The Things in 2015

Happy last day of 2015!!

Are you a New Year’s Eve person? I totally am. I love the hype and the sparkles and the champagne and the reflecting and the thoughts of a promising new year to come and the singing of Auld Lang Syne. I feel like I always overhype it and really shouldn’t be that into it, but I am. I love New Year’s Eve like I love birthdays: a lot.

One of my favorite things to do each year is to sit down and write out the significant memories and accomplishments that occurred over the year. It’s a fun exercise.

Here are the biggies for 2015:

• Took a mother/daughter trip to California where we wine tasted and had a blast.
• Celebrated Just J.Faye’s 1-year blogiversary!
• Crossed the finish line with my mom while she conquered her first half marathon, the Fargo Half Marathon in Fargo, ND.
• Experienced annoying heart arrhythmia issues while running, so I wore an attractive heart monitor device for a few weeks. Luckily everything turned out fine.
• Completed my 4^th marathon, Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, MN.
• Hiked the Inca Trail, explored Machu Picchu, and hung out in Cusco and Lima, Peru for the 6^th annual JenNat trip.
• Quit my career at General Mills after being there for 6 years.
• Made the major decision to leave Minneapolis and move to Denver with my dear friend Katie.
• Broke my wrist after tripping on the sidewalk while running during my second day living in Denver.
• Worked as a waitress at Blackbird before deciding to make a full-time career change into personal training at 24 Hour Fitness.
• Went to Maroon Bells and saw the gorgeous fall colors.
• Bought a ski pass and skis and went skiing for the second time in my life, something that needs to happen much more in 2016.
• Sold my condo two months after it was originally supposed to close (and after I had a meltdown).
• Freaked out with joy when my sister got engaged.
• Posted 37 recipes, 23 workouts, and 63 random fun things.

That was a lot of things and only really scratched the surface. Most of them happy, a few of them bittersweet, and a couple of them really not so great. Two of the things were pretty giant: change in city and change in career.

While I am happy to be living in Denver I feel like I am still trying to figure out my life here – my routine, my groove, my identity. Maybe that’s all part of the fun of it though, figuring everything out? This is primarily what I think about when I run.

So anyways, other than the majors, 2015 was filled with ups, downs, tears, fears, smiles, laughs, jokes, new friends, family time, heartbreaks, runs, races, crafts, texts, emails, pictures, worries, cookies, wine, funny things, early mornings, late nights, hellos, goodbyes, and see-ya-laters.

Pretty standard stuff.

^^^ 12 of my favorite pictures/memories of 2015.

And now let’s start thinking about 2016, shall we?

Some of my 2016 goals:

• Career: Consistently hit 120 sessions trained per month (AKA: full-time status as a trainer). Continue to learn, learn, learn about anything fitness related.
• Fitness: Do a triathalon. Maybe run another marathon, but maybe not. And as always, incorporate a lot more yoga and stretching into my life.
• Travel: Plan the 7^th annual JenNat trip, potentially to Thailand or Vietnam. Travel domestically to Austin, New Orleans, and/or Portland with some trips to Minnesota.
• Colorado: Ski, hike, and camp as much as possible!
• Just J.Faye: Grow it. Learn more about photography, recipe development, and SEO. Also, up my networking game.

Basically, I want to hustle and have the courage (and energy) to go after the things that I want to accomplishment.

And that’s that! I hope you celebrate the last day of 2015 with an awesome workout, festive cupcakes, champagne, and a lot of wonderful people.

Cheers!