Here's to the New Year!

Well I have had a wonderful and relaxing break.  My days have been spent with family, naps, food, naps, games, and well...more naps.  I had a few short days to spend with my brother and another week with just my parents.  And two nights ago I was able to say goodbye to 2012 and hello to 2013!  Last year was a trying year for various reasons.   It was a year where I had to step back a number of times and think, "Ok, what is the lesson that I am supposed to learn here?  What do You want me to take away from this?"  But let me accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative (get it? it's a song!)  Here are a few of my 2012 highlights.

1. I travelled to Naples FL with the rest of my MFA class to perform The Inspector General and our showcase.  That was a blast!  It was a week that I got to spend with the people that I love in the warm sunshine doing what we all love to do!  This was a week that I won't ever forget...especially since I recorded all most every second :)

2. I graduated with my MFA.  Cool beans!

3. I performed with four other people in The Winter's Tale for Regent's Summer Shakespeare show.  The five of us threw that thing together!  Definitely the fastest rehearsal process I have ever been a part of.  Less than three weeks of rehearsals, I played three different characters, and learned those shakespeare monologues faster than I ever thought I could.  Shakespeare has always scared the crap out of me (if I'm being honest) but there was no time to be intimidated with this process.  Yeah, that was fun.

4. I directed Thoroughly Modern Millie for a high school summer camp.   It never ceases to amaze me how much these teens touch my heart while working with them.  They are always so eager to learn and are always giving their all.  Not to mention, I really love this musical.  The experience was fun, challenging, stressful, and extremely rewarding...everything I hope for while directing a show.

5. I moved to Chicago!  Love the city, love my roommate, and I'm looking forward to great things here.

And with all that behind me, I can start 2013!  I have a new job, a new haircut, and a new apartment (hopefully, more on that later).

Last but not least, I know the whole world has been sitting on the edge of it's seat wondering if I got that purple Ukulele.  Well of course I did!!!!  Ha, I'm so spoiled.  I have had it for one full week now, and below are a few of the songs that I have learned...in the order that I learned them.  I put together a little medley. A few mistakes here and there and Mom and Dad got home right at the end which distracted me...but it's still fun.

Oh yeah, and I named her Kewenah  (ku-weh-nuh) which is Hawaiian for rosy refelction of the sky.

Love to all!