The End Of The Year On Hairstyles, Memories, and Time Flying

A year. So long to wait for, and yet so brief in hindsight. We feel the same as we did 365 days ago while also marveling at how much we’ve changed. Different perspectives, evolving hairstyles, more memories, and the sense of time flying. On the last day of 2018, we reflect on what’s changed, and what remains the same.

Tucker’s hair has changed. Just a year ago, it was long and bleached by sun and water.

Later this year, he decided it was time for a “short boy” haircut, which resulted in tears for three days until I could get him into my salon, and all was right with the world. We didn’t tell him that his short boy haircut wasn’t all that short.

Since then, he’s gone even shorter and now has a weird thing called a “hard part” (there’s a photo of it here). I love the new style, but miss his hair longer.

Even more, I miss the few minutes before that, when his hair was still filling a bald head. This time flying thing ain’t a joke, friends.

2018 was the year we packed up everything we own and moved from Virginia to Colorado. Old places, new adventures. It was harsh and horrible, but also full of wonder. Tucker flossed across the country, shaking his head at my attempts to join him. We discovered family history, sat high in the St. Louis Arch and marvelled at the vastness of windmills spinning as far as we could see in wide open spaces.

Before leaving, we visited our favorite DC attractions. I do miss being able to hop on the metro to see paintings by Leonardo da Vinci and the Lincoln Memorial in an afternoon.

Colorado brings us new adventures though. Rocky Mountain sunshine, nature, and a trip to a wolf and wildlife center, where we saw 18 wolves eat dinner and then howled with them at the end of the tour. Standing in twilight listening to 18 wolves howl around you is nothing short of miraculous and will remain a memory we’ll cherish for years to come.

We went to Be Beautiful, Be Yourself, and OMG. I’ve never been in a room with more people who have Down Syndrome ever, and it was life changing. Amazing. Inspiring, and a perfect night. Plus Colin Farrell gave me a shoulder hug. THANK YOU AGAIN to Mardra and Marcus for a perfect night.

Colorado also brought Buddy the Elf – a tradition I’ve avoided since Tucker was a baby but had a blast with after realizing the key is to set a phone reminder each night. Some favorite Buddy moments include the morning we found Iron Man holding Buddy by the foot over the toilet and the one where we discovered he’d thrown a party with cookies, a dinosaur head, Captain Hook, and a few Stick Bots.

On the final day, Buddy the Elf toilet papered the Christmas tree and entire family room. I thought I got a photo but only have an incomplete video. Trust me though, his departure back to the North Pole was epic. He may even be allowed back next year.

Nugget. I can’t forget to mention that 2018 brought us a puppy with black and pink feet we call Nugget. We struggle with leash training and carpet eating but thrill to the look on Tucker’s face when he’s with her.

Happy New Year, all. May 2019 bring blessings, health, and adventures you’ll remember for years to come.

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This has been a Finish the Sentence Friday post although it’s not Friday. This week, my co-host Kenya Johnson of Sporadically Yours and I are opening up a “Free-For-All” Friday post. Link up with a photo and the story behind it, a year in review post, or something else that you’d like to share (remains open through late Sunday evening). The next linkup will be on January 11 with the prompt of “OMG it’s January…”