2019 is in full swing, and I am remiss to not post a year in review for 2018. So, here goes! 2018 was better than 2017, but like 2017, we struggled with family, work, life balance as my husband’s job stayed in the same industry. But, the good news is that he was back home with us, and not going to North Dakota, which was great news! But, he only had one weekend off a month, so that made things tricky. The juggling act continued. Health-wise, things got a bit nuts for me in Summer 2018, as I was diagnosed with vestibular migraines, a rather debilitating condition that still persists today. It made matters worse to be active duty military during said diagnosis, and trying to recover. But, as I learned, I have a great community of friends and neighbors who really helped us out when we needed it most. We are blessed! It was an interested second half of the year, attempting to conquer this new disease, and try to juggle work, life, and the kiddos and all their activities.
I coached 3/4 girls’ basketball for our local rec center. What an experience, but certainly exhausting, and trying. My daughter loved that I did it, but December through March was consumed completely by basketball, and weekend games, and dealing with the things that come with competitive team sports for kids. But the kids had fun, so that is great! My great friend Maddie came to visit for my Birthday and St. Patrick’s Day this year and it was so awesome to have her. I wish I lived closer to all my friends.
Travel-wise, in April, we had a nice trip to Orlando, for my convention, and as a result, had a blast at a super cool resort. It was a relaxing trip. We went back to Florida in June, and this time to celebrate my niece’s 1st birthday in Miami. We had an amazing stay in Coconut Grove, and then took a side trip to Playa Largo resort to check out the Keys- Key Largo was amazing! We attended a family wedding in September and took it easy the rest of the year. We hope 2018 brings more travels.
Blog-wise, I took part in some activities, enjoyed a Juice Plus tower garden, but I scaled back a lot so I could manage my health and stress. Work-wise, I approached the final year of active duty tour, and I am grateful for the opportunity, but ready to get back to a shorter commute, and more flexibility in my work schedule. Going active duty has been quite the experience, especially with kids and a long commute, but I am ready to go back to the Reserves and have a more normal schedule.
Here we are, in 2019, approaching some cross roads and changes in life, and we hope it is a great year for you all and we hope for the same. Happy 2019, everyone!
I had the pleasure and opportunity to grow food in a soilless, aeroponic 
The best part was harvest time. Any time I made indian food, I could grab a handful of cilantro. I already have as a basil, but you can grow basil very well in this tower. Lettuce varieties and herbs grew the fastest. Tomatoes took a while so I only saw small ones by October, and now my friend will get to see some peppers and tomatoes. We did manage to get three cucumbers, and they were tasty. You can’t plant root vegetables like carrots but you can try things like peppers, squash, and cucumbers, and broccoli. Spinach and kale grew readily and I loved having that for my fresh smoothies every morning. I always add 
We had the opportunity to do an Urban Quest in Denver- we picked Lower Downtown, near Coors Field, Confluence Park, etc., and had a blast, but were all exhausted by the end of it. I
We had so much fun seeing sights, and things we never would have discovered driving in a car. Another option is to get those bikes/scooters you can get throughout the city and ride those vice walking, or mix it up, so the 3.5 miles plus go by fast -) We used my smart phone to navigate and submit clues, and found some hidden gems. There was construction near Coors Field so missed those clues, but you can skip over questions, and we had to skip two because of construction fences. The cool thing is you start when you want, end when you want and play at your own pace. It was good family time!
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I initially posted about being chosen to promote 
The four wines they chose for us were perfect! I ordered 2 reds/2 whites, and one the whites was a sparkling white and was the winner of the night. That California sparkling wine was called “Finke’s Widow.” Simply yummy. The two reds were Chop Shop and Tempo Vero. They were smooth, and sweeter than most reds, and perfect for my palate. The white we all loved was a Central Coast California Wine called “Zwicker.” I also had credit and ordered an extra white called “Brethren of the Road” Riesling but because they did not choose it for me, I found this Riesling to be very dry and not sweet. Lesson learned– let them pick the wines for you based on the survey you take at the beginning, because it helps narrow it down and send the best wines for your palate.
All in all, I was impressed how quick the wines were shipped, and delivery, although they said I needed to sign for it, and I did not, so don’t get alarm by the FedEx E-mail. And I did not have to go out to shop for wines that would suit my palate and dishes we cook – it came right to my door! The prices at 
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