In hindsight - 2011.

Well, in that case. In hindsight I probably shouldn't have started posting on my blog again right before Christmas when I was busy having holiday merriment thrust upon me. Oh well.

Without further ado, the recap of twenty-eleven.

Highlights:

- I kissed my wonderful boyfriend for the first time. -

- I moved out to state. Utah to Las Vegas! An awesome, scary, wonderful choice! -

- I went to Louisiana with my sister and some friends! It was amazing! Now I can say I've been to 33 states!  -

- I kissed my incredible boyfriend some more. -

- I got a job as a preschool teacher. -

- I visited California to see my boyfriend. We went to the beach. My first time since I was 14. -

- I saw Sugarland, Tim McGraw, Kenny Chesney, The Cataracts and B.O.B. in concert. -

I tried beignets, adobo and sushi for the first time. I liked the first two a lot! -

- I met my boyfriend's family. -

- I introduced my boyfriend to my family. -

- I got the keys to my very own apartment. -

- I was kissed under the mistletoe. -

- I read 51 books! - 

- I made adult decisions and it's actually working. It's terrifying, but I'm still going strong.-

This entire year has been one of the hardest things I've ever done. I made a giant leap and moved to Vegas. I've moved out of my parent's house twice before and failed both time. When things got hard, I'd just give up.

Things have been much harder this time. I'm six hours further than I was the other times. I had a much harder time finding a job. And even when I did, I was miserable going to work a good chunk of the time. But something was different. Even though things were awful, I still got up and did what I needed to do.

I've been here longer than I made it both those other times combined. And I just got the key to my own place. It's a tiny little apartment, but it's exactly what I need right now. It's a scary (terrifying) new adventure, but I'm feeling more capable than I ever have in my life. I can do this.

I've learned a lot about the world and about myself this year. These experiences, good and bad, have helped me grow so much as a person.

I'm excited for the new year, but I'm sad to see 2011 go. It was an absolutely incredible year.

I'm going to very honest.

I fail at blogging.

Way to go, Kate. Start a full time job and just drop off the face of the blog-o-sphere.

But I'm going to be honest about one more thing.

I've missed this so much.

Today I realized that this is Simply Kate's 2nd birthday!

I was so excited.

Until I realized that I haven't posted in nearly two and a half months.

Shame on me.

So let's count this as an early resolution. Simply Kate is BACK!

It's been a nice break, but it's even nicer to be posting again!

Happy second birthday, Simply Kate!

Here's to another wonderful year!

Remember when I posted this photo?

We had a great turn out for my giveaway of the My Memories Suite software.

And we have a winner!

Congratulations to Emma!

I've sent you an email telling you that you've won!

And for all of you who didn't win, you can still use the Simply Kate promo code and get $10 OFF this awesome software!

Plus, it is good for $10 OFF anything in the My Memories Store!

So awesome, right?

Everyone's a winner!

Thanks so much for entering my giveaway everyone!

The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson

Hey hey hey!

There's only five more days left in my giveaway!

Be sure to go and enter to win a free copy of My Memories Suite!

It's free!

It's international!

It's awesome!

If you don't believe how crazy cool this program is, check out the latest page I made in this program!

I'm totally in love with program!

So go and enter the contest to win My Memories Suite! You have until midnight on Saturday, September 24 at midnight PST! 

Also! If you haven't taken advantage of this offer yet, all of the readers of Simply Kate can use this code:

I have a few very exciting things to mention!

Earlier this week, I celebrated my channel 2 year anniversary on YouTube! 

It was quite a party!

If you missed it, I'm hosting this amazing giveaway right now! You can go check out details about how to enter HERE!

My Memories offered me a chance to review their software My Memories Suite and goodness, I am so loving it!

That's also what I'm giving away to one lucky reader!

Trust me, you better go enter because this is a program you definitely want to own!

And it's free if you win!

I spent an hour two tinkering around to make this page.

The goal for the day was to use as many embellishments as I could without making the page look cluttered.

So cute right?

I used the Morning Hush Pack from the My Memories Store!

