If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time, you’re likely aware of the joy jar tradition Lisa and I have practiced every New Year’s Eve since 2016. The Mason jar was a little less full this year, as it was hijacked for one of Aria’s school projects, and we ran out of slips of paper to stuff inside. Yes, these are terribly lame excuses. However, there were still plenty of great things that happened during another difficult pandemic year. Here are a few of the highlights we did track:

• The joyful look on Aria’s face as she rode her scooter with aplomb.
• Working on Lisa’s “Brighten Your Day” podcast.
• Getting back to Kauai for the first time since 2013, following COVID-19 delays.
• Aria figuring out how to ride her bike without training wheels.
• The Portland Timbers back in the MLS Cup Championship…and at home!
• Pana-Sea-Ah with Lisa for my birthday.
• Meeting Lisa Walz from Capital Community Media Radio.

I want to specifically address the last two notes on this list. The trip to our favorite bed and breakfast, Pana-Sea-Ah, became especially important when we learned a few months later that the innkeepers had sold their home and were retiring. The new owners declined to keep it in operation as an inn, so we have visited for the final time. We will miss Kim and Lori, the proprietors, and their beautiful home, but we have found another place for our winter respite trips to the Oregon Coast.

The final note to address is even more monumental. Specifically, that note in the jar read: “Had a fantastic meeting with Lisa Walz at CC:Media Radio. I think my future could be here…”  The note was dated March 11. Exactly seven months later, October 11, was my first day at CC:Media as the organization’s first multimedia content manager. I oversee content our staff produces on our three cable television channels and on our radio station. I love working there, I really like the people, and we are going to do great things in Salem, Oregon. It’s very exciting, and getting the job was the biggest joy for the whole family this year. I’m happier, my commute is 100 miles shorter each day, and I’m able to spend more time with Lisa and Aria.

This year, of course, will have its challenges and opportunities, so we are renewing our commitment to the joy jar for 2022. (We need to get some paper!) Happy New Year!

There is no getting around that 2020 was an extraordinarily hard year. But it wasn’t all bad. As proof, it’s a return to the joy jar tradition! We have a Mason jar in the kitchen that has dated slips of paper inside, each denoting something that gave us joy on a particular day during the year. Lisa and I read these out loud on New Year’s Eve. Here are highlights from 2020. And yes, there are many:

• Completing the “Silver Falls in Winter” video. Some of my very best work, and it even received a compliment from the director of Oregon Parks.
• Lisa earning her Associate Certified Coach credential.
• Aria engineering trains in the dining room with Grandpa.
• After accidentally deleting my website installation and eight years of content on the first day of 2020, I got all my backups running and the site fully functioning again after a week. A miracle!
• Listening to the total joy of Aria’s and Clarke’s laughs as they play tag upstairs.
• Aria spending afternoons under Clarke’s desk while he works.
• “Mom, are we getting Dairy Queen?” — note slipped under Lisa’s home office door in May.
• Walking down the stairs at midnight and seeing all the stars clearly through the staircase window.
• Evening walks during the summer to Crossler Middle School with Aria.
• Watching Aria walk down the block with Clarke while wearing her full rainbow unicorn onesie costume.
• Aria knows she can come to her daddy for comfort, especially after a tumble.
• Seabrook trip with the family in what would be our last family outing before Gary got sick.
• Seeing, hugging, and having dinner with my dad after he spent five nights in the hospital.
• Aria motioned at me to rub her back one more minute tonight. She put her little hand on my leg and promptly fell asleep.
• Watching the progress Aria has made on her scooter since Christmas day. She has gone from timid to very confident in a week.

Because of so much difficulty this year, we didn’t just save our favorite notes. We kept them all and put them in a time capsule with the others from years past. The new year will have its own challenges and opportunities, so a new joy jar is ready to go for 2021 as a reminder of all that’s good during the next 365 days. Happy New Year!

Back to the joy jar tradition! We have a Mason jar in the kitchen that has dated slips of paper inside, each denoting something that gave us joy on a particular day during the year. Lisa and I read these out loud on New Year’s Eve. Here are highlights from 2019:

• Aria talking her way into devouring multiple marshmallows for dessert…again.
• Aria in our bed for two nights after nightmares from a Super Bowl commercial.
• Aria with her own little pink ukulele.
• “Bakkitball” with Aria. She talks up a storm when playing by herself.
• The week I took off from work to take care of Aria while Lisa was in Alaska.
• Aria’s morning hugs.
• Watching Aria brush her teeth with Daddy. Her giggle and smile were precious.
• Aria’s unadulterated joy playing with squirt guns. She soaked Clarke.
• Hawaii with the whole family.
• Jake Shimabukuro at the Elsinore Theatre. And I got to meet him!
• “Daddy, this is going to sound really weird. I’m thankful for pants.”  — Aria, age 5

We saved our favorite notes and put them in a time capsule with the others from years past. The new year always has its challenges and opportunities, so a new joy jar is ready to go for 2020 as a reminder of all that’s good during the next 366 days — it’s a leap year. Happy New Year!

Here are a few joyful pictures from 2019: