Top Ten of the Last Decade

Happy New Year Everyone! I can't believe it has really been ten years since the year 2000! I remember spending New Years Eve that year at home with some friends and watching as the new century came across the world. I was relieved that nothing horrible happened after of all of the Y2K hype. But I remember feeling just a teeny bit disappointed that absolutely nothing weird happened at all. (I didn't want any nuclear plants to blow up, but maybe it would have been nice if all of the slot machines in Vegas started cashing out or if everyone suddenly had free cable or something like that.)

I have been thinking about how much my life has changed in the last 10 years. Things have not exactly gone as I had planned during the last decade and there have been some hard times, but the good has definitely outweighed the bad. Here are my top 10 favorite things that happened during the last 10 years:

10. Making the decision to adopt. It may sound weird, but this was a great day for me. After years and years of trying this, trying that, getting this tested, getting that tested, taking this drug, taking that drug, trying this procedure....you get the picture. There was just so much uncertainty and I felt like I had no control over my own life. When we finally knew that adoption was right for us, it was so amazing to finally have a plan that we felt good about.

9. Traveling! I travelled a lot this decade both for work and for fun. Some favorite places include New York, Boston, Alaska, Hawaii, Turks & Caicos islands, Seattle, Cancun, San Francisco, and of course Disneyland/world. I have become a hotel snob during the last decade, but I am trying to get better.

8. Passing the CPA exam. The CPA exam was a horrible, 2-day long test with four grueling parts. I studied a lot, and was hoping to pass it all on my first try (my boss at my internship during college had taken it six times and still not passed it all). I was so excited when I got my test results and I passed all four parts! I did a little happy dance. I told Preston that I was going to start signing everything (checks, letters, emails, etc.) as "Chrystie Zaugg, CPA." Of course I have never signed anything like that, but I COULD if I wanted to.

7. My first (and hopefully not my last) trip to Europe! Preston and I went to England and France and had a great time sightseeing, going to plays and museums, and of course, eating a lot of food. Some favorites were Stonehedge, Bath, and of course Paris, but I liked London most of all.

6. Getting my first real, professional, post-college job! I was able to get a job with one of the "Big Four" accounting firms in Salt Lake City right out of college. It was really competitive market, so I felt really lucky to be hired by the firm I really wanted to work for, PricewaterhouseCoopers. I worked there for four years. I learned a LOT and it was an intense, but good experience.

5. Buying our first real house! We did a lot of the work on the house ourselves, and sometimes it seemed like it would never be done. When we moved in, we had practically no furniture and a TON of empty rooms. We have nearly filled it up now! I love our house and we hope to be able to stay here for years and years to come.

4. Graduating with my Master's Degree in 2001! I was soooo glad to be finally done with school, and more importantly, done with homework FOREVER. (until my kids have to do homework, that is).

#3, #2, and #1: My three adorable kids! I have three of the most beautiful children on Earth. They have changed everything. They are my world. They are my sunshine and they are my rain. They make me laugh, they bring me unbelieveable happiness, and they occasionally drive me a little insane. I am so lucky to be able to be their mother, and I thank God every day for them. None of the other things that have happened in the last 10 years can even come close.

It has been an amazing 10 years, and I can't wait to see what the next 10 years will bring. By January 1, 2020, Arden will be a TEENAGER.

Yikes.