"The Year He Put a Ring on It"
Here we are again on December 31st, the last day of the year. And, wow, what a year it was! I always try to look for the good in any year, but I feel like this year in particular was just overflowing with really great things! 2017 was certainly a year full of many new beginnings. So many changes and opportunities came my way, with two big events making this year stand out even more: moving into my very own place and getting engaged! So many new chapters began in my life and I am extremely grateful for them all. I especially enjoyed the abundance of family time and fun activities this year provided. We attended so many events, traveled to many different places, and spent lots of quality time with all of our favorite people. I found myself overwhelmed by the love and support that was made very evident as certain things happened in my life. I truly am blessed to know so many lovely people...and even luckier to receive such endless kindness. I am so humbled and thankful for all the many gifts and blessings God has bestowed upon me. He is certainly doing great things in my life lately! I am thankful for another year spent strengthening the wonderful relationship I have with Him.
So, all that being said, I'm now going to sit back and reflect on some of the great moments from this year! Obviously way too much stuff happens to me on a daily basis to list, but as always I shall list the highlights of my year below.
So, all that being said, I'm now going to sit back and reflect on some of the great moments from this year! Obviously way too much stuff happens to me on a daily basis to list, but as always I shall list the highlights of my year below.
January
- I created this lovely blog! :) If you're curious as to why I did, feel free to read this post.
- Mike & I celebrated our second anniversary together! <3 We headed downtown to skate on the ribbon in Maggie Daley Park, shop along the Magnificent Mile, visit the Museum of Contemporary Art, and get dinner at the Cheesecake Factory.
- For Michael's 22nd birthday I threw him a Mickey Mouse-themed party complete with "hidden Mickey" cupcakes and a Mickey cake. We also went to dinner with my family at BD's Mongolian Grill, followed by laser tag with friends.
- President Trump officially began his term!
- Mike and I got an apartment!! :)
- I officially started at Columbia College Chicago!!
- For Mom's 48th birthday we all got dinner and went bowling as a family.
- I was totally spoiled for my 22nd birthday this year! Charlotte and Jacob celebrated with us a few days early with bowling and seeing Disney On Ice: Follow Your Heart. On Sunday, Mike took me to the iPic Theater to see A Dog's Purpose and do an escape room! :) On Monday, my family took me to dinner at Gong Ho. And on my actual birthday, Mike threw me a Moana-themed birthday (complete with a homemade Moana cake!) at my family's house where I was spoiled with many new items for my soon-to-be home. :)
- We officially were given the keys to our apartment! :) We couldn't do much moving-wise with our vacation coming days later, but we did some small to-do's and were just happy to finally be able see our place.
- We headed down to Florida for our Disney vacation! :) It was an absolutely amazing time. The weather was perfect, the lines were next to none, and we had so much fun together. We started off with four days in Disney. Then we took a "rest day" to travel down to Pomano Beach to meet up with my friend Angie—whom I haven't seen in person in about ten years!! We then enjoyed four more days at Universal Studios. It was honestly the best vacation either of us had ever been on. Start reading about day one of our eleven-day-long trip here.
- We got back from Florida and moved into our new home. :)
- Charlie turned 1!
- On Mitch's 17th birthday, I made him a green, square-shaped cake.
- We finished getting the apartment all "put together". ;)
- I got my ashes on Ash Wednesday and started abstaining from meat for Lent.
- We started to add personal touches to the apartment, like shelves and photos and other cute things.
- We had a movie night with Charlotte to watch Moana.
- We officially finished setting up and decorating the apartment! All things were put away, found a place, and made orderly. :)
- We went and saw Beauty And The Beast and I adored it!
- Tangled Before Ever After aired and I fell in love!!
- We celebrated St. Patrick's Day with the Donelson family.
- I got all A's on my spring midterms.
- Sookie turned 7!
- We dogsat for my boss Scott while his family was out of town.
- I took Mike to a Green Day concert (his birthday gift from back in January) at the State Farm Center for their Revolution Radio Tour!
- I became a "Fan of Ian" for the Inspiration For Ian foundation. On the day of the 2nd annual relay marathon race in Indiana, I supported Ian and his relay team back here at home by wearing my shirt all day long!
- We had a game night at my family's house—we played Clue and Sorry.
- The doctor's office I work at was completely re-modeled. We also added two new doctors to our office, along with several new staff members!
- Mike and I were hired to make a cake for our friend Shawn's surprise party. His wife Bree had us make a SWAT-themed, double tiered cake.
- We were hired to make a golf-themed cake for our friend Kim's dad's birthday. And so started our little part-time "cake business": Dream Team Desserts.
