Most Popular Posts of 2012

I'm reflecting on the top posts you all enjoyed of 2012. It's interesting to see which posts most of you like to read about. You can also take a look back at the post I put together for the top posts of 2011 - it's interesting to see a recap of each year - especially since each year for us has involved new states to live in, new jobs, challenges, etc. Thanks to all of you for making this blog fun and supporting it/us along the way! Click the big link to see the posts. 

{1} 10-day Vacay {Part 1: The Drive & Poolside} 

The most read post of 2012: Our vacation to Texas in August. Oh, that pool. You must've liked it too. I long for summer as I write this post on a single digit degree winter day (where tomorrow won't get above zero degrees). My parents have such an oasis in that backyard!

{2} Fibro, Fall, Football & Fun

I wrote about Fibro updates in October, shared fall photos and some of our fall football excitement:)

{3} Fibromyalgia Support Group

This post was right after I attended my first (and only at this point) Fibromyalgia Support Group. I reflected about my time there with Nick by my side and shared pictures of the beauty nearby.

{4} 1.5 Weeks Without Dairy (or Chocolate!)

Writing about the beginning of my dairy free adventure and about why I excluded dairy from my diet, and ways I was coping with the new diet. 

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{5} Mornings are the Worst

This post was one I received a lot of love and support after writing. It was an honest reflection of Fibromyalgia's impact on me and how heavy the burden can be. This was a post that helped me share more accurately what I had been dealing with. The love and support of all of you truly helps me in this battle. 

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{6} Girls Night

The girls came to town and I met up with them for a trip to the MOA, to dinner, and a girls night sleepover. Oh how I love my friends:)

{7} Our VIP VEISHEA Experience

This post was all about my winning an all expense paid trip to VEISHEA with a guest (Nick!) for the weekend, thanks to the ISU Alumni Association Young Alumni Council. It was such a great blast from our past and we got all of the VIP accesses. It was a much needed gift at a time that was so greatly appreciated! We also got to meet up with Rachel, Jared and their two little ones - I got to finally meet sweet little Haven too. What a weekend. 

{8} Fibromyalgia Updates

This post was an update as I worked with Fibromyalgia Specialists and shared things I had been doing to help my symptoms (stretches, headache tips, excluding gluten from my diet, etc. )

{9} Hibernation & My New Book!

This post shared about the bitter cold Minnesota winter (and my layers to cope with it!), and my excitement about the book FibroWHYalgia, by Sue Ingebretson (who wished me a Happy Birthday on Facebook yesterday by the way! What an amazing lady, I so appreciate her attentiveness to those of us walking the path the has walked). Such a great book for anyone dealing with similar chronic pain issues. 

We have a tie for #10! Here are the two posts tied for #10:

{10:1} Best Husband Ever

This post is the truth. It shared about my birthday last year and how good Nick is to me. Our love grows more each day - I can't even put into words how much he helps me cope with the daily battles of fibro and shares in all the laughter and joys of this life too. 

{10:2} Home {decor} Tour

As we finally got our apartment settled and decorated last May, I was excited to share some of our additions to make our home feel like home. I get a lot of joy out of decorating and using my creative side! I also shared about my new jewelry organization tool made by my friends! It holds my earrings and I got two decorative pieces to store my necklaces too. I absolutely love it. 

I enjoy looking back to see what last year had in store for us, and think 2013 will be an even better year. Thanks for coming along this journey with us, I look forward to seeing what is yet to come! 

Today's Pinspiration for 2013:

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Top Seven Posts of 2011

I've seen a few blogs doing "top posts" of 2011 and I like the idea too. I looked back at the 7 most visited posts from 2011 and here is the countdown:

7.    Gardens & Rodeos

This post was about some family visits to Dallas/Fort Worth back in March. We went to the rodeo two weekends in a row and loved it!  We also toured the awesome Fort Worth Botanic Gardens and I had fun with the photogenic gardens.

6.   Job Search & Interview Tips

Here's where I shared tips I learned as I searched for a new job after I moved to Minnesota in November. It was my third job search in three years (we've moved to a different state each time too, whew!), and I know how difficult it can be. I've been very blessed to find jobs each time, and I put together this post to help others job seeking out there.

5.  1 Year of No {Sham}Poo

I still can't believe I went without using shampoo for a year! It seems weird, I know. It was really a learning year for me to learn about what my body absorbs through the products I use daily (shampoo, lotion, soap, makeup, etc). The funny thing is, in early December, I ended my over-a-year long stint of not using shampoo. My hair "performs" better now and I'm happy I went back, and I now use shampoo free of parabens and sulfates (along with other harsh chemicals).

4.  Back to Minnesota

This was a look at our drive as I moved from Texas to Minnesota (Nick had moved to MN the month before). It was a bittersweet weekend to leave the roots we grew in Texas, yet we were so thankful to get our marriage back under one roof (after nearly two months of Nick living in MN and me living in TX).

3.  Our New Home

Here's a glimpse of our apartment search, my techniques of comparing them, and lots of pretty pictures as I toured around our new town. It also includes our first bigger snowfall of the year (we had a dusting before that), and a few snapshots of our {empty} new place!

2.  A Battle I Face

I let out a sigh as I wrote the title of that post. It's truly been the most challenging aspect of 2011 for me. This post is where I "unveiled" the daily battle I face with fibromyalgia (widespread chronic pain). It was the first time I really opened up my heart on the blog to share my emotions with the ups and downs of physical pain. I wrote this post in March and in the months after, I shared more updates about techniques and medications I tried. 

My big trial was the 4-week chronic pain course I took consisting of biofeedback/relaxation therapy, physical therapy, and group pain education/discussions. I have to say, progress was made as far as education goes. Other than that, I'm still working toward acceptance and pain relief. I remain hopeful to find a comfortable balance to lessen the struggle, and I'm so excited to read FibroWHYalgia in the coming weeks. I'm praying progress is made in all areas in 2012!

1.  BIG News!

I have to chuckle a little at this one, realizing many people were hoping for {bigger} news (as this post had the most page views of 2011, and the fourth most page views of all time!!), but our big news was that we were leaving Texas after just over a year there to return to Minnesota. Sorry friends, I do realize I misled you with that title, but at the time, it was huge news for us, just maybe not the huuuge news some of you were looking for :) In this post, we also laid out a few reasons we were sad to leave Texas and a few reasons we were looking forward to Minnesota. That was our big news of 2011!

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Looking back, 2011 was a really great year. We did a lot of exploring, learning, and trusting. It was a trying year - but aren't they all? I'm thankful for all of our wonderfully supportive friends and family that have helped us through some of our trials. I'm looking forward to seeing what 2012 has in store - hopefully some healing!