5…4…3…2…1….Happy New Year!
As we all prepare to ring in the new year, the world falls into a unanimous feeling of sentiment and reflection. Either looking back with fondness on that one item on your bucket list you achieved, or cringing over that relationship you may have wasted your time on, each of those experiences have brought you to this very moment and will shape the year ahead of you. Overall, 2017 was an amazing year for me. While I had many ups and downs, I will look back on this year for many more to come with nothing but fondness. I am grateful for each and every person who shaped me this year, for the love I’ve felt, and the growth I’ve experienced in many aspects of my life. I can’t wait to add more to this blog in the following year, and see what lies ahead for us! For now, in no particular order, here are my Top Moments of 2017:
- Graduating High School
- While I feel like I was the one person who wasn’t looking forward to graduating high school, I can say that that was because I simply had the best senior year I could’ve asked for and I never wanted it to end. However, graduating high school was a huge step for me and as I’ve moved further away from that time in my life, I am so genuinely excited for what lies ahead, and without high school I couldn’t be where I am today. I’m ready for so much more and I’m learning to embrace change better!
- While I feel like I was the one person who wasn’t looking forward to graduating high school, I can say that that was because I simply had the best senior year I could’ve asked for and I never wanted it to end. However, graduating high school was a huge step for me and as I’ve moved further away from that time in my life, I am so genuinely excited for what lies ahead, and without high school I couldn’t be where I am today. I’m ready for so much more and I’m learning to embrace change better!
- Getting in to OSU
- I can still remember the night I got the notification of my acceptance, and how happy I was! I knew that OSU was a huge step for me, and the fact that I am less than a week from starting there is equally exciting and terrifying. I can’t wait to be on my own, and finally being able to care for myself without outside assistance. OSU was always so much more to me than a school; it was proof to myself that I could do this. I spent my semester at Columbus State learning how to do my own medical care and how to transfer myself and carry out my daily activities on my own, until I was independent, and now that I can enroll in a college away from home proves that I did that! I want to show anyone with a disability who desires to move away from home, but feels that they can’t, that you can! You may need to get creative, such as using a shower chair to transfer from a wheelchair to a toilet, but if you have a support system, much like the people who pushed me to never give up, I promise there is nothing standing in your way. If college is your dream, you can do it! Your independence is only limited by what you believe you can do!
- I can still remember the night I got the notification of my acceptance, and how happy I was! I knew that OSU was a huge step for me, and the fact that I am less than a week from starting there is equally exciting and terrifying. I can’t wait to be on my own, and finally being able to care for myself without outside assistance. OSU was always so much more to me than a school; it was proof to myself that I could do this. I spent my semester at Columbus State learning how to do my own medical care and how to transfer myself and carry out my daily activities on my own, until I was independent, and now that I can enroll in a college away from home proves that I did that! I want to show anyone with a disability who desires to move away from home, but feels that they can’t, that you can! You may need to get creative, such as using a shower chair to transfer from a wheelchair to a toilet, but if you have a support system, much like the people who pushed me to never give up, I promise there is nothing standing in your way. If college is your dream, you can do it! Your independence is only limited by what you believe you can do!
- Learning how to do my own medical care
- I explained this in the previous bullet, but over these few months I’ve gotten almost 100% independent! For anyone else, that may not seem important, but for an 18 year old who no longer needs to depend on others, it’s the most liberating feeling you can hope for. Giving yourself a shower, getting dressed on your own and being able to go out with friends are all things every teen wants to be able to do, and thanks to innovation and people in my life who have nothing but love and patience, I was taught how to do this. Beyond being able to now move away for college, learning how to do your medical care is very important for a developing woman, and man as well. At some point, you’ll begin to want that privacy that you may have never had before, and when that time comes, you’ll figure out ways to work with your disability. Living with a disability can feel pretty invasive at times, so wherever you can maintain dignity is crucial.
- Going to my two twenty one pilots concerts
- This year marked my first and second twenty one pilots concert and I was lucky enough to be able to go with my cousin and have some great bonding time with some great music. There is no experience that rivals seeing your favorite artist in concert, and even better is seeing them in concert in their hometown! I’m so so so unbelievably thankful to Ruthie and Joshua for taking me to the concerts and creating memories with me that I will never forget!
- This year marked my first and second twenty one pilots concert and I was lucky enough to be able to go with my cousin and have some great bonding time with some great music. There is no experience that rivals seeing your favorite artist in concert, and even better is seeing them in concert in their hometown! I’m so so so unbelievably thankful to Ruthie and Joshua for taking me to the concerts and creating memories with me that I will never forget!
