2010 was a fast year. Every year is a fast year--at least in retrospect. Some of the things I'll remember most about 2010 (in semi-chronological order):
A new roommate: In the beginning of the year, my roommate, Jill, got a cat, and so I had my first experiences of living with a feline and being the "cool aunt." Mrs. Kittles is a pretty great cat. I'm not gonna lie, kitty litter is not too amazing, nor were her early morning wake-up calls, but Mrs. K definitely keeps us entertained with her inquisitive, playful nature, her love of the laser pointer, and her sweet disposition.
(She loves resting on my bed)Weddings: I had the opportunity to attend several weddings this year. Can I just say that I love weddings? I know that's pretty cliche for a woman to say, but oh well :) What's not to love about watching two people declare their love, celebrating with them and getting fed delicious food? The weddings were in Los Angeles, Athens, GA, Las Vegas, Boston and Salt Lake City. It was great to spend time with old friends (3 of the weddings were friends from high school), make new friends (I didn't know anyone at one of the weddings, so I made a lot of friends that weekend in Georgia), and family. Here are a couple of pics:
(In the photo booth at Jan's wedding in LA in February. We had the best time in the photo booth! I look a little crazy in that last pic, but I think I was halfway between open eyes and blinking.)
Marci (my cousin) and Shane's wedding Las Vegas in July. They got married at the Mandalay Bay Hotel, under a pretty pavilion with a waterfall in the background (which seriously helped keep us cool since it misted us with water during the ceremony).First half marathon: In the first half of the year, I had the chance to train for and run my first half marathon. The whole thing was a great experience. It's pretty cool to start from being able to run 3 miles to slowly adding more and more. It was nice to have such a tangible, time-sensitive goal. The actual race was really fun, too. You're with all of these people who have been training for the same thing--you have lots of people cheering you on, handing you water, etc. And then, at the end, you get a bunch of free stuff, lots of people congratulating you, a medal... few times in life we get such treatment! Then again, you pay for this experience (who pays to run 13.1 miles? :)) My goal was to finish and to run (without walking) the entire time, which I was able to do. My time was not incredible, at all, but I finished and I'll definitely have something to try to beat for next time. If you're thinking of doing a half, I definitely recommend it! No immediate plans for the next one, but we'll see... maybe sometime in 2011.
(About halfway through the race--by the end I was looking more grim)
(Afterwards with the best "Pit Crew" ever--Aunt Joan, Jill and Mom)Church Tour Milwaukee 2010: This was something my friend Steven and I did during the summer. Steve gave me the idea. "We ask people to come to our church, but I haven't really gone much to other people's churches," he said. "I think attending a church in an area gives you a feel for the city." I really liked the idea, so we decided that along with going to our local LDS singles ward in the afternoon on Sundays, we'd also attend different churches in the Milwaukee area in the mornings. We only went 3 different times, but each time was a great experience. We attended a United Methodist Church, a predominantly African-American Christian church, and St. Sava, a Serbian Orthodox Church. Each was unique, and I gained/appreciated different things from each experience. And people were welcoming to us. "We hope you'll come back again soon," said one nice older lady at the United Methodist Church. There are a lot of good people in Milwaukee, and in the world, for that matter.
(Steven in front of St. Sava. The mosaics and stained glass inside were beautiful)
Church activities: I had the opportunity to plan a lot of activities for my singles ward at church throughout the whole year. Dances, camping trips... I've had many great memories over the years from my time in Milwaukee. I was released from this calling towards the end of the year, but I still help out with activities and I'm sure there will be many more fun times to come in 2011.
(Nate at our Door County camping trip in September)Goodbye to Wilderness Court: In the fall, my parents sold their house in Mequon, WI... meaning that they were officially no longer residents of Wisconsin. I'm the lone Major in Wisconsin now! Hard to believe, but it was a blessing that they were able to sell the house in such a tough housing market. I lived in that house from the end of seventh grade through high school and for a few years at different points after high school. Lots of great memories, of course, making it a sentimental experience to help Mom and Dad prep the house for the sell.
Mom especially did a lot to get the house ready... all day, everyday, for a month, she cleaned, packed, ran errands, etc. By the end, she was exhausted, but we had some great times together in the house before we left it to the new owners. Bye, house!
A niece! In December I went to Utah to see my family for Christmas. It was the longest vacation I've had since starting my job at Kohl's Corporate... and it was great to relax and spend time with the family. And... the most exciting part of the trip was to meet my niece, Cate Major! Cate came into the world on Dec. 22. I met her for the first time on Christmas Eve--her first day home from the hospital. She's the first grandkid on both sides of her family, and she didn't disappoint her adoring fans. Congrats, Sam and Nancy! She's certainly a doll and we're all pretty smitten. I'm excited to work on being a "cool aunt" for this sweet girl...
('Proud Aunt' picture)Thanks, 2010!
