2013

2013 was a year full of changes.

The year I moved to Florida, started my first real job, and got married.

These new life events have brought about a lot of smaller changes. Naturally, transitioning from student life to working life brings about some lifestyle differences. Whether big or small, here are several aspects that were a prominent part of 2013 for me:

The Year of the Audio Book
One of my new loves of the year. I am now addicted to audio books. This started as entertainment for my long work drives, and now I listen to them when driving, exercising, and occasionally around the house. I download books directly to my phone so there is almost always a book to listen to close at hand. The final count (though a few might be missing) is 17 audio books.
Favorite: Happier at Home by Gretchen Rubin
Runner Up: My Life in France by Julia Child
Least Favorite: Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

The Year of the Blog
Before 2013 I did some blog reading through feeds, now it is a regular part of my day and I really look forward to blog reading.
Favorite Blog: Modern Mrs. Darcy. You've seen me do link-ups to her blog before, so this was probably obvious. She writes about interests that generally pertain to women, be it fashion, relationships, or entertainment, and always keeps a heavy emphasis on books.
Runner Up: Rage Against the Minivan. The blogger is a mom and you hear a lot about her children's lives and how their family deals with various situations. She regularly post's stories submitted by readers that give a new point of view of sensitive topics. Her writing style is often sarcastic and humorous. Always a good read.
Other Runner Up: The Art of Simple. Simple living blog, what I really love most is the Art of Simple Podcast. Check it out.
And always asking challenging questions to Christians are Rachel Held Evans and Elizabeth Esther.
Some Standout Blogs By Friends:
Candice (a friend from Virginia Tech) does a great job documenting her and Alex's lives, shares recipes, thoughts, and workout woes.
Sarah (a friend from Texas A&M) mainly writes about topics pertaining to Christianity. She is a gifted writer and offers well thought out insights. I'm waiting for her to take the Christian writing world by storm!

The Year of the Workout
Ever since I went to Costa Rica in January of 2012 I have been more intentional about exercise. That semester my friend Lynn and I attended at least 3 classes a week at the gym. Cycling and yoga were favorites. The next summer and following semester that fizzled off a little bit but I would still do something active periodically. End off March/Early April of 2013 is when I really got serious about exercise. I started with a month of Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred and that upped my endurance significantly and brought about quick changes in my body. My next project was running. Unfortunately, quickly into running workouts a disc in my back popped out of place, forcing me to stick to lower impact workouts for months. Finally, (knock on wood) I can do higher impact workouts again and I'm 5 weeks into the Couch to 5K running plan. Exercise has really become a part of my life now. The second I get home from work I exercise. I've been pretty good about getting this in 5 days a week most of the time. I feel better, look better, and have an excuse to splurge on desserts guilt free during the weekends.

What sticks out to you as a change in 2013? Big or small, what was new?