Claire AndradeToday I am reflecting back on the year we had in 2016. A lot of life changes happened and a lot of fun was had. I enjoyed looking back and remembering everything that happened this year and I am glad I am doing this so I can always look back and see what our life was like 2016.
January
January brought me back to my old job as a teacher at Creation Kids Child Care. I worked with the school ago children in the morning and i enjoyed seeing how grown up the kids I had as preschoolers back in 2013 had gotten. I made a lot of friendships I will never forget. January was also the start of my final semester as an engineer student!
February
In February we celebrated Miguel’s 23rd birthday on the 21st. We went to see Luke Bryan in Cedar Falls (our favorite). It was even so warm the next day on his birthday that we grilled outside!
March
In March we spent a lot of time outdoors enjoying the Spring weather. We loved walking trails along the Coalville lake.
April
In April we celebrated Easter and together and Miguel’s nephew Damien’s 3rd birthday!
May
May was a big month. I graduated from college, we bought a house in Cedar Rapids and I traveled to Florida with my sister, Dad and step-mom to stay in our condo in Siesta Key.
June
In June I started my first big girl job on the 6th at Rockwell Collins as a software Engineer. Miguel also started traveling frequently for work. He is on the road now about once a month but we are happy for the new opportunity he has been given to take on new responsibility with his job. We ended the month with a Jimmy Buffet concert in Chicago.
July
In July, we took our first trip to the Mall of America. It was a lot of fun. We shopped, rode rides in Nickelodeon Universe and ate at Rainforest Cafe. We celebrated the fourth of July with a BBQ with friends. We also celebrated my sister’s 25th birthday at the race track in Arlington. I twas my first time at the horse races and it was a lot of fun!
August
In August we enjoyed exploring downtown eating in Cedar Rapids and taking pictures with the American Gothic statues. We also kicked off the Hawkeye Football season tailgating at the first home game.
September
September started with a trip to Mt. Pleasant to go to Old Threshers. My cousins and I recreated an old photo from about 12 years ago during Old Threshers. We also got our engagement pictures taken which turned out amazing! We ended the month with a 4 day trip to Colorado Springs. It was my first time to Colorado and we loved it! It was so beautiful and we had a great time exploring.
October
In October, we visited a pumpkin patch because i wanted to do something “fall-y”. We went through the corn maze at night. It was fun but we definitely were not dressed for the occasion. Our big October news was that I purchased my first vehicle, a Volkswagen Tiguan. We ended the month with Halloween and handed out candy dressed as a frappachino and a barista!
November
November was pretty uneventful. The only big thing to share was Thanksgiving. Miguel and I ran a Turkey Trot 5k and my sister and I created a turkey shaped cheese platter.
December
In December we celebrated our first Christmas in our new home and spent some time over Christmas with family. We ended the month with my 23rd birthday on the 31st.
That was our year- I can’t wait for 2017, because it the year we get married! There will also be plenty of other exciting things to come that I can’t wait to share with you on my blog this year!
Claire