So cute right?

It was so easy to place embellishments and I was so happy to find out that all of my existing digital scrapbook embellishments are usable in this program!

I'm loving this program more and more!

Be sure to go and enter the contest!

And as a special bonus, every reader of this blog gets an extra special promo code to use!

It will get you $10 off of My Memories Suite and $10 off ANYTHING in the My Memories Store!

Cool huh?

What is your favorite part of scrapbooking?

I'm going to be honest.

Working with kids isn't always a stroll through the daisies.

They may look cute and harmless.

But unlike daisies, kids are loud, chaotic and definitely don't smell like a field of flowers.

I come home from work every day absolutely exhausted and drained.

It's not all bad though.

When I get home, I get to tell everyone about the funny things my little kiddos do.

And something that's even better than silly stories.

Kids have birthdays.

And when they have birthdays, they bring yummy Sesame Street characters for me to munch on.

Elmo came to see you!

There's only one thing better than looking at this adorable cupcake.

And that was eating it.

I really like my job!

Guys! I've been given a fantastic opportunity!

I was given a free version of My Memories Suite!

Wait, you don't know what that is?

It's a program dedicated COMPLETELY to Digital Scrapbooking!

Needless to say, I am thrilled!

This program is incredible! And that's saying a lot when you know how much I adore Photoshop!

I spent the afternoon tinkering around in this program.

And it's even made with stuff I bought in the My Memories Store!

And there are a couple great features to this program that I discovered! 

1. There is an Auto-Mat Tool! If you want a simple mat on your photo, you can easily choose the size and color. And better yet! You can set it up so that every photo on a page has the exact same mat settings! AWESOME!

2. The Align/Space Tool! This was especially helpful when making the above page. You can line things up straight. And then you can space them EVENLY! I love this program!

Now here's the exciting news!

One of you gets to win a free copy of My Memories Suite!

That's right!

Lucky ducks!

Incredible, clever, quippy, intense, lovable, funny, dark, exciting. These are just a few of the words that describe this wonderful novel!

- 1st: Orientation at Kohl's. Thank goodness. I almost had to move home! -

- 4th: Surprising and exciting interview at Creative Kids. I was offered the position on the spot! -

-5th: Officially became a Nevada citizen. I got a NV Driver's License. -

- 11th-14th: My sister and her boyfriend came to visit! We had great fun playing games and chatting! Kristi also won 700$ playing bingo! Go Kris! -

-17th: Filled out paperwork for Creative Kids, quit Kohl's, gave GameStop my two weeks notice -

- 22nd: My first official day at Creative Kids! -

- 29th: Aly took me out to eat at Red Robin! Thanks! -

- Getting Prized in the mail! -

- Picture a mess of tears anytime I worried about money. Which was frequent. -

Raspberries! I've found a place that sells them fresh and cheap! It's awesome!

- I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore - Decent. Not my favorite, but I did enjoy it after a slow beginning. -

- The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley - Wonderful! It's a reread, and it was just as magical the second time! -

-The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan - Such a fun novel. It's meant for a younger audience, but it was still good! -

- Prized by Caragh M. O'Brien - SO wonderful! It was my first ARC, and it was amazing! I LOVED it! -

- Tithe by Holly Black - Good enough by the end, but the beginning was a bit too raunchy for my liking. I ended up pretty invested in the story though. -

- Book of A Thousand Days by Shannon Hale - Another reread. Such a cute story. Not my favorite of Hale's, but it's still a favorite on my bookshelf! -

- Capt. Hook by J.V. Hart - So clever and fun! I had so much fun reading this book again! -

- LOST - I got the urge to watch all the madness again. Still as confusing as it once was. -

- Chuck - Alyson and I have been watching it together. Man, I love this show! It's so quippy! -

It always astounds me how the months with the least amount of highlights are the ones where I am the busiest. I've been working so hard these past two weeks and it's been very rewarding. And exhausting. Being an adult is super scary, and was very much on the forefront of my mind this month. But I think I did a pretty good job at keeping it together and sucking it up.