Songs of 2017

I wanted to share some of my favorite songs from 2017. Some of these are songs that God really used in my life, anthems of the person I want to be. Others are songs I just really enjoyed, several of them from movie soundtracks. :) I tried to do them in chronological order at first, but then I gave up. There's Skillet next to Beauty and the Beast and Christmas songs in the middle. Have a listen, if you'd like!

https://youtu.be/z1xywQjPgpo?list=PLFgS-q3B3BdC-YjJweHDJzwhmwCTxdAEA

Highlights of 2017

(You know when you go on the computer, which you never do because you go on your phone, but you did this time so you could type up your annual highlights post? But then you decide to go "check something" on Ravelry and end up spending half an hour ahem, an hour, looking at projects and patterns? No? Just me? Okay...)

• Volleyball!! This was our second year in the church league (and the third season starts next week!), and I really improved over the season, even if the only game my team won was in the tournament. :( Hopefully, I still have some of those new skills to start the year off. :)
• I saw some pretty awesome movies at the theater in 2017. 
• The LEGO Batman Movie on Valentine's Day with my family. I loved the movie and the experience. :) 
• The live-action Beauty and the Beast, which I saw twice. It's one of my all-time favorites, for sure. 
• Guardians of the Galaxy, Volume 2. I was really looking forward to this one and I definitely enjoyed it. I like the first one better, but the music in both is pretty sweet. 
• Wonder Woman for my birthday with Grandma B, Mom, Katherine, and Anna. It's pretty good! 
• Spiderman: Homecoming, I also saw twice-the first time in Indiana on my road trip with Khyrstyn and Katherine, and then in town with Stephen and Johnathan. I'm super excited for the sequel of this one! 
• Thor: Ragnarok with Johnathan and Anna; we really enjoyed it! 
• Finally, on December 30, I saw The Greatest Showman with siblings and friends. It is ah-mazing!! I'm borderline obsessed with it, listening to the soundtrack while I write this. (I just saw it for the second time tonight!!)
• WinterJam 2017!! It was really cool to see one of my favorite bands, Tenth Avenue North, live. I also loved seeing Crowder and Colton Dixon. 
• Random, spontaneous adventures with Kylee. Throughout the year. :)
• I dyed the tips of my hair red with Kool-Aid. I was very sad to cut it off, but it was just too dang hot for the summer. I can't wait for it to grow enough so I can do it again. It's pretty tricky when it's shorter. 
• Madison came to stay with us for eleven days!! We ate deep dish pizza (twice!), watched movies, had a girls' sleepover, and played bridge, among other things. 
• While Mabs was here we went to a Cubs game. They lost, but I hadn't been at Wrigley in years so it was still good to be there. :) Plus, I got to wear my 2016-record sweater and my Bryzzo hat. #knitwearattheballpark haha
• For our 20th birthdays, Khyrstyn and I had a combined 40th birthday bash. We ate pizza and ice cream, watched Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies, played some crazy games and had an all-around awesome time with some of our best friends. 
• When Mom and Dad took their anniversary trip to Washington D.C. most of us stayed with Grandma and Grandpa. Somehow I ended up with Dad's old room to myself. I haven't had my own room since I was two. It felt pretty great even if it was only for a week. I read a few books while I hid out in there. :)
• Khyrstyn, Katherine, and I took a two-day road trip down to Kentucky to visit our friend Abby who Khyrstyn and I met at Worldview a few years ago. We enjoyed various iPod playlists and CDs, enough snacks for a week, probably, McDonald's, pretty scenery, a castle from afar, two different malls (the fancy outdoor one and then the "peasant" mall), Shake Shack, gourmet popsicles, a broken fire alarm in our hotel room, and a movie detour on the way home. It was a ton of fun!! Also, I'm proud that we did it without anyone else. :)
• I finally own a Captain America shirt. Yes, that's one of my yearly highlights. I sometimes wear it when I feel the need to be brave. :)
• We found out Mom was pregnant August 2, and then lost the baby August 22. Mom named her Lottie. I'm thankful for the gift she was and is and trust that God's plan is best even when it hurts. I'm also grateful to have a taste of what so many people have been through in losing a baby. 
