Ringing in the New Year

Happy New Year! Did you make a resolution? I have decided to stop checking social media before bed. I don’t benefit from it. Instead, I lose about 30 minutes of my time when I could be sleeping.

I think resolutions are great and it doesn’t have to be a new year for you to start making improvements in your life. Resolutions, though, are only part of the equation. We have to maintain them. We do that by creating a plan. Then, at some point, you should try a “check-in,” and reflect on your progress.

My 2014 resolution was to be a better sister. Depending on whom you ask, my sister or me, you’ll probably get a different answer as to how I did. Distance makes our relationship difficult. She lives in Washington and I’m in Ohio. I tried calling her more frequently, and sent encouraging text messages. Together we had a lot of discussions about our relationship and how to make improvements. For her graduation present for completing her master’s programs, I also gave her a trip to come visit me in my new home city of Cincinnati.

This year I was able to ring in 2015 with my sister, and my mom. I traveled home to California for a few days. It was perfect. We spent a couple days in San Diego to watch Gonzaga, the university my sister and I both attended, play basketball against University of San Diego. Our Zags won. I haven’t been back to Gonzaga in Spokane, Washington, since I graduated, so the game was a great way to reconnect to my university again. It was such a treat. I loved chatting with other alums at the game.

New Year’s Day was spent in Pasadena, watching the Tournament of Roses Parade. Seeing the parade is a Wopschall family tradition, and let me tell you, it was SO nice to be part of that tradition again.

Since working in the news business, this New Years was the first holiday I have been able to go home. The trip was quick. It was only four days. Those four days though, were just perfect. I don’t get tons of time off being a reporter and it’s really made me learn to cherish the time I do have with my family. The time apart has made me very thankful for the moments I do get to spend with them.

Out of everything I did during my trip, my favorite moments were the ones spent at home, laughing and sharing stories together. We often crave extravagant things, like exotic vacations or a swanky New Year’s Eve party, thinking they will make us happy. Those things though, are nothing without good company. The company I got to spend my New Year’s with is the best group of people I know. The people I get to call my family.

#newyear #tournamentofrosesparade #pasadena #gonzaga