2011 in Review

I really think I want to make this an annual tradition. I had so much fun making the photo collages from 2010 in Review last year! I also like looking back on all the memories of the year. I don't do a Christmas letter yet, but if I did, I'm sure it would be along the lines of the commentary here! Here is a review of some of the highlights of 2011.

I rang in the New Year in Phoenix, AZ with my absolute best friend. She and I were completely ridiculous, as expected, and still giggle about it to this day. I then got to watch my Sooners win the Fiesta Bowl on New Year's Day, making it the first BCS bowl victory in a while. I spent a total of about two weeks in Arizona with my best friend, and then made the trek home by myself to prepare for my final semester as an undergrad.

me, Katy, and Sarah on NYE in Scottsdale

Alpha Gams at the Fiesta Bowl

February seems to always be a blur to me. Maybe it's just because school hasn't actually started to get too busy, or maybe because it's the shortest month of the year. Anyways. I can tell you this. I partied. And it snowed a blizzard here in Oklahoma (during which Rags and I went from coworkers to BFF). And I had an emergency appendectomy that caused me to have to come back home for a week while I recovered. That week home made me miss a date party and the Thunder-Clippers game and the basketball game made me sad. But the good part of that is that I did get to see my baby brother play the last three games of his basketball career.

MARCH WAS AMAZING!!! The only thing I can REALLY tell you about is my spring break trip. Way back in my third semester of college, I decided that I wanted to save up money to take myself on a spring break trip my last semester. I asked my good friends to tag along, and we rented a beach house on Treasure Island in Florida. For the most part, we swam at the beach all day and then cooked and played drinking games all night. But St. Patrick's Day was the best ridiculousness ever. So many memories were made on that trip. Like cartwheels for everyone but me because my incision site still had a scab on it.

me and Katy on St. Patrick's Day

Most of the group-me, Colleen, Caroline, Max. Missing Katy and Cole

Katy and I on the beach at sunset

April was a typical busy month for me, filled with lots of tests, projects, our annual philanthropy, Relay for Life, and my last date party ever. With the last party also comes senior week, and as always it was sad and hilarious at the same time. I wasn't ready to say goodbye to my pledge class or my sorority, so you can bet your booty I cried A LOT that week. I also won my first ever intramural tournament for co-ed slowpitch softball with a great group of random guys and gals and had a lot of fun while doing it. TEAM USA!

All the people who played me

One of my littles. I'm dressed as Ally Sheedy from The Breakfast Club, she as "Baby" from Dirty Dancing

me and my date to the date party-Judd Nelson and Ally Sheedy from The Breakfast Club

me and another little. She's from Tron

my amazing driver for the night :)

In May, I took my final finals of undergrad, celebrated probably wayyy too much, and then I said goodbye to the town I called my home for 5 years. Graduation was bittersweet. My baby brother and I graduated about 30 minutes apart, so the family was split on who came to my graduation. Instead of it being the full family picture outside Lloyd Noble I wanted, it was just me, Jared, and Mimi. BUT Erika DID surprise me, making me cry.

Mimi, me, and Jared on my graduation

I then returned home to Sperry, only to move in with my BFF Sean and his parents for the summer.


Not having a job got on my nerves quick, and I began to apply for bank positions at various banks here in Tulsa. I went through two rounds of interviews for one bank, and began my job on June 8. Unfortunately, I also said goodbye on June 7 to my oldest brother, as he left Tulsa for boot camp and would return the first week of November.

saying goodbye to my brother

July seems to be a blur with 4th of July, hanging out with my coworker Shawna all the time, and ending the the month with going to and meeting Ke$ha in concert. Concert of epic proportions. :)

In August, I said goodbye to the boy I had been dating all summer, and spent a lot of time hanging out with Shawna and some of our new friends. I got to spend time with Katy just before she left to go back to school for her final year, and then my youngest brother started college. I took an evening to go to Stillwater to take him and his friend to dinner. I also moved back in with my mom while I was waiting to move into my apartment complex.

In the first week of September, I said goodbye to the man who has been like a grandfather to me since a spring day when I was in second grade and went to his house to ask for a softball. If you asked him how many grandkids he had, he wouldn't say 5. He'd tell you about 20. That's just the man he was.

