2010

 This is one of those epic long posts that's nothing but words. I apologize/you're welcome.

That year.

I can't quite fathom the impact that 2010 has had for me. How can so much be crammed into one year. Some families have events like ours happen once a year or once every few years. But my family, they were busy this year. Which in turn meant that I was busy this year.

We started the new year right with my friend of 11 years Alex Avelar finally getting married, one day after our friendship anniversary. Alex and I became friends on a bus drive to a youth retreat on January 1st 1999. While the past few years we haven't been as close as we used to be he's still a special person in my life and always will be. I couldn't have been happier for a person getting married, that feeling that those two are great together so obvious to the world. Luckily I would have that feeling again later in the year.

The same month we held a baby shower for Esther in a park. My beloved gringo in-laws came and experienced a Mexican party up close and personal.

A few days after that I got a phone call from my middle sister Mari. "Hey, check your email, I sent you something really cute." That's weird, Mari never calls me to check my email, what could be so...BAM big ole diamond ring. Immediate phone call back. AHHHH! Another brother to the family. My sister is engaged. Don't hold your breath for wedding plans kiddos, they're thinking 2012 and are the un-planning est engaged people of all time. Probably because Eddie is one of those responsible types and prefers to talk about saving for a house and what not. Psh.

February 6th, Esther went into labor. The following morning, very early, via c-section, Angelina Joy was delivered and our lives were changed. My brother, Gaudy, Liz, and myself went to the hospital to see her around 1am through a glass window. Holy crap! She had big feet, was crying, and the most beautiful thing we'd seen.

I don't know why, possibly because it was a shock to be there so early in the morning or what but while taking pictures I felt myself feeling weak and started tipping, next thing I knew I was being carried by my brother onto a wheelchair. I had fainted. Since we were in a hospital, they took some labs and I decided to just go home and get the results later. I was fine. Probably just too much excitement.

In March my second youngest sister Liz moved in with us. We feared the worst and mourned the loss of privacy but Liz was a good guest. She got herself to and from places, made her own food, spent a lot of her time in her room. Also she was pregnant so she didn't party or anything. We fed her lots of veggies and made her walk the dogs, you know, for the heath of the baby.

My future sister in-law had a bridal shower as well. Ambre was in town so she came too. There was a lot of love that day, with us sisters banding together against my mom being super loud and starved for attention. Seriously, does that woman ever turn down an opportunity to steal someone's moment for her own personal needs? It was actually a pretty fun party, despite all the penises everywhere.

For a few months out of the year my life went into overdrive pushing my sanity and emotions to the absolute max. I look back on it now and wonder how I did it. I should have had a breakdown.

April 21-May 14 I worked the worst job of my life. I get ONE day off on May 1st to attend my brothers wedding and then go back to work at 5am the next day. We wrap the job on the 19th and May 21-22, visited my nana for the last time, May 28, Lyla was born, she spends four days in our house. June 1 I start a new job, I get a Saturday and my nana dies on a Sunday. I go to work Monday, attend a funeral Tuesday, go back to work for the shoot Wednesday, have a weekend, wrap for two days, have one day off, start another job. The job wraps on a Thursday and that Thursday night Man-D and I had a flight to Boston to visit Nikki and Ali for the fourth of July. AT THE AIRPORT in Boston on the 5th, about to board the plane for LA I get the call about a Nike job that just happened and starts tomorrow. I should have turned it down because it became the most physically taxing shoot I'd ever experienced, I can't even believe they put us through that. While prepping the Nike job I get a call to production manage a job. Happy to jump off the Nike train I take it. Yes, a promotion. Nike ends on the 14th of July, I start my first PM job on the 15th. The job goes for three weeks and ends on the 30th of July. My husband I escape to San Diego for a week. FINALLY, rest. Of course while we're there we get word that niece #4, Savannah Jaymes has been born in New Mexico on the 4th of August. With that giant back to back to back to back maximum emotional occupancy is it any wonder that for the next FIVE AND A HALF WEEKS I spend it at home, not working, doing pretty much nothing? Didn't I earn it? Bet you feel bad you made fun of me and that I needed to get a job. Oh you need to go back to work EvY. You don't even know what you're saying. You try being in a wedding, doing a crazy shoot, watching a baby be born, going to the funeral of your beloved grandmother, get promoted to a much more difficult job, AND take a trip to the east coast and not need some time off. You should see my calendar from April-September. Insane.

