Tina's Tinkerings.: 2013...ringing in the New Year!

Well I obviously suck at blogging these days. My last post was in April, but what can I say... I've been a busy girl! This past year has been one of the hardest, craziest, and best years so far. I became as close as ever with Megan, lost my Sister, became closer to my family, continued my job that I love, and met an amazing boy.

I haven't talked about what happened to my sister much, so if you want to know, here's the story. Everything this year started out great. Megan and I were living life to the fullest and having as much fun as we could. In June we had our second Vegas trip of the year planned, and couldn't wait to carry out our plans for a fun filled summer. We had been working hard at eating healthy and working out, and were ready for a reward! My Dad was stopping in Salt Lake for the night and my sister, Jessika, still hadn't met his new baby, Mary. Megan and I just left a wedding so we met my sister at my Dad's hotel. After having a short visit with him and his kids, my sister and I parted ways. Early the next morning (it was like 7 AM, and I am definitely not a morning person), I got a call from my Mom who was crying. She told me my sister has been in a really bad accident early that morning when she was driving home from a friend's house. She was in a coma and shattered both legs, her pelvis, feet, and has severe bruising on her brain. At first it didn't seem real to me, and I couldn't even cry. Seeing her for the first time was one of the scariest things I can remember. She didn't even look like herself. Our whole family pulled together and spent most of our time at the hospital (especially my Mom and Lynette) for the next 1 1/2 months. Towards the end of July, after going on an emotional roller coaster, the doctors told us there was nothing more they could do for Jessika and we made the decision to take her off of life support. Before that day, I had never experienced someone close to me dying. I never imagined that I could go through the emotions I did that day. This summer has made me realize to NEVER, ever, take anyone you love for granted. You never know what life is going to throw at you, so you might as will live it with no regrets. As hard as this has been for me and my family, it has been the hardest for my Mom. I always knew she was strong person, but she is 1 MILLION times stronger than I would be in her position. I am so grateful to have her as my Mom and I can't say enough how much I love her! All of my friends, family, and co-worker were so supportive through everything. I have some amazing people in my life!