- On Easter we attended both IBC and St. Cyril's services. Afterward we took some pretty photos at a park. In the evening, Mike treated me with tickets to Broadway's Aladdin The Musical—my first Broadway show!
- Jax turned 15 and I made him a dinosaur-themed cake.
- Mike installed a new floor in our kitchen and it turned out so beautiful.
- We headed to Brookfield Zoo—the weather was gorgeous and all the animals were very active!
- Rach and I headed to Anderson's Bookshop for our first (and my only) book signing of the year! We met Gail Carson Levine, who signed copies of her new book The Lost Kingdom of Bamorre for us. Afterward, we had a movie night.
- We dogsat once again for Scott and Patty while they were in Rome.
- Mike and I went to see the hit Broadway musical: Rent—one of my absolute favorites!
- Mother's Day fell on Rachael's 24th birthday this year. We enjoyed brunch at Cracker Barrel before heading back to the house for presents and to give Rach her book-themed cake! Later we went to my family's house to see my mom, play games, and eat dinner.
- Mike and I started doing daily couples devotionals together (instead of just individually on our own).
- I got all A's on my spring finals!! Days later, summer semester started. :P
- We headed downtown with Mike's family to visit the Museum of Science and Industry! On the way home, Mike, Charlotte, Laura, and I stopped at a beach.
- On Memorial Day weekend, we did an escape room with my family before branching off to go see an amazing fireworks display. On the day of the holiday, we went to the Field Museum to check out the new Jurassic World exhibit where I totally geeked out over all the amazing dinosaur animatronics. :)
- Mike and I headed to Indiana to once again attend Lantern Fest! It was absolutely magical. The next day we also decided to revisit the Indianapolis Zoo, which we still agree is our favorite zoo.
- Charlotte threw a cookout for the college class.
- Mike started his summer classes at College of DuPage.
- Mike and I got a new very fancy camera for an incredible deal!
- My cousin Jennifer welcomed her third baby into this world: Ava Emilia.
- We had our first (and, sadly, only) Urban Disney Princess photoshoot of the year! We headed to Cantigny Park to shoot Mulan.
- On Father's Day we celebrated first with Mike Sr eating yummy BBQ outside on a beautiful afternoon. Afterward we headed to see my dad, with whom we played beach volleyball with at the park before heading to dinner together.
- Donelson Construction (and DC family) attended the annual Menards Contractor Lunch.
- Charlotte turned 19! After she got back from California, we threw her a belated birthday party complete with a Star Wars cake.
- Mike and I did 10.33 miles at Waterfall Glen! :D
- My dad and I headed downtown with Sookie to visit the Belmont Harbor Dog Beach.
July
- So many 4th of July festivities! On the first, my dad invited us all out to Lisle's Eyes To The Skies festival where we rode arguably insane carnival rides. On the third, we enjoyed dad's BBQ before heading to see Lemont's Independence Day Extravaganza fireworks show. On the fourth, we headed to see the parade in Wheaton with Laura and Charlotte, followed by mini golf and then more fireworks with friends at the Bolingbrook Golf Course.
- I was so excited to see Luke, who was home from the marines! He hung out at our home with us, we watched movies, and then he slept over.
- I went with my dad, Mike, and Jax to see the new Spiderman: Homecoming movie and I absolutely loved it!
- I got back into drawing on a more regular basis again. :)
- I got all A's on my finals for my summer classes.
- We headed to Montello, Wisconsin for our annual vacation at White Lake! It was a lovely week of swimming, pontooning, tubing, movie nights, and lots of fun times together! You can start reading about day one of our trip here.
- My mom and dad celebrated their 25th Anniversary together!
- Mike finished his summer classes!
- I changed up my hair by adding some auburn highlights.
- Mike turned a boring day downtown for school stuff into a fun afternoon at Navy Pier in celebration of National Girlfriend Day.
- We had a fun evening with Mike's family going to the driving range, getting ice cream, and watching a movie.
- We made another cake, this time for my co-worker Briseida's daughter Emma's Christening.
- Mike and I ran the Warrior Dash—our first 5K together!
- We had the pleasure of attending my new baby cousin Ava's baptism.
- Mike started his fall classes with College of DuPage.
- We witnessed the solar eclipse!
- We got together with Mike's family since Char was leaving for school. :'( It was a fun night full of family time, games, and a movie.
- For Zack's 19th birthday we enjoyed a lovely family dinner and made him a spade cake.
September
- Mike and I headed to Lisle Community Park for a fun, impromptu photoshoot together. :)
- We had my family over at our place on Labor Day for dinner and a movie!
- School started back up for the fall at Columbia; Mike started his one class there as well.
- My Grama gave me two huge boxes full of old family photos to look through and add to my family tree! It was such a treat to see photos of my ancestors.
