The year started with a sprint. I ended 2022 quite sick (COVID take two or three?), which led us to cancel our holiday plans in California and coming home for Christmas to Frasier in New York. Since I was unable to see Dad for Christmas, he decided to visit me in mid-January, which was such a wonderful time for us to connect, have good eats, walk along the park with Frasier, and enjoy being in NYC as father and daughter.

I’m struggling to find the words to capture this year. It started off so promising, I was killing it in my career, Amy had her first child: Gracie, Joel, and I were settling into the city and truly living a dream NYC life. I remember Dad coming to visit during winter (February) and just having a great time with him, watching him freeze at the dog park, and eating La Salle and Il Buco till our hearts were content. I can still see Joel, Jake, and I walking through Central Park, eating at Rezdora, and laughing during the Book of Mormon. I can feel us booking our bucket list trip to South America. I can recall the exact moment I got my new job offer and how thrilled I was for this new adventure in my career.

Where do I even begin? I started last year with so much hope. I was in a new job, and I was starting to finally feel a little bit more settled in our new home – New York City. I tell Joel this all the time, but living here is like living in a dream. Sometimes I feel like I’m living in a snow globe, and someone else is watching me live this extraordinary and imaginary life. It makes me so much more cognizant of how precious and fleeting life truly is.