Well, 2009 flew by just like any other year. It started off with a bout of flu (seasonal, not swine) and swiftly the routine of teaching and taking two graduate classes at night developed. In March, Mr. Peanut had to have surgery again. This time he had to have the scar tissue that developed from the previous surgery removed. It was another two weeks of recovery for him, which meant two weeks of him wearing one of those cone-thingies on his head and Brian and I attempting to inject liquid antibiotics into his mouth.
But soon the warmer weather came. In April, the Alferio, Rudnick, and Klepadlo families came together to celebrate Marion Rudnick's, our mother/grandmother/great-grandmother, 90th birthday. Everyone had a great time catching up and watching the little kids play. It was truly a blessing to gather as it was the last birthday she would celebrate. She passed away on November 1st, All Saint's Day.
May brought the annual Memorial Day Meat Party to our house. The Clarks traveled from Ohio to join in the fun. It poured all day and we were forced to sit on the front porch and dare each other to eat Rooster Sauce, a type of Korean hot sauce. Brian and I were also inducted into Alpha Epsilon Lambda, the graduate honor society at Marywood. We took a few trips to Washington, D.C. to visit Brian's sister, but the spring flew by even faster than the winter did.
I finished my last graduate class on July 10th! What a great feeling. However, I was soon faced with the daunting task of writing my thesis paper and doing my professional contribution. But I shoved all that aside for a few days a week when I got the chance to watch my nephew, Jacob. We spent our days playing, watching Curious George, going to the Steamtown Mall to throw coins in the water fountain, and swimming in the baby pool at Grandma Nonie's house.
Brian and I went to Columbus to celebrate the wedding of his sister and then it was back to school time. I continued teaching 7th grade English and started my research. But the biggest event of the year had to be September 20th. It was my 30th birthday! I celebrated with my family and my friends and their families. It was great and truly a day to remember, although I'm still not sure if I'm ready enough to be a mature 30 year-old adult.
School/work/studying routine continued (which made me feel even older because I had to be responsible working on my own to meet deadlines) and Brian and I took a trip to St. Marys, Ohio for Thanksgiving. We were glad to be driving in my wonderful Honda Civic (if you haven't already, you really need to buy a Honda), which I had been in an accident with a few weeks prior (that brought the grand total up to only two ER visits this year. Brian had one in February when he cut his hand open washing a wine glass).
The Alferio/Clark/Ferri families came together at my parents' house for Christmas Eve. It was fun watching Jacob, almost two, open all the presents. He calls me "Aunt Sissie" and enjoys telling me his favorite color is green and that his dog is bad. He bought me a "beautiful" Christmas vest with big red birds and flowers on it. Yesterday Brian and I traveled the the PA/OH border to exchange gifts with his parents and brother. The local forecasters assured us it would be a great travel day, but how they overlooked the huge storm spanning about 150 miles in the middle of the state, I will never know.
Now the year comes to a close and I have rambled on way to much (yes, Brian is rubbing off on me). The New Year brings with it the hope of graduating on Mother's Day and many other exciting things.
I send my wishes out to you and all those you know for a great, happy, healthy, safe, and financially sound 2010.
Love,
Jess
P.S. - The picture on the top is of Brian and me in Atlantic City in July celebrating our 2nd anniversary. The picture below is of Jill and me taken 10 years ago in London, England, celebrating the Millennium.