Anyway...so read on but know that the expanded explanations of these events were in the midst of all that chaos mentioned above.

In April we threw a baby shower for Liz at our pool area. It was very cute and very abundant in food. My aunt Chela came in to help me out and I see that party planning very much runs in our family.

In May my only brother married the only girl he'll ever need. I was honored to be a part of the bridal party even though bridesmaiding is so not my thing. This was number four by the way. The wedding was mixed with the ceremony being amazing and the reception being way too short since we lost time with wedding picture taking. Agh what a pain in the ass wedding photography is.

I cried a lot at his wedding, flashbacks to when we were kids and he would hang out in the playground with me. I felt so happy for them, knowing they would never divorce, never have any reason to be anywhere else but with each other.

Our family came into town from Mexicali for the wedding and unfortunately I was on this ridiculous job that worked me constantly and daily and I missed the day after the wedding where they were at my house. I was office until about 8pm the night before the wedding, headed straight to the church to help set up, was up 'til 2/3am setting up, woke up, waited for family, got dressed for the wedding, family arrived, headed to the church, watched my brother get married, came home to a crowded and happy house with family, stayed up 'til midnight and had to be back in the office at 5am the next morning. This became a minor trend this year of having back to back to back things happening to the point of wondering how I'm gonna survive.

On May 27 Liz went into labor at my house and woke us up to drive her to the hospital and on May 28, I was able to watch Lyla Sky come into the world via her mommy's hoo ha. I averted my eyes for the gooey parts but did get to watch Lyla spend her first moments out of the womb on her mom's chest, being comforted by her. Recently I re-watched the video of Lyla's first minutes in the world and just like the first time I saw her I could not stop crying with tears of joy.

She was so cute and healthy and not dark skinned which was a surprise. Liz seemed like a natural. Very protective and very loving. I remember going into her room to check on her and she was looking at Lyla and crying. She told me that looking at that beautiful baby, she knew she deserved everything in the world and she wanted to be the one to give it to her and feared not being able to. That's my sister, a mom, complete with all the emotions that come with being responsible for a living soul.

A few days after Lyla was born, where she'd spent the first few days of her little life in our house being all kinds of adorable I dropped Liz off at my mom's. My mom and I got into the biggest fight ever, she pushed me, I pushed her back and we screamed mean things to each other. We haven't spoken since. I can't say I miss her, 'cause I don't. I don't feel the void, all I feel is relief because I hear about her vicious words from my siblings and I am so glad I don't have to deal with her. She's a crazy controlling nut and gives me nothing but grief. It's kinda harsh to say that about your own mother but it's true. I think it all stems from the time she was a child and felt like the world revolved around her and still does. What can you do with a person that only thinks of how what you do will affect them?

The worst day of the year came in June. June 6 to be exact. The day my nana passed away was quiet and lonely. Matt was working and I spent the day trying hard not to think about what the loss meant because I still had to go to work the next day. She died on a Sunday, I went to work on Monday, we drove down to Mexicali that night, and she was buried the next day. Nana being the practical one said she didn't want an open coffin so people would be looking at her as if she was on display at a store but my aunts knew who would need to see her and opened the coffin for my two of my cousins and me. I'd never seen her look so peaceful. The woman had worked all her life so hard for her family and finally she had peace.

I went back to work the next day. It was a mixed blessing having no time off after so heavy a loss because I had to keep working and couldn't really think about it. The first day off was rough, memories and grief came flooding but I embraced it. I wanted to feel the loss, to feel the sadness, to cry, to feel like I loved and lost someone that was truly special to the world.

