2011 was a crazy year. They year flew by quicker than no other yet when I look back over the course of the year it seems like it went forever. Here is a list of the moments that made it an amazing year:
- We started the year out with a bang by introducing Miss Dempsey Lucille into this world. When Clair came into the hospital room he was singing Demi Lu to the tune of Peggy Sue. At first Ava was unsure of the whole situation. she was very mad at her Mom and very clingy to Dad.A completely different experience than the one we had with Ava as Ash did not have to go through the Labour. It was all booked and with knowing the sex prior it seemed all we had to do was get ourselves to the hospital......Well and the op!!
- Its a grreat thing for Australians travelling here to see the U.S. dollar so low but for us, whether we planned on a vacation back home or for the move we are going to get screwed. When i oved here in 06 tha AUD was worth about 0.72 USD. This was the year that the AUD got up to about 1.11. It has since dipped down to about parity - but still not where we need it to be. Thats going to make things tricky financially
- gaining weight only to lose it again. After putting so much effort in to losing my weight in 2011 - this was the year i gained almost all of it back. With the arrival of Dempsey our lives got a little crazy and the gym fell to the wayside. After another visit from the brother and many a beer and burger later i tipped 200lbs again and that was when things had to change. Twice in 2 years i was able to shed over 20lbs to return to a weight i hadnt been since arriving Stateside
- The start of the year put both Ashley and Myself through the hardest hurdle we have had to jump during our relationship and probably our lives. Ash was hit with Post Partum Depression and it really took its toll on us all. It was a very long 2 month period (which felt like 6). We had many altercations and our marriage was really put to the test. In the end, after many pleas Ashley was off to the doc to speak about medication and almost right away things in the house swung back around. We will never forget what we had to endure and now we know just how strong our relationship is. I love and respect her more now than i did before the PPD kixcked inI like to refer to it as "The Dark Ages"............
- With the arrival of a baby sister Ava was confronted with not being the baby of the house anymore. At first she revolted and she revolted hard. Over the course of the year it has been an awesome sight to see just how quickly Ava has grown into a big sister and an amazing one at that. she is very protective of her baby sister and loves her more than anything. With this brought changes with Ava where all of a sudden she was 2 going on 12. So much more independent!!
- After having being employed by RDP for 6 months i arrived to work 1 day and was basically told that if i did not learn Revit i would be out of a job. Probably not such a big problem if given time.....I was told that i had 2 weeks to get up to speed. After speaking to a few of the Revit guys in the office i was told tha to get to where they wanted me to be at would take months. So during mum and dads visit i crammed. I was a little lucky when i got a break at work where a job came on that i would not work primarily in Revit. I also sit next to a guy in the office who is like the Revit Bible. I somehow faked it for the first few months while i got up to speed. I am still not where i would like to be but i have learned enough to be required. I am so glad that i finally got forced into using Revit as it seems this is the way the industry is moving, but have never been given the opportunity before.
- In September of this year i was employed FULL TIME for a whole year. It was weird after the 18 months that preceded it. I am grateful for the job that i have. I think i have learned more than i did in the prior 4 years of working in the united states.
- I finally made it to an NHL game and couldnt have had a better time. It quickly became one of my favourite viewing sports. Unfortunatly we do not have a major league team in our state. It was a grreat night had with the old man and could not have asked for a better game with the home team winning in overtime......well maybe if it was the leafs.
- My wisdom teethhave been giving me issues for years, but with a major dislike for anything dentists i have avoided having them taken out. With a little push from the wife and a little drugs from the dentist i was ready to roll. I wanted to have these out before the end of the previous year but things were a little hectic with Dempsey on the way. All in all i had a pretty good experience. I didnt have any of the side effects others had told me about and i am glad they are now gone!!
- I dont get to see Ava dance in class now that i am employed, so i look forward to her dance recitals every 6 months. She loves to dance and she loves to be on the big stage. I am always the proud parent standing up the back of the theatre with video camera in hand!! this year as soon as she was done with her dance she walked up to me and asked where her rose and trophy was...........oh boy!!
- In march the folks came out to utah to visit and be here to meet Dempsey. It was great to have them come out and see our lives and see the kids. Even if our place is extremely small and cramped for the few weeks they were here.
- For the second year running we made a trip out to Disneyland. I never thought that Disney would be something i would get too much into but each time we go we have a blast and with Ava a little older this year she understood what was going on.
- Each year i seem to set myself a fitness goal without meaning to and this year was the 5k run. I was hoping to run 10 but only managed 9 as the weather turned too cold. I didnt do as well as i would have hoped but it was just good to get out and get active with others. I did place second in my age bracket in one of the races.
- Every year for the past 3 years my highlight of summer was to have the brother come out for a visit. Its noce to have someone around to do all the guy things i like to do (with all the girls in the house this year it was especially nice). Loads of tennis, gym, exploring, burgers and beer - what more could i ask for?
- This year my friend Ross traveled the world and he told me that he would meet us in Vegas. In the end he decided to come to Utah so he could see the family and where i lived. I was lucky that it coincided with my birthday and Harleys trip.
- Not sure i need to say too much about this one but VEGAS!! Its a highlight of every year for me - defo topping the list of places to go here in the states. Every year i go with Harley, we talk about how cool it would be to go with a group of friends. We had a blast and didnt sleep a whole lot........
- My ultimate concert was on this year - Poison and Motley Crue were touring together. This was not to be missed. The Utah date was while we were in vegas so we were lucky that they played in vegas while we were down there. It was the highlight of the trip for me. We spent the whole day drinking at the MGM pool meeting all sorts of people and then continued late into the night. Long Ass day but well worth it.
- This was the year i finally made it into themountains for some hiking. I built it into my fitness regime for summer (Basically sweat off as much in the heat of summer while running/walking up hill). UTah has some amazing mountains and scenery to go along with it.....I just cant believe it took me that long to get into it!!
- For 2 weeks of the year i turn into a cycling fan - so this year it was awesome to see an Aussie win the tour de france. Cant say i ever thought i would see that happen.
- I finished my first big job at RDP about mid way through the year. It felt very good watching those plans leave as i had not taken on a project that big before in my professional career. A 99 room Marriott Hotel down in Arizona.
- This was the year that the Aussie grand slam winner drought was broken. Just never thought it would be a woman to get it done. Glad it was Sam stosur though. I picked her as the womens player to watch when all of the others were on the Molik bandwagon.
- Always a good year when you can witness the pies lose in a grand final.
- For our summer work retreat at work we did a ropes course. Its something I have always wanted to do since being here and it was alot of fun. What was interesting was to watch how most of the people in my office were completely incapable of climbing or were all too afraid of getting up high. Ipowered through it and put all to shame of course.
- Took my first spin class a few months back and really enjoyed it. I have always thought of spin as a female form of cardio but boy how wrong was i. Cant wait to get back into some classes leading up to my triathlon. Its the perfect training.
- This year marked my 5 year mark of living in the states. It quietly went by. Its been a crazy 5 years but we have done so much.
- One of my farourite parts of this past year are the random conversations we now have with Ava. As her vocabulary expands the conversations get even more strange. She cracks us up every day.
- I think the highlight of my year was Cancun. This was easily the top or in the top 2 vacations of my life. The (almost) perfect holiday. It was so nice to have 6 days where it was just Ashley and myself and we made the most of every minute. The only thing was that every minute wasnot long enough.
- I was wrong. The highlight of my year was not Cancun. the highlight of my year was being the father of the 2 most amazing girls in the world. Every day i drive home from work i think about how lucky i am to be going home to 3 girls that make me smile so much!!
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