2013 in review

I spent the first six months of 2013 working as the Visual Manager at Guess by Marciano, where I was incredibly lucky to be able to work next to coworkers who quickly became amazing friends:

In March, Trevor and I celebrated our FIVE YEAR anniversary with an amazing dinner and a trip to Disneyland. It’s kind of crazy how much I love him…:

Also in March, my sister and I ventured to London, England for a week! :

And we had quite the St. Patrick’s Day bash at my house:

In April, my sister, Katie, turned 21!:

In May, I OFFICIALLY graduated from college! We had quite the celebration to celebrate:

And Gabby graduated from High School:

In June, I left Marciano to begin a new adventure; working full time at the corporate offices of Oliver Peoples in West Hollywood:

The view from the office certainly was upgraded:

As was my car:

The summer was spent working and spending time with incredible friends. For a chunk of months in the summer, I subleased an apartment in West Hollywood, which not only made my commute to work easier, but allowed us to have many more adventures:

Throughout the summer, Trevor was cast and performed in Heathers: The Musical, which was incredible! The play will be going to New York in the spring of 2014:

In October, I turned 23 and celebrated with a trip to Disneyland!:

For Halloween, Trevor and I dressed up as the Swedish chef and his chicken (from the Muppets)! We celebrated the holiday with a big celebration at our house:

The rest of the fall was spent working, enjoying time with friends and eating a TON of food at Thanksgiving!:

When the holidays finally rolled around, we welcomed the season with open arms. Well, kind of:

On Christmas Eve, we had our annual party where almost forty people came to celebrate. This included  an epic game of White Elephant:

Shortly after Christmas, Trevor and I squeezed in a quick trip to Temecula where we wound up wine tasting:

And finally, just yesterday, we went ice skating at the local ice rink! Usually, we spend New Year’s Eve in the snow, but since the weather here in Southern California has been so warm, that wasn’t an option this year:

In all honesty, like I said, I’m SHOCKED at how fast this year flew by. It feels like just yesterday I was kissing Trevor at midnight to ring in 2013, and here we are again, with midnight and 2014 just a handful of hours away.

This year has taught me a lot about myself and in terms of personal growth, I feel as though 2013 was one for the record books. For the first six months of the year, I worked practically 40 hours a week in a store, where I feel like I was able to come into my own. Then, I took the plunge and accepted a full time job at Oliver Peoples, which was a lot more taxing physically and emotionally than I ever expected it to be (commutes suck). But I’m not complaining, because I feel as though this whole experience has made me a more well-rounded and hard-working person, and neither of those things are characteristics that anyone should be ashamed of. Within two months at OP, I was promoted to full-time, with benefits, which I am enormously proud of. It has taught me the value of hard work and the value of money, and the notion that the things you work hard for and earn for yourself are usually the things that you wind up treasuring the most.

2013 has also taught me a lot about people – and about human nature in general. You cannot change people, as hard as you may try, and people will disappoint you. That’s just a part of life, I suppose. But everyone has to make their own mistakes and you can only stand there and either help where you can or just let go of the things that are outside of your own control. Whether it be extended family or friends, you just have to accept what they do and move on with your own life, hopefully without sacrificing your own moral code at the same time (and 2013 has taught me that my own moral code is something that I value above everything else).

2013 was a year of love, as well. Loving family, loving friends, loving Trevor; and just recognizing that people are HERE. They want to be there for you, and I wanted to be there for them. It’s funny how as you get older and as the years pass, it becomes less about YOU and more about everyone else. Because the people in my life make me so happy and bring so much joy into my life, I want to be able to do the same for them.

Overall, I LOVED 2013. It was worth every hour in the car, every tear I cried, every kiss, every hug, every party… Every part of this year has been essential in my transition from girl to woman (I still don’t think I’m there 100% yet) and, in my mind, has set me up for future success.

I cannot WAIT to see what 2014 has in store!