July 4th was awesome because we spent it in one of the greatest cities in America: Boston. What more can be said about that. There's lots of pictures of it on FB and the interwebs, you can relive it with me.

In August we adopted another dog! Matt and I went to San Diego for a mini-vacation. Matt's sister had another girl. Three nieces born in one year. Beat that.

September brought us our third wedding anniversary. I dunno why but it meant a lot to me this particular time. We celebrated early and had a picnic at the park where we couldn't have a picnic three years ago due to rain on our wedding day. Isn't that ironic? That night we had dinner in traditional style at a Disney restaurant. This year it was the Jazz Kitchen.

October was pretty mellow, I spent most of the time working so it flashed by pretty quickly.

November was nice because I worked for two weeks and then wanted to have a few days off and get right back at it to make Christmas present money but I kept having jobs go away. I knew that with Thanksgiving coming I had a small window to get a job otherwise I'd have to wait for December. Nothing came until the very last week of November/beginning of December. Then I get another call to do a non-union job. I'll take it! Then weirdly enough our job gets cancelled to much relief truth be told. I post about the job cancellation on facebook and I get what I'm calling a mercy job from someone to come help him prep for a few days for a Disney World job. Finally, the mouse is paying me. Even though I don't get to go to Florida, it's nice to know I've given some of my time to Walt's world. The second sister of the year moves in with us and brings her baby with us. It's not easy, but we manage.

The rest of December I didn't work. Which was necessary with the insane amount of things that kept happening around the holidays. Ambre came to town to help me with the party, the party was a roaring success, we went to see a play the next day, my niece had surgery on the 21st, Matt's family from Colorado and Yucaipa came into town that day and our in-laws spend the next few nights with us. I made breakfast for my girls in the family (Aunt J, Aunt Sus, Anna, Jill) one of those days. Christmas Eve I made Mexican rice for dinner and made Matt stuff he could eat. Christmas day was bonkers. The one day I could relax I made breakfast, lunch, and dinner for groups. Oddly enough the least planned and most delicious was Christmas dinner with my siblings. That was the best Christmas night ever. The hugs, the happiness with the babies, the toys, the gifts, just the best. Matt's sister came into town and we went out to the caips to see them, they came into town the 30th and I made a hit lunch for the fam. Tomato soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, and arugula salad. Oh and pumpkin cupcakes. Family kept piling and piling and mercifully we had take out for dinner. Yay.

New Year's Eve was thankfully quiet. My sister and Angie spent the night at mom's so it was finally and much needed just hubby and wifey time. Sigh. We had the crappiest dinner but we had a great time together, trying to keep our exhaused bodies awake 'til midnight. New Year's kiss ends one of the most insane years of my life.

Far as big purchases this year. We bought a new TV, a new fridge, and we sold our pathfinder to my brother and Matt bought a used truck. This has not been the year of saving. We have spent way too much money. I don't even want to think about it. BUT we still managed to double the amount of automatic weekly savings that goes from our checking to savings and whenever we could we put more money in the savings pot. I hope next year will be much different.

Physically I am at my fattest I've ever been and I'm not proud of myself. Getting close to 140 pounds. Ideally I'd like to lose 20-25. And don't try to talk me out of it. It's not just the weight it's the lazy eating habits and no exercise. Things have got to change.

Our house underwent some major changes that were not expected. The outside shingles were removed and replaced with stucco, very cool. All of the doors on the second floor of the house were replaced with nice new ones. The guest bathroom was completely gutted and remodeled including adding a cool solar tube that lets light in during the day. The roof was repaired since there had been a hole in it and was collecting water. And we got a new window on the house on the second floor. Through it all Matt had to deal with most of the construction. I just came home to fairies making magic. It was a lot to deal with but it was worth it and now is just a faint memory, if a memory at all.

And that was my insane year. Three children born to my family. One sister engaged. One brother married. One big ass fight with my mom. One giant loss of my beloved nana. One great party.

And now, on to 2011.