Wrapping up 2022...and Well Wishes to all for 2023!
The year of 2022 has had its ups and downs.
Let’s get the Downs (and their upsides) out of the way.
The Covid: On January 3, I found out my Jan 1st Covid test was positive. Then 10 days after that Jay caught Covid. Jay took his first sick day in his ENTIRE life!
The upside: Relatively mild symptoms and the kids didn’t catch it. Amy was able accomplish a great deal without interruptions in her quarantine. She planned out her entire semester; studied her recipe books for new bites; rode the peloton in zone 1 every day; took advantage of some of her wellness gifts from friends; and Instagram convinced her to buy an Almond Cow to make nutmilk. Upon leaving quarantine, she finally started to go to malls and restaurants to dine out with her sisters! Jay was still able to work remotely with tele-health but but still doesn’t seem to want to go out to eat. Maybe Amy shouldn’t have studied those recipe books so hard!
The first surgery: My dad went into emergency hip surgery on Christmas and rung in the New Year in Houston, Texas rehabilitating until February.
The upside: My sister’s family and her in-laws nursed him back to health making it easier for my mom. Plus Sheela and Kapil’s children were able to bond with their grandparents for an extended visit.
The second surgery: When my parents arrived back to San Diego, my mom ‘s dizziness and blurred vision was diagnosed and she had to have emergency brain surgery to remove a benign menangioma.
The upside: She was able to distract herself from the hard recovery process by looking forward to all of her friends from Michigan and family from all over coming to visit to celebrate my parents 50th Anniversary.
The third surgery + a car accident: Later in the year, Jay’s dad needed back surgery and the day before that surgery, Jay’s mom got into a car accident.
The upside: They are both recovering quickly, and were able to remain positive by looking forward to a snowy Thanksgiving visit from their extended family.
new beginnings and updates on us:
This year also had some wonderful new beginnings.
Amy started a new job as a Visiting Professor at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville teaching a course online and running their Summer Bar prep program. The connections made with students and faculty even from a distance has been exceptionally rewarding.
Annika started high school, made several new fast friends, went to her first school dances, started running cross country, and took her first mid-term exams.
Xander finished Elementary School and went on his first sleep-away trip to Catalina. In the fall, he started at a new middle school knowing no one, but gradually made new friends, joined the math team, and is having fun in Garage Band. He also started off the year playing flag football (which he will never do again), joined basketball (which is going better), and is working hard to improve his tennis and pickle ball game (which he enjoys). He ended the year taller than Amy and Annika.
Jay is still going strong at Kaiser Permanente, celebrating 12 years of providing excellent cancer care and surgery. He also received surprise accolades in the mail from Peloton for taking more classes and working out more hours than anyone we know!
Adventures, Travels, and Visits
50th Anniversary Party:
Celebrating my parents 50th with cousins from all over and seeing the joy in my parents eyes when they were reunited with friends and family after such a rough first half of the year was rewarding beyond words. The entire clan of the Parekh grandchildren gave speeches. Karina got the crowd chuckling when she confidently held the mic and read her acrostic poem for my dad….the N is for “Napper!” Xander and Annika performed pieces on the harp - and both of my recovering parents were able to dance as Annika played “I Can’t Help Falling in Love”.
Visits:
We are so lucky that Seema and Sheela are able to visit so frequently and cousin love cannot be measured.
Thank you to the Lees for always making an effort to see us more than once a year! Grateful that the Barrows were able to stay with us this summer too, despite several Covid scares that could have canceled it all. Favorite moments from that visit include Annika and Nia’s protective ideas for Dylan’s Jordans before embarking on Splash Mountain and when 5 foot tall Amy scored three times playing basketball with the entire family of 6 foot tall Barrows. (Yes, Amy is probably the only one who finds that memorable).
We also introduced a new human this year, my cousin Shraddha had her first baby boy - MoMo!
We almost celebrated Christmas with Seema’s family, if it wasn’t for the 4 flight cancellations during the Arctic Blast…
We hope next year will bring MORE visits from friends everywhere!
Stay-cations:
Annika and I drove the coast to meet up with friends and “glamp” together in Santa Barbara. Vinita and I took the kids to Norcal for a quick overnight trip. The whole family ventured out to LA and Pasadena for a long weekend and explored The Broad, The Huntington Library and Gardens, The Last Bookstore and more! Always feel so lucky that we live where we live!
Denver:
In February, we ventured to Denver, Colorado to visit Amit, Bijal, and our youngest addition Samira. Samira was seriously the “Happiest Baby on the Block!” That is, until Xander and I decided to bake his famous chocolate chip cookies, and it kept her up all night! Denver’s scenic views caught while rock climbing and zip-lining were unparalleled. And the kids enjoyed a short day of Loveland skiing.
Paris + Rome:
We took back our 2020 Europe trip and traveled to Paris and Rome. This was truly the highlight of our year. I blogged about it at length.
Utah:
Xander and I visited Christine’s new home in Utah in September. Salt Lake City’s Temple Square was our first stop. But the main treat was warming Christine’s new home near Park City. The views both day and night were exhilarating. And our pickle ball adventures began there as well.
Michigan:
Our final travel adventure was back to Michigan for Thanksgiving. We arrived with snow on the ground and experienced an earlier arctic blast of our own - with no travel delays. Jay and Vish took the kids to their first Michigan football game. It was the one and only 19 degree football Saturday this year and fortunately Michigan won. They braved it out until the end. I provided door-to-stadium car service. Vinita and I enjoyed the warmer and tastier parts of Ann Arbor during the game. The kids loved M life so much that the full Shah-side ventured back to Ann Arbor for a basketball game too, where Jay and I both randomly ran into old UMich friends seated in the same section. AND we won free pizzas at The Cottage Inn!
Midnight sledding on Anjali’s driveway will never be forgotten. Reunions with the Barrows, the Repps and Sara Woodward kept our hearts and souls especially warm, despite the cold weather.
Thanksgiving morning started off in the 40s, which is considered a warm morning in Michigan so we started our day off with a Shah family Turkey Trot (I of course still used foot warmers and hand warmers for it - and then bought a lifetime supply at Costco - I don’t know how I have lived this long without these!).
We wrapped the year staying cozy in SoCal and celebrated with both grandparents and Vinita’s family. Sadly, Seema’s family never made it out. But as I sit here watching the NYE celebrations on TV, I am realizing 2022 wasn’t so bad after all. Perhaps that is the most rewarding part of journaling. It helps me memorialize that the ONE thing that made the year so much better was our friends, family, and community. We are blessed to be able to have such a close-knit family and loving long-distance friends who have stood the distance with us. If we didn’t see you in 2022, we have loved our long facetime connections and plan to see you in 2023!