September wasn't all bad. I also got to meet new people, spend a lot of time with friends throughout the month (including a surprise visit from my friend Eli), and prepare for my move into my very first place.

The beginning of October was the best ever. I moved into my first ever apartment, I got a brand new phone, and then I got to Dallas for OU/TX weekend. And. It. Was. Fantastic. I also got to take my then-16-year-old cousins to their first ever concert at the Tulsa State Fair to see one of our favorite bands, Eli Young Band.

my first ever Oktoberfest with a coworker!

Eli Young Band concert

final score of the OU/TX game!

November was a busy month. I hosted a Scentsy party, welcomed my oldest brother home from basic and AIT training, celebrated the best holiday ever (Thanksgiving), and then I also celebrated my 24th birthday. I'M TWENTY-FOUR YEARS OLD. It's weird.

me and the twins at The Christmas Train

In December, I started working out with one of my coworkers (KK) to help us get a little more healthy. When we went this past week, she said she can already tell that she can run and do more than she ever has before. I don't feel like I'm getting much better, but it's nice to know that I am helping someone else accomplish so much!

I also got to attend The Nutcracker with two of my best friends and then we had an epic birthday bash at our local pub downtown. I also went to lots of Christmas parties and had a dang good month of December. I closed off this past weekend with spending time with Shawna for her birthday, and then ringing in the new year with my BFF Katy. It was a great evening.

Adam, me, and John at the epic birthday bash at The Max

me, Shawna, Morgan, and Emily at The Max

me and Katy at The Max

These are just highlights of what happened in 2011. Going through the pictures, I realized just how much I had forgotten to mention, like going to the World Cup of Softball in July with my cousin Emma, and coming home in February for MacKenzie's homecoming. 2011 was great. Had some ups and downs like any other year, but I'm excited to see what 2012 has in store for me!

It's that time again.

Well friends, a couple years ago I made a facebook note that was 2008 in review, pictures included! I can't remember exactly when I did it that year, but I feel like it is close enough to the end of the year that it JUST MIGHT be appropriate for me to do it now :) (Plus, I don't know how much time I'll have between here and New Year's to sit down and think about everything, especially with my trip to Phoenix coming up so soon!)

So without further ado, here is 2010 in Review: (he he, that rhymed! Unintentionally, of course!)

I rang in the New Year with my friend Kevin in Norman:

Kevin and I at Seven47

February is kind of a blur, with a few memories of a high school stereotypes-themed date party, and my Valentine's Day Date with Erika:

Erika and I; my date Craig and I

March was fun with spring break and birthday parties, and the end of my 4th year at OU coming on the horizon:

Me, Lisa and Caroline; Katy and I (pre-hair cut); Janelle and I: where the friendship started

April is one of the busiest months in sorority land, with our International Reunion Day, Annual Barbecue, Spring BIG/little, and of course more parties to celebrate the school year coming to an even closer end:

BIG/little: G-Lil Jessica, Lil Kristina, me, Big Erika; IRD: Katy, Meghan, Colleen, me, Hannah,  Kaitlin

BBQ: me, Katy; BBQ: me, Mallory; IRD: me, Katy

May brought the end of the school year, which included a date party (with my brother in attendance), Erika's graduation, returning home for the summer and attending Tulsa Drillers and Tulsa Shock games with Caroline, and beginning my summer job again:

ALL 3 SENIOR DATE PARTY: Sam, me, and Erika, representing the World Cup; me and Jared, with Jared representing Hawaii; me and my date Derek

[L-R, top-bottom] Caroline and I at Tulsa Shock; Jared and I at Tulsa Drillers; Erika and I at her graduation; the group I went with to the senior date party (World Cup): me, Derek, Sam, Jesse, Erika, Gio

June meant the beginning of my summer class, the wedding of a good friend from Freedom in Greece, still working that summer job, my first ever no-adult float trip, and a concert back in OKC:

Lady Antebellum on stage; Kevin and I at the concert; Tim McGraw on stage

In July, I finished up Physics II, worked a very long 4th of July tournament, celebrated 4th of July on the 5th (maybe even the 6th), a wedding in the family (with another wedding missed), bought the last things I needed for recruitment, welcomed Katy back from China, and went dancing at the Caravan with Casey. For some reason, I didn't take ANY pictures in July :(

