...for 2026. They were dashed right away. We started the year with a few different medical issues (me scratching my throat with rosemary (requiring an ER + ENT visit), Scott bruising his ribs (requiring X-rays at Urgent Care), and then me picking up the flu in either the ER or Urgent Care. And then lots of death...a friend of Arya's, coworkers' relatives, friends' pets, celebrities, etc. Let's not even get started with the federal occupation of Minnesota by CBP and ICE. It was horrible, and yes, it is STILL taking place, regardless of the promised drawdown. It's just not being publicized as much. It's been a brutal year so far. There have been moments of joy, but they have been overshadowed by sadness, grief, and despair. I needed to take a break from blogging for my mental health, but I'm going to try to pick it back up. I barely even took any pics of the kids during that time. Sometimes it would be easiest to be a dog without a care in the world Arya's...
We made it through 2025! What a weird year...one that I don't want to repeat any time soon. The only bummer about 2026 is that this is the year Arya graduates high school... something that's been hanging over my head as we counted down to the end of the year. I know, it's what should happen, and she'll be well on her way to being an incredible young adult, finding her independence, but it's ripping my heart out slowly. It'll be ok. This is what I keep telling myself... We've had a mostly nice few weeks off from work and school. We've had far too many medical issues, though, so that's been a dark cloud hovering above us. I ended up in the ER last weekend, because I had food stuck in my throat (I'm not sure anymore that it's food, so I will be meeting with my PCP in a few weeks to discuss next steps.) Scott tripped on something and hurt his ribs, so we spent some time in Urgent Care on New Year's Day (nothing is broken or punctured...but he...