- Getting my Bulldog
- I equate this feeling to taking your baby home from the hospital for the first time. I love my bulldog with my entire heart and she has added so much laughter to our household with her daily antics. Though she may snore, chew, and fart on everything, she’s always messing around and wanting to see what everyone is up to. She’s a vital part to our family, and I can’t see it being any other way. Every day she wants only to make us happy, and she’s done that, and so much more. I encourage adoption over shopping! We love our Greta Bear 🙂
- I equate this feeling to taking your baby home from the hospital for the first time. I love my bulldog with my entire heart and she has added so much laughter to our household with her daily antics. Though she may snore, chew, and fart on everything, she’s always messing around and wanting to see what everyone is up to. She’s a vital part to our family, and I can’t see it being any other way. Every day she wants only to make us happy, and she’s done that, and so much more. I encourage adoption over shopping! We love our Greta Bear 🙂
- Meeting and working with Glenn Beck and M1
- While this was easily the hardest thing I did this year, I know how blessed I was to have this opportunity. I would definitely change the way I handled the internship, if I could, but I also took some valuable lessons from this experience and I have some priceless memories that not many other people have the chance to experience. I’ve been blessed with so many amazing opportunities in my 18 years, and this one tops the list! Whether liberal, conservative or somewhere in the middle, who wouldn’t want the chance to meet someone they look up to? Not many people get the chance to meet with and work under the personalities they grew up learning from and listening to, so I count this as an invaluable experience! Everyone I met at this internship was genuinely nice and respectful to me, and I was treated with so much respect, it was easy to forget I was the youngest one there! If not for this experience, I wouldn’t understand some of the things I do now, and I wouldn’t have started listening to Doc Thompson! No matter your political stance, it’s important for us as a world to understand where our beliefs stem from and the foundations on which our country was built!
- While this was easily the hardest thing I did this year, I know how blessed I was to have this opportunity. I would definitely change the way I handled the internship, if I could, but I also took some valuable lessons from this experience and I have some priceless memories that not many other people have the chance to experience. I’ve been blessed with so many amazing opportunities in my 18 years, and this one tops the list! Whether liberal, conservative or somewhere in the middle, who wouldn’t want the chance to meet someone they look up to? Not many people get the chance to meet with and work under the personalities they grew up learning from and listening to, so I count this as an invaluable experience! Everyone I met at this internship was genuinely nice and respectful to me, and I was treated with so much respect, it was easy to forget I was the youngest one there! If not for this experience, I wouldn’t understand some of the things I do now, and I wouldn’t have started listening to Doc Thompson! No matter your political stance, it’s important for us as a world to understand where our beliefs stem from and the foundations on which our country was built!
- Going to Lakeside
- This trip was easily one of the best things I did this year! I was on the high of graduation and to top it all off I got to go on a road trip to my favorite place in Ohio! A huge shout out to my uncle for allowing us to use his house! This trip was another stepping stone in my journey to independence. I’d never been away from home overnight anywhere with friends before, and this trip could not have gone better! A huge part of its success is owed to the people I chose to take with me, because if not for them and their willingness to take every challenge in stride, it would not have gone so seamlessly! It was my first experience with beginning to feel like an 18 year old, and it was the best trip I could’ve asked for!
- This trip was easily one of the best things I did this year! I was on the high of graduation and to top it all off I got to go on a road trip to my favorite place in Ohio! A huge shout out to my uncle for allowing us to use his house! This trip was another stepping stone in my journey to independence. I’d never been away from home overnight anywhere with friends before, and this trip could not have gone better! A huge part of its success is owed to the people I chose to take with me, because if not for them and their willingness to take every challenge in stride, it would not have gone so seamlessly! It was my first experience with beginning to feel like an 18 year old, and it was the best trip I could’ve asked for!
While this is but a snapshot of my year, I’m sure there are so many more memories I could talk about! Truly, it comes down to my senior year and the people I met who’ve truly pushed me to try and be my best. I feel like I’ve become a more confident person and I am definitely more outgoing! I saw improvements in myself, particularly in my job, and my best friend taught me how to be a bit more of a fashionista! With all of the growth I’ve experienced this year, I feel ready to take on 2018, and the huge changes that will accompany it. I thank you all for sticking around, and I hope you’ll join me for more fun in the new year!
Extra Memories:
Happy 2018!
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XOXO- Dellie
A girl and her wheels 
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