Oh 2022, what a year. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t just a tiny bit happy that it’s over. 2022 was a year of major work and growth. It was busy and hard and happy and sad and a little bit chaotic, if you couldn’t already tell.

This year:

-I turned 25

-Sean turned 29

-I went to a Justin Bieber concert – seems silly but it was a dream and a much needed break from school

-I completed 3 out of 5 of my clinical practicums (essentially internships) for graduate school – hallelujah, truly

-We visited friends in San Antonio with a stop in Waco along the way (so fun), as well as a crazy flat tire with a miracle story in Austin on the journey home.

-Sean competed in a Spartan Race – he would say it was definitely a challenge, but a good one

-We celebrated 3 years of marriage!!

-WE BUILT A HOUSE – we moved in at the end of September and it still doesn’t seem real, definitely the biggest blessing of 2022.

-We moved to a new town (not far from the last, but hey, a move is a move!)

-Sent a little brother to Portugal on a mission for our church.

-Celebrated another little brother getting ENGAGED (to the most amazing girl that we love)!!

-We hosted Thanksgiving at our new house, so special to have my family visit us in Texas for the 1st time.

-Spent 2.5 fun filled weeks in Idaho with Sean’s family for Christmas.

We also ate lots of good food, tried tons of new restaurants, and made a few new friends who we already love! This year was a whirlwind, filled with extreme highs and extreme lows. Mentally and physically, this year was A LOT. But as cliche as it sounds, I am tremendously grateful for the trials and challenges because they motivated me to put in the work I needed to in order to grow and get back on track.

I am so unbelievably thankful for this new year and to continue working towards my goals. I feel more like myself than I have in quite a long time. This year will be filled with excitement just like the last. First, I GRADUATE (again) THIS YEAR!! I am so excited to receive my Masters in Speech Language Pathology and to continue working in a field that I love. We also get to travel back to Utah for my little brother’s wedding, which we are so excited for and hopefully, Sean and I will get another real (and much needed) vacation, only the 2nd in the almost 4 years that we have been married. We are still debating where to go and how we are going to beat our last vacation (a trip to Vegas in 2020), which was a total blast. Finally, and most importantly, we will be continuing to try for a precious little baby to join our family this year, something we have both been dreaming about and wanting a lot in 2022. We know God’s plan and timing are perfect so we are holding on to our faith that maybe 2023 will be our year.

More than anything, we are thankful for our relationships with God, our Savior Jesus Christ, and with each other. Our faith and our marriage are the most important things to us and we certainly worked hard for those relationships in 2022. Going into 2023, I am grateful that those two things remain our top priority.

I pray that 2023 can be a special and blessed year for each of you and that you can work towards any goals that you have set for yourself this year. I also hope that we are all able to give ourselves and others a little more grace, remembering that no one has it all together all the time. So many deal with the hardest of times behind closed doors. Be kind. Be like Jesus. Be forgiving and merciful and compassionate. If any of you ever need a listening ear, I’m always here!

All my love,

Elizabeth

P.S.

I also wanted to include a few of my 2022 FAVORITES:

-Discovery+ (I could name every show I love, but I’ll just tell you that The Lost Kitchen was probably my favorite and now I apparently need to plan a trip to Maine). If you need more recommendations just let me know, I’ve got a list. 

-Cookie Society: my new favorite cookie spot. You know I love a cookie and this place currently reigns supreme. 

-Haywire: Sean and I’s favorite restaurant that we tried last year, the food is unreal, super comforting, good quality (all sourced from right here in Texas), and delicious. 

-HEB: a Texas-based grocery store that finally made its way to North Dallas and we are obsessed. Our favorites are their tortillas (duh, if you know, you know), their Carolina BBQ sauce, and their frozen orange chicken. 

-New albums from Luke Combs and Taylor Swift – both amazing

-I also had 2 favorite songs that weren’t on either of those albums: Strangers (Maddie & Tae) and I’ll Be There (Foster)

-Where the Crawdads Sing – one of the best (and only) books I read last year. The movie is also phenomenal. 

-Last but not least, my Stanley cup – so basic I know, but very much worth it in my opinion. 

Ok, that’s really it, let me know some of your favorites from last year! I am always looking for the best “new” thing.