I really don’t think I give myself enough credit.

My amazing mother (whose birthday is on Thursday! Happy early birthday, Mom – I blogged for you! ) texted me this afternoon to find out if this week was going any better than last week. I guess I’ve been dramatic enough about all sorts of stuff that it warranted concern from her. And yeah, I certainly was being a drama queen about, um, everything, but really, none of it is that bad.

That’s something I don’t do enough of – look on the bright side. I spend too much time down on myself for some perceived flaw or another, when in actuality, this has been the best darn year of my life so far.

So let’s give credit where credit is due: 2012, you rock.

Truly, life has been amazing the past two months. I couldn’t write myself as a character in a fairy tale any better. Day to day, there is certainly trouble and misfortune and sadness and sickness and setback and failure, but what sets me and my myriad woes apart is the backdrop to which they are set.

Every single day I wake up next to the most breathtaking landscape in the world. I am surrounded by nature’s most awesome beauty, and it does not get old. The mountains are the highlight of my life out here – a stark reminder of just how much my life has changed in the last several months.

Like, check this out!

I’m kind of obsessed with this thing these days. It’s a VW Touareg, and I’m pretty smitten. The “new toy” factor has yet to wear off, and I get excited about something in it every day. Like my back up camera! So fancy! Seriously though, I spend so much time out here in my car, it’s nice to have a vehicle I feel safe in again. I drove to the mountains for the first time since my accident when my roommate from college came to visit a couple of weekends ago, and it was great!

I’m becoming a semi-proficient skier, if I don’t say so myself. We rode trees and fresh powder at Beaver Creek with some exceptionally nice new friends, and generally lived it up. Another weekend adventure of nothing but fun – check!

Then there was the weekend in Breckenridge with my brother a few weekends ago.

That was my first attempted double black diamond. We’ll ignore the fact that I slid down it, um, on my butt. Skis off. Oh well. At least I know my limits!

Do I have any? That’s perhaps a better question…

These dudes from the Glitch Mob played at Cervantes one night. Overpriced, underwhelming. Eh, you win some…

Don’t mind my (poorly lit) mimosa in Steamboat Springs Saturday morning. I’m not usually that much of a lush, but it was my boyfriend’s birthday. If you can’t drink on lazy mornings in the mountain in preparation for getting your ass whipped by a bunch of exceptionally talented and aggressive skiers on some of the hardest terrain of your life, then I don’t know what to tell you. I do believe indulgence is my deadly sin.

Is there anything more deliciously indulgent than a lazy weekend breakfast with coffee and good conversation? These were my Kodiak cakes cooked with an egg and served with yogurt, berries, chias, honey, slivered almonds, coconut and sunflower butters.

Mostly, though, my meals are quick and easy.

Sometimes, though, I make the extra effort.

Lemon-braised bok choy and white wine seared bay scallops served on a bed of pureed roasted parsnips. Roasted parsnips are out of this world, yo. Bay scallops…not so much. The two bottles of wine more than made up for it! See? Looking on the bright side.

And that’s really what’s it’s all about. The ups and downs are going to roll on through no matter what. Bad stuff happens, and the inevitability of its onslaught whether you are prepared or not means that you just have to learn to appreciate silver linings, daily blessings, and grand arcs. Generally, things are good. And the sum of that good more than outweighs any dips on the upward trajectory, if only I can step back and take it all in.

Let’s keep climbing higher, shall we?

Enjoy the Leap Day tomorrow! xoxo