Looking Back at 2011

I was inspired by one of my fabulous sorority sisters, Erin Davenport, and her recent blog post about her year in review for 2011. So I decided to come up with my own version of the idea and pick one defining event from each month of last year – it’s a great way to remember, record and reflect upon everything that has happened since this time last year.

January – A Family of Three

We started off 2011 with a new addition to our family: Millie Noel Reinert. If you’ve read my past posts, it’s easy to see that I am head-over-heels in love with my little, long-haired dachshund. Millie was a Christmas present from my husband, Brandon, and from the moment she came into our lives, we have become healthier, happier and wealthier (at least in quality of life) than ever before.

February – Meeting Finley Marie

In December we welcomed a niece, Finley Marie Reinert, to Brandon’s brother and sister-in-law. Due to the busy holiday (and beer) season as well as the fact that they lived in West Palm Beach, it wasn’t until February that we got to meet her for the first time. Seeing her in person was nothing compared to Skype and photos, she is one of the sweetest and happiest babies I’ve ever met.

March – Two Years & Counting

In March, Brandon and I celebrated our second wedding anniversary – it seems like just yesterday when we said “I do.” On our first anniversary we stayed at the Grand Bohemian (where we had our reception). Last year we didn’t plan anything big but we did have dinner at a fondue restaurant, Brandon had never been to one before. Each year keeps getting better, I can’t wait to celebrate three years!

April – Welcome to Wyndham

April brought a big change for me. I left my job of almost four years at a small, local publishing company to go to work for Wyndham – a large, nationwide organization with a more corporate setting. I still work in publishing and continue to do a lot of writing and editing, but I am constantly being challenged in new ways (which is a good thing) and getting tons of social media experience.

May – Phirst Time to Philly

There were a lot of May events that I could have picked to highlight: Brandon and I both turned 27, I started a blog and two of our best friends got married. But our trip to New Jersey/Philadelphia was too good not to mention! On a whim I suggested to Brandon that we visit his hometown and of course he was more than willing … as long as we made it out to a Philadelphia Phillies game.

June – I Added an @ to My Name

Yeah, that’s right, just like I said I’d never join Facebook when I was in college, I had no plans whatsoever of tweeting. That is until social media became a bigger part of my job and I was looking for more ways to spread news about my portfolio and blog. 🙂 So in June I finally bit the bullet and signed up, and I’ll admit I like tweeting and find a lot of great stuff for work (and for fun) through my account.

July – Carpooling to Coral Springs

The summer months were hot as usual so we decided to cool off with some of our buddies in Coral Springs in July. Our friends Ben and Alli invited us on a little road trip to Alli’s sister’s house and of course we were up for the adventure. We brought Millie along but she wasn’t alone – she had Ben and Alli’s dog Bella as well as two other dachshunds in Coral Springs to play with!

August – Revisiting My Alma Mater

After celebrating Bid Day with Chi Omega at UCF, I really started missing my own chapter at USF. So I planned a weekend where I could go visit the Chi Omega house and campus at USF (they have done a lot of renovations around campus since I left) as well as see my good friend Jamie. Being back in Tampa brought back a lot of memories, I hope to get over there more often this year.

September – Weekend in Death Valley

September brought a trip that we had been looking forward to for a while – returning to Clemson for a football game. Along with our friends Ben, Alli and Curtis as well as my sister Lina, Lina’s friend Emily, Brandon’s cousin Troy and Troy’s fiance Sarah we headed to South Carolina for an incredibly fun weekend and a great game against Florida State. (Clemson won, of course!)

October – Traveling Coast to Coast

In October I scratched the first item off of my 30 before 30 list by taking a trip across the country. I had never been to the Pacific Northwest before (or really the West in general) so I was very excited when my work sent me to Seattle for a meeting. I only spent a couple of days in Washington but luckily I was able to see most of the main sights including Pike Place Market and the Space Needle.

November – My Little Millie Turns 1

November brought the beginning of the holiday season but for the Reinerts it also brought Millie’s first birthday! Millie was born on 11/12/10 (although we didn’t bring her home until Jan. 1). We’ve loved every second we spent with Millie so far and look forward to many more years of love and licks from our little girl. She had a great birthday filled with treats and a couple new “big girl” toys.

December – From Beer to Wine

Brandon also had quite a few changes in his career last year. In the spring his company (he worked for a beer distributor) was bought out. As a result, his territory and hours were greatly affected and right before the holidays he was offered a job with a wine distributor basically doing the same thing. He is now off weekends and we are on similar schedules throughout the week. 🙂

2011 was a really great year all around … but we are hoping for an even better 2012! I’ll keep you posted!