So 2019 is over and done with and what a brilliant year it has been. There has been plenty of things going on and some parts still seem so surreal to me. The year has been one that has absolutely flown by, it doesn't seem like 2 minutes ago I was sat ill at my sisters getting ready to ring in 2019 but here we are now a year on, a new addition in the family & plenty of different things have go on in the space of that 12 months. So here are some of the highlights of 2019 for me...
In March my nephew Noah was born and I have honestly become a changed person thanks to him. If you asked me 12 month ago to hold a baby I would have told you no chance, I wouldn't have fed him and I wouldn't have been around him so much. But something seems to have just switched in me and I just can't get enough of him. We have had plenty of cuddles in the 9 month he has been here so far and plenty of laughs, he really is my little mate & I can definitely see him being my little sidekick as he grows up. The best part though is when you walk into the room & he sees you for the first time, he will start screeching and clapping getting all excited just that in itself can brighten up any day. Me and Liam are also lucky enough to be his godparents and had a fantastic day with him at his blessing in June.
Thanks to Noah we have also ended up spending more time as a family, we had trips out in the summer and I will often go to my sisters/parents after work just to spend time with Noah and the rest of the family. I don't really think we would have done much if Noah wasn't here but he definitely has brought everyone closer which is another highlight of 2019 for me... me and my sister are a lot closer & are currently getting along a lot better, there are a few more highlights coming up which we actually did together throughout the year. Me and Liam have also had plenty of weekends together, out of the house mainly due to our new found love of going to watch our local women's football team.
April was quite a fun month too I finally got to go see one of my favourite footballers ever play as the Canadian women's national team came to Manchester to play against England on the road to the World Cup. Me, Liam, my mum & dad went to the game and although England lost for me it was great as my favourite Sinclair scored the only goal and the celebration was more or less right in front of us. Not only did I get to see Sinclair but I also saw Schmidt, Scott and plenty of my other favourite Canadians alongside all my favourite England players. That game was on the Friday & on the Sunday it was a family day out to celebrate my dad & Liam's birthday's where we all had plenty of food and drinks throughout the day which was brilliant. Unfortunately for me though the next day (which was my dad's actual birthday) I was booked in for an operation so my Monday morning was spent having my operation and the afternoon was spent sleeping once I got back home. The next day was Liam's birthday which we had a nice day in for, his family came to see him and we just relaxed all day.
The week was a pretty busy one for me as just 2 days after the operation me and Georgia were in Leeds to finally watch Shawn Mendes. We had waited so long for this so I wasn't going to let the operation stop me. We headed in to Leeds nice and early with my mum, nephew and auntie where we did a bit of shopping & had something to eat before we went to see Shawn. It was a brilliant day & the concert was absolutely fantastic, you can read more about it in my previous blog post here.
Throughout 2019 I also rediscovered my love of rugby by going to see the Bradford Bulls quite a few times. I forgot just how much I loved it and it genuinely made me realise just how much I missed the game. Since I stopped playing when I was 16/17 I hadn't really bothered much but going made me remember those times where me & my grandad would go every other weekend to watch the Bulls and I know that in 2020 I will be going as much as I can... even if we have to go to Dewsbury to watch Bradford.
Another thing that me & my sister did together this year was going to Manchester to the Gymshark Lift Manchester event which was absolutely fantastic. I wasn't too bothered about going at first but when she sent me the list of people who were there we signed up for the free tickets and I am so glad we did it. The day was spent doing a lot of queuing to see some of our favourite YouTuber's but we also had plenty of time to wander around the event and do some shopping of the Gymshark clothing. I managed to meet both MattDoesFitness & Behzinga (Ethan from the Sidemen) as well as pick up some great clothes. The day actually made me fall in love with the Gymshark brand and I am sure you will see more Gymshark on the blog soon. You can read about our full day here.
Throughout the summer my poor dad and Liam were slaving away (more my dad) trying to get our back garden so we could enjoy the summer this year and actually sit outside. So they laid some decking which has already transformed the garden quite a bit but we still have a fair bit to do. But just from that work during the summer it meant we actually got out in the garden more, we even did a bit of the work we wanted doing in the side garden too which meant I actually got to play a bit of football in the garden. It also meant I could test out my football boots and equipment and provided reviews on here. Fingers crossed that in 2020 we can get the rest of the garden work done and get it looking absolutely fantastic.
Having the garden done also meant I could finally have the birthday celebration I wanted... a birthday BBQ and it was brilliant, the weather stayed good and we spent the majority of the day outside eating and drinking & just generally having a laugh as a family. Noah had his ball pool set up and played away and helped me open my presents and overall it was just great. I am hoping that when the rest of the garden is done we can have plenty of gatherings in 2020.
Possibly one of my personal highlights for me came in October, I finally took the leap and started up a football blog which is called Edge Of The Area. This was actually created after I started writing a few football posts on here but then I just wanted a space for football only content as football is definitely something I am extremely passionate about. I honestly can't stop thinking about it lately whether it is the men's or women's game. Football is something that has been part of my life for a long time so to now have a little space on the internet where I can chat all about is one of my highlights and I wish I had done it a lot sooner.
The football blog hasn't been going too long however, it has already provided me with 2 highlights. First off we were invited to a launch event at the National Football Museum which was a fantastic evening. I now also have a feature page in the Bradford City Women's page it is still surreal that my ramblings are actually printed and distributed to local football fans. Seeing how proud that also made my family was great too it makes those nights of typing away worth it.
Finally we got our bathroom done in 2019 we have gone from 2 different rooms to everything in one huge space. It is just making life so much easier having everything together and also makes the house look so much better although sometimes I feel it makes the rest of the house look like it needs redoing.
So there you have it those are my highlights from 2019 and to be honest I am sure I have missed some things that have happened but these are what instantly comes to mind it has been a fantastic year and I can't wait to see what 2020 brings. Keep an eye on the blog as I will be doing a post in the next few days with all the things I hope to get out of 2020.
See you soon
Lucy
No comments