- We headed to the Donelson's early one Saturday morning to help with their humongous garage sale. I got to play chalk & other fun activities with Peter.
- We took advantage of a beautiful Sunday afternoon and headed to Brookfield Zoo again to see the Dragons & Dinos attraction!
- We went mini golfing at PGN Jumpin' Fun—a place I hadn't been to since I was about 6.
- We visited Richard & Mary at their new apartment in Naperville.
- My family (plus some of my brother's friends) headed up for the free weekend in White Lake! We enjoyed our time together relaxing, playing games, and visiting The House On The Rock—home to the world's largest carousel!! Start reading about day one of the trip here.
October
- On National Boyfriend Day Mike and I had to work all day long. :( However, I still made sure to surprise him with treats & gifts when he got home that night!
- Mike took me to see Tangled in theaters!! That was the second time I had seen it on the big screen. :)
- After five long years, I finally said goodbye to Kohl's to focus more on my other job and finishing up school.
- My dad surprised us with tickets to the Blackhawks game! Mike, Jax, Mitch, and I had a blast together watching the Hawks win 5-1!
- My cousin Raymond welcomed his very first baby into this world: Joseph Robert!
- Mike and I got crafty one weekend and made a beautiful family birthday board.
- On Sweetest Day Mike took me to the All Seasons Apple Orchard, our favorite place to visit every fall! We had a lovely day picking apples, feeding cute barn animals, conquering the corn maze, and more. Later we headed to downtown Naperville for dinner and shopping.
- We made our yearly fall apple pies from the apples we picked! My brother Jax helped out, and then we (plus Mitch) all watched a scary movie together.
- I received my Winter Thanksgiving treats from Angie.
- For my dad's 48th birthday the family headed to Konow's Corn Maze for a fun evening of fall festivities! Back at home, we gave him his gifts and the Halloween-themed cupcakes before having a family pumpkin carving contest (it was Mike's first time ever carving a pumpkin!).
- For Halloween, I dressed up as a deer and Mike dressed up as a hunter! ;)
November
- We saw lots of great movies, like Thor: Ragnarok and Murder On The Orient Express.
- For Laura's 51st birthday we went out together as a family to Cracker Barrel. Mike and I made her a cake and a homemade "family tree".
- Mike took me out for a "day of memories", where we relived many wonderful moments from our past together. We started the day off with breakfast at George's, where he asked me to be his girlfriend. Later we went ice skating at Rocket Ice, which was one of the first few dates the two of us went on together! And then... After (almost) three incredible years, Michael took me back to the location of our very first date: the Illumination lights display at the Morton Arboretum. It was there, amongst the beautiful crystal chandeliers, that Mike & I got engaged!!!! The ring is absolutely GORGEOUS and he even gave me a blue feather! I am easily the happiest girl in the entire world—I cannot wait to officially be Jordan Rachele Donelson!
- On Thanksgiving, we enjoyed a delicious meal followed by some family football with my side before meeting up with Mike's side for an exciting night of Black Friday shopping.
- We celebrated Peter's jungle-themed 3rd birthday party with family and friends at the Marsceau's.
- Mike and I bought a brand new Christmas tree this year to decorate for the holidays!
December
- "M & J's 25 Days Of Christmas Movies!" started.
- We headed out to the Graue Mill to take photos for our yearly Christmas card.
- My uncle very suddenly passed away.
- I got all A's on my finals for my fall classes!
- Mike also finished his fall classes with both College of DuPage and Columbia.
- My dad surprised the family with tickets (and our very own BOX!) to the Impractical Jokers standup show.
- We headed out to Brookfield Zoo with Mike's family for a lovely night checking out animals and enjoying the beautiful light displays.
- Richard and Mary hosted a Christmas party at their apartment, inviting the entire side of the Donelson family over.
- On Christmas Eve Eve, we got together with Mike's side to celebrate Christmas a day early. We had dinner and exchanged gifts before heading home where the two of us exchanged our gifts as well. :)
- On Christmas Eve we headed to St. Cyril with my intermediate family for church, where my dad once again played Santa in the Children's Mass! We then headed back to my parent's house for celebrations with my dad's side of the family. There was dinner, presents, and the annual White Elephant Dice game.
- On Christmas morning we headed over to my family's house for presents. Later, my mom's side of the family came over for more celebrating.
- Mike asked his best friend Luke to be the Best Man at our wedding!
- My family threw Mike and I a huge engagement party! A bunch of our family and friends all came out to celebrate us! We also recruited our entire wedding party: my cousin-in-law Jess and my lifelong childhood best friend Becky became my co-Maids of Honor while all three of my brothers were groomsmen!