In August, I moved back to Norman for what would be my final recruitment and final year as an undergrad at OU. With Katy being my roommate, the school year was looking to be amazing. The first couple weeks were spent preparing for the girls coming through recruitment, and once recruitment was over we had a few days to relax. I got my second tattoo, and went to a couple parties with my friends. Once school started, I quickly realized just how bad my senioritis would be:

Senior Pledge Class; Harry Potter Day

me, Kaitlin, Rachel, and Katy at my first-ever toga party; "The Sarcastic Trio"-Nicole, Piper, me

Josalyn, me, Katy on pref night; me, Kathie, and Sam on Bid Day

September began football games, and my never-ending semester of tests, projects, and papers, but not without having a little bit of fun and attending the first date party of the semester. I also joined Alpha Phi Omega, and found within it some amazing new friends:

[L-R, top-bottom] Lydia, Kaitlyn, me, and Kate for Lydia's 21st birthday; Andy and I (#STL); me, GinnyAnn at OU vs. Air Force; me, BIG Brook, Twin Courtney for some APO BIG/little love

October is another busy month in sorority land. It was my final OU/TX (celebrated the right way), more football games, another date party, the beginning of initiation, BIG/little, and of course, what is October without homecoming? During homecoming weekend I got my class ring (which I am obsessed with)! I got to go home and watch my baby brother play a couple games his senior year, and the family came down for family weekend, where Jacob and I got to run the State of Oklahoma flag at the football game. Jared was hit by a car, and that saw me returning to Sperry for less than 24 hours. This was when I realized that life is way too short, and tell those you love how you feel about them all the time. I also continued to make new friends through a couple guys I met at the Oklahoma State Fair:

OU/TX: Paige, Kelly, Rachel, Katy, Elizabeth, Michelle, me; our homecoming float; me, Jared, Jacob, Mom, David for family weekend; fall BIG/little (top to bottom) me, Katy, Kristina, Josalyn, Madisen, Rachel K, Abbey (Michelle is missing), Tricia, Stacie, Hailey, Hannah, Elisandra [MY FAMILY IS HUGE!]

Kaitlyn, me, and Colleen for the Flappers and Fedoras date party; Jacob on the field at his game

Jared, me, Jacob before running the flag vs Colorado; Katy, me in the West End during OU/TX

November was a pretty busy month for me! We initiated 66 girls into our sorority (quota!), my senior pledge class had a pub crawl, I RAN MY FIRST EVER HALF MARATHON, I attended the bedlam game at Stillwater, and I got to spend a lot of time with friends. I became GOOD friends with a group of guys (Chris, Chris, and Aaron), and got initiated into APO:

me, Sam after I finished my half marathon; me, Lara after APO initiation (yay stats buddy!)

Senior Pub Crawl: Colbi, Taylor, Johanna, Kelly, me, Lydia, Karen, Piper, Kristina, Nicole, Corrie; Daniell, me, and Tasha at Cory's birthday bash; Zach, me at Stonewall for my 23rd birthday

ALL 3 APO INITIATION: Max and I, my pledge class, Andy and I #STL

Now that December is here, I have attended the Big XII Championship with Janelle, wrote papers, taken tests, done projects, finished my second to last semester of undergrad, celebrated a 21st birthday, came home for Christmas break, attended many Christmas parties, GOT ON THE DEAN'S HONOR ROLL, and have been preparing my trip for the Fiesta Bowl coming up next week:

me, Josalyn for Josalyn's 21st

Josalyn, Cade Davis, me, Beau Gerber out on Campus Corner for Josalyn's 21st; Katy, Michelle, Ryan, me for the Kappa Alpha Order Dirty Santa Christmas date party

There are so many other memories that happened throughout the year that I didn't even put on here! These are just some of the highlights! I think it's safe to say that 2010 was a great year filled with many memories and personal accomplishments. With Christmas coming up, I can't wait to close out the year in style! Here's to 2011: May it be just as fun and unforgettable as 2010, with many more years to come!

I hope you enjoyed taking a look at the craziness I got into, and if you do a similar post, let me know! I wanna see the memories you've made this year as well!