonderful time grabbing lunch with old friends, enjoying family time, hanging out in "house sitting" houses, watching lots of movies, seeing my first snow fall of the year, and of course celebrating Christmas...the Hollis way.  For those of you who haven't experienced it, here is the run down.  Christmas Eve means gingerbread house creations by the kids in the family.  There are have been some truly "special" creations over the years.  This year was no different.  

Christmas morning is bagels, lox and coffee with our present opening rotation.  Youngest opens first, all the way up to to Pops (the old man of the house).  This year we had an AWESOME addition to Christmas morning.  Danny's girlfriend was there with us on Christmas morning, so we slipped her into the rotation and by the end of the day, she was basically part of the family.  In the afternoon, the extended family comes over while Mom creates a fantastic Christmas lasagna dinner.  We all hang out into the late evening hours, talking about current events, funny family stories, or basically anything that will make you laugh...nothing is off limits in the Hollis house!  Here is a picture of the whole crew on "Christmas Night".

New Year's Eve had HUGE expectations!  My best friend, Meghan and I have been talking about our New Year's plans for months.  We had arranged to party hop all over Manhattan, including, a friend of hers from college, a friend of ours from high school, and a friend of mine from the F&M years.  Not only do I love my friend Anna dearly and would naturally want to spend New Year's Eve with her, but I NEEDED to see her new Diane von Furstenberg dress:-)  Sounds like fun, doesn't it?!  Yeah, we thought so too.  Mother Nature?  Not so much.  We got snow ALL day long on New Years Eve and literally got snowed in!  Bedford, NY, where I was born and raised is a BEAUTIFUL place, but doesn't exactly lend itself to escaping in a snow storm too easily...so that is where we spent New Year's Eve.  LUCKILY I had my Meggie, the house I spent at least half of my childhood life in, tortellini, and movies to make the evening ROCK!  Is it glamorous? No.  Did we wear high heels and look fierce?  No.  Did we stay warm, safe and full...AND have a blast anyway? YOU BETCHA!!  It was total BZ and Meg style and it was perfect!

I flew back to CA early on New Year's Day and spent the day with my hubby who was beginning a FULL week vacation from Raiderland!  We watched football, slept, and made breakfast for dinner, and had a wonderful New Year's Day/Night.  The next night, my little sis came over to the East Bay after spending a few days with her man in San Fran(ha, that rhymes-dork).  We had a FANTASTIC time gallivanting all over No. Cal!  I took her up to over to Berkeley to see Cal's campus and then we went to Muir Woods, to see the HUGE Redwood trees.  We watched a little football and then adventured down to Palo Alto to check out Stanford (where John lived with his family for a few years in his youth).  We walked around campus for most of the afternoon and then saw the men's basketball team play University of Arizona.  Gotta love college bball!!

We also took a little side journey down to San Jose to see the house that John lived in while his Dad was working at Stanford.  It was so fun to see him relive some of his old childhood memories.  I always tease him for having the memory of a small fish, but the truth is, it is all up there...he just needs a little visual to get the juices flowing:-)  Here is a picture of John, at the same house he lived in throughout most of elementary school...nearly 25 years later.

Rather than going home that night, we planned to carry on South on Highway 101 to a hotel to spend the night.  We woke up the next morning, drove a little further and then spent the day hiking through an AMAZING place called Pinnacles National Monument.  It is a park type place in Central California, that is set on a group of mountains called the Gabilan Mountains.  The land is covered with remnants of an ancient volcano that creates amazing canyons, caves,  and rock formations.  It was a drizzly, foggy day, that made it the atmosphere seem like a movie set and the weather PERFECT for hiking.  Definitely check it out!!

On Lucy's last day in CA, we decided to go to Alcatraz because she had never been there, and John hadn't been in nearly 15 years!  I think they both had fun, and even though it was my third time, I still really enjoyed it and learned something new each time.  I got to experience something different for my third visit, and it was that I met a former Alcatraz prisoner who had been on the island for 4 years as a convicted bank robber.  His name is Darwin Coon and he wrote a book about his time on "the rock".  I picked up a copy and he signed it.  He wasn't the most talkative lad, but hey, I can't really say  I would be either if I was dealing with hundreds of people asking me to relive probably the worst 4 years of my life.  He gets a "bad conversationalist" pass:-)  After disembarking when we arrived back in San Fran, we headed over to Golden Gate Park to check out the Japanese Tea Gardens that I had heard so much about.  It is the oldest public Japanese garden in CA and it definitely had a peaceful, serene feeling while we were walking around.  There were beautiful examples of Japanese architecture, statues, waterfalls and ponds with HUGE fish.  We finished up the walk with some authentic Jasmine tea and Japanese treats (as Lucy calls them).  This place was truly beautiful.  I can only imagine what it is like in the spring when everything is in full bloom!

We finished up our day with a fantastic seafood dinner at my favorite restaurant, Capurro's.  They have a delicious San Francisco dish called Cioppino that is basically an italian fish stew that has contains basically every kind of shellfish that you can possibly imagine.  I usually go for the "All Prawn" version, but every variation is DELICIOUS and I highly recommend that you head to Capurro's in Fisherman's Wharf for some Cioppino whenever you are in San Fran!

That about summarizes my last days of '08 and my first days of '09.  I know I have been terrible lately, and I have no excuses, but I do promise to get back to that "once every other or every third day" deal that I had going!  Since this blog only started at the end of '08 I thought it would be fun to take a look at the rest of '08 before we say goodbye to it.  

We got fired from the Ravens, I taught third grade, gained two best friends, did my first triathlon (and a bunch more), saw Colorado for the first time, saw San Francisco for the first time, lost an uncle, packed up a BIG house, saw George Straight in concert, used my first slot machine, moved from Baltimore, said goodbye to a true Angel on earth, moved to California, GOT MARRIED!!!! :-), gained a whole other FANTASTIC family, hiked the Grand Canyon, went to Vegas for the first time, saw Cirque du Soleil, tried on my first bridesmaid dress,  saw Boyz II Men (minus low voice guy), saw Monterey and Napa, experienced (from afar) the birth of my first nephew, saw my first Raider game, ran my first Half Marathon, watched a friend get married, watched a Ravens game from the OTHER side of the field, went to the beach in November, saw Carrie Underwood in concert, met my adorable little nephew, and loved every single day that I woke up next to the love of my life.

All in all...not so bad I would say:-)  You were good to me '08...but I'm thinking '09 might give you a run for your money!!