- For Mike Sr's 53rd birthday, we headed over to the Donelson's home for food and games.
- On New Year's Eve we went to dinner with dad, Jax, and Mitch ringing in the new year together.
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Since I didn't meet my goal of 25 books last year, I set it again in hopes of achieving it in 2017. I started off really slow, not having much time to read between work and school... I didn't even get around to starting until May! :( It ended up being a very busy year overall, so my grand total of books read for 2017 was only 10. However, considering how much did go on this year I am very proud I even found time for those! Here's a list of the specific novels I read, plus my ratings. For reviews and other fun stuff, check out my Goodreads account!
- Return To The Isle Of The Lost - Melissa De La Cruz (4/5)
- Three Dark Crowns - Kendare Blake (5/5)
- The Fourth Apprentice (Warriors: Omen Of The Stars) - Erin Hunter (4/5)
- Sinful Cinderella - Anita Valle (3/5)
- Sneaky Snow White - Anita Valle (3.5/5)
- Five Nights At Freddy's: The Twisted Ones - Scott Cawthron & Kira Breed-Wrisley (5/5)
- Murder On The Orient Express - Agatha Christie (5/5)
- The Breeders - Katie French (4.5/5)
- The History Of Love - Nicole Krauss (5/5)
- Dear Luke, We Need To Talk. Darth - John Moe (3/5)
Movies/TV
Here's my annual list of the movies Mike and I saw in theaters this year. Obviously, I always seem to still find time to head to the movies. ;) There were so many good ones that came out in 2017! Seriously!! Be sure to check out my Letterboxed account for more movies, ratings, and reviews.
- La La Land (5/5)
- A Dog's Purpose (5/5)
- Fifty Shades Darker (3.5/5)
- Kong: Skull Island (5/5)
- Beauty And The Beast (5/5)
- The Rocky Horror Picture Show (4/5)
- Life (4/5)
- Personal Shopper (2.5/5)
- The Fate Of The Furious (4.5/5)
- Born In China (4.5/5)
- Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 (5/5)
- Alien: Covenant (4.5/5)
- Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (5/5)
- Wonder Woman (5/5)
- It Comes At Night (2.5/5)
- Spider-Man Homecoming (5/5)
- War For The Planet Of The Apes (4/5)
- Annabelle: Creation (4.5/5)
- Logan Lucky (3.5/5)
- It (4/5)
- mother! (3/5)
- Tangled (5/5)
- Happy Death Day (3/5)
- Thor: Ragnarok (5/5)
- Murder On The Orient Express (4/5)
- The Star (5/5)
- Star Wars: The Last Jedi (5/5)
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As always, check out my Facebook and Instagram for more photos and updates—I love to keep in touch with all my loved ones! Our photography/art page (home to our Urban Disney Princess collection) can be found at Snap & Sketch Studios—and thanks to Mike, we now also officially have a website! Our cakes and other dessert creations can be viewed at Dream Team Desserts. I also had to make a portfolio website for my Website Design class this semester and I plan to continue updating it with my artwork in the days ahead, so if you're interested in seeing some of my stuff you should check it out!
I hope everyone has a very happy new year! As mentioned, 2017 was an incredible year for us—but what's even more exciting is knowing that 2018 is going to be even more spectacular! There are so many big things already planned for the new year—and who knows what else will pop up as the days go by! Just to name a few exciting events coming our way in 2018:
Our lease for our apartment is up at the end of March, so Mike and I have been avidly searching for a new place...and this time we're buying!! God-willing, I will also be graduating school this summer (which hopefully also means I should be getting a new job in my field sometime thereafter!). Mike and I have talked about getting a dog for just about forever, so once we are out of our pet-free building and have our own place we will hopefully be adding a new furry friend to our little family. And, of course, the main event: Michael and I are getting married before the end of this year! We've looked into things a little, and as of right now the plan is to have our wedding this coming November! More details to come, obviously. ;) We are SO excited!
Here's to another beautiful year for us all! This year brings 12 new chapters and 365 new chances—let's use them all to the fullest!
Our lease for our apartment is up at the end of March, so Mike and I have been avidly searching for a new place...and this time we're buying!! God-willing, I will also be graduating school this summer (which hopefully also means I should be getting a new job in my field sometime thereafter!). Mike and I have talked about getting a dog for just about forever, so once we are out of our pet-free building and have our own place we will hopefully be adding a new furry friend to our little family. And, of course, the main event: Michael and I are getting married before the end of this year! We've looked into things a little, and as of right now the plan is to have our wedding this coming November! More details to come, obviously. ;) We are SO excited!
Here's to another beautiful year for us all! This year brings 12 new chapters and 365 new chances—let's use them all to the fullest!
