Top Nine of O-Nine

2009 was good to me. Here’s what happened:

1) March 7, 2009: I found my Mr. Taylor. Then I told him he had a great smile. Then we fell in love. He believes in happily ever afters, which is one of the many reasons I found him.

2) April 12, 2009: Via an Easter egg, Ashley tells us she is pregnant. We spend the day in Blowing Rock, looking at the mountains, eating chocolate, and touching her non-existent baby bump.

3) June 26, 2009: Ryan and I head to Biloxi, Mississippi to celebrate his birthday and see our favorite local band Simplified play at the Hard Rock. He gets to play the tambourine to “Something Bigger”.  (Do you know this song?  You should.)

4) July 16, 2009: My best friends from college visit me in Charlotte to celebrate my birthday. They serenade me with Celine Dion and make it the best birthday ever.

5) August 1, 2009: Ryan takes me on my first trip to Vegas. In the short forty hours we are there, we go to Crue Fest and celebrate Sunday at the Rehab party at Hard Rock. Vegas is fun, but forty hours is certainly plenty.

6) September 19, 2009: My sweet friend Stacey gets married in Newport News, Virginia. Ryan accompanies me and entertains the college friends while I do Bride Squad activities – like tying together cinnamon sticks and getting my hair did.

7) November 25, 2009: Baby Alekzander is born just minutes before Thanksgiving morning.  I'm so lucky to live just a medium sized drive away from Ashley, Andrew, and the little one.  I can't wait to see what he makes of this big big world.

8) November 27, 2009: At 4am, I head to the airport to visit Ryan and meet his family in Illinois. We stay in an amazing condo in Chicago, walk to get chai tea lattes, make a last minute decision to see Jersey Boys, go to Banana Republic three times, and watch a Bears game.

9) Christmas 2009: Christmas happens three times this year. On Christmas day, Mom and Dad are stuck in a ferocious ice storm in Blowing Rock, so Ashley, Andrew, Alekzander and I exchange presents and then rewrap them. On the 26th, Santa comes, Mom and Dad make it down to Charlotte and we open and reopen our family gifts. On the 27th, Ryan flies home from Chicago and we spend a wonderful post-Christmas first Christmas together.

So there it is. And I anticipate 2010 being even better. Is that wishful thinking? I believe in wishes ... don’t you?