• Mom, Katherine, and I flew to Texas to visit Madison. It was awesome to see some of her haunts and to meet her family and friends. It was also my first time flying, seeing the ocean, and tasting saltwater. Whataburger and Blue Bell ice cream are delicious foods that I need to go back to Texas to have again. We watched more movies... There was also record-breaking Hurricane Harvey that arrived while we were there. That was exciting, but also heartbreaking being so close to the action and all the devastation. Far closer than we would have been back at home.
• While Khyrstyn was in Colorado for three months for school, I babysat for one of her families two or three times a week. It was really nice having work and an income, but mostly I loved spending time with Eddie. He turns two soon and is a lot of fun. :) 
• We started another year with our homeschool co-op. I'm helping out again, but I'm also joining in on the health class and the Bible class for the high school students. I've really enjoyed fellowshipping and hanging out with our friends at co-op and outside of it.
• Johnathan and I went early for Apple Butter Day to help Grandma and Grandpa. It was my first time driving to their house, which is a little pitiful, but it was kind of a trial by fire. Except it was really bad rain and stuff. Anyway, I had my own room again for a few days. haha And Apple Butter Day is always a fun time!!
• When Dad took the boys to Father Son Camp, Friday night we had some of the moms and girls from co-op over and watched old movies and ate some pretty great snacks. The next day we had Mrs. Sherman and her girls over to watch Pride and Prejudice and have tea. It's always enjoyable to watch Jane Austen with other fans. ;) Later in December, the Sherman girls had us girls over to play a new Jane Austen card game which was too much fun. We had tea again, too and watched White Christmas. I'd never seen the whole thing before and I loved it. 
• We threw Mom and Dad a party for their 25th wedding anniversary. I was really proud of how my siblings stepped up and helped throw it. Katherine and I make a great party-planning-hosting team!
• Mom, Josiah, and I saw Sharyssa perform in I'll Be Seeing You. It was one of her biggest roles and she did a wonderful job. It was a different character than she often does, which was cool to see. 
• Khyrstyn came back home!!! That was the plan, of course, but it was a big deal to see her again. We've been best friends for pretty much twelve years now and we've never been apart for longer than a month, much less three. 
• I had two peppermint shakes from Chick-fil-A, (not at once, mind you). They were life-changing, I tell you.     
• I decided to buy everyone Christmas presents, and I really enjoyed picking gifts out for everyone. I also took some of the kids out Christmas shopping, which I thought was pretty brave. Of course, I had Anna and Mary Ann to help me, so it wasn't too hard anyway. 
• The Sing-It-Yourself Messiah. We missed it in 2016, so I was super happy to go. And Khyrstyn got to come with us!
• Lord of the Rings Marathon!!
• Snow for Christmas!!! It was magical. Even if it's been like Antarctica for the last two weeks. I just need to knit more sweaters and giant shawls...
• Oh, Christmas. Christmas is always a highlight. Spending time with family. Reflecting on the greatest Gift I will ever receive and the only thing I truly need. Oh, yeah, and presents. Those are nice too. I received some totally rad presents this year... Also, Mom and Dad bought a book for us to read together for Christmas, Yours Truly by Heather Vogel Frederick. It was one I'd wanted to read all year and it did not disappoint. I love the times we read a book all together. Some of my favorite memories of all time. 
• While cleaning for the open house, I got rid of a bunch of stuff I don't need and organized the stuff I'm keeping and it feels amazing. It's really nice going into the new year with that done.
• Though I started ahead in December 2016, I finished the whole Bible in about a year. I've read the whole thing before, but always over a few years. I think the best thing was reading in totally different books and seeing connections I wouldn't have seen if I was reading one at a time. And the more you're reading the more you see connections with sermons, bible studies, or passages people bring up. 

One of the big things in 2017 for me was learning to trust God no matter what's going on, no matter how crazy I feel, or how crazy the situation seems to me. I'm excited to see what's in store for 2018!!