2025 started off with a celebratory bang when Kyle passed the NCLEX, the standardized nursing exam. He spent most of the winter and spring training on dayshift on his cardiac unit, then transitioned to night shift over the summer, a rite of passage for all new grad nurses. I asked Kyle what he enjoys most about his job as a nurse, he replied “saving lives” with absolutely no hints of sarcasm.
Throughout the winter, we tackled home projects like painting our dining room a beautiful, sun dried tomato red and creating gallery walls with our wedding photos and ever growing collection of national park scenic photos. We also braved the cold and spent intentional time outside birding in the frigid temps, enjoying the wintering birds of our region like trumpeter and tundra swans and waterfowl including mallards, goldeneyes, and mergansers, also the ever humble Canada goose.
The spring brought me a new hobby, if not personality trait, backyard gardening. In May, I planted a handful of rare tomato varieties and packets and packets of basil seeds. So much of my spring and summer was spent watering, pruning, and harvesting tomatoes. My basil was transformed into jars of basil salt and pints and pints of home made basil pesto and my tomatoes became a picture perfect tomato galette and tomato sauce, amongst other things. I’m already researching and planning our garden for 2026, hoping to try my hand at growing peppers and garlic and constructing raised beds for even more tomatoes.
Kyle and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary at the beginning of May, marking 11 years together. We celebrated in July with a trip to Acadia National Park in Maine where we tent camped, hiked (Acadia and Cadillac Mountains), and enjoyed a puffin lighthouse boat cruise, followed by a few days in Boston where we explored the freedom trail and various art and history museums. In September, we re-visited Rocky Mountain National Park during elk rut (breeding) season – our first visit was in the summer 2019. We had an incredible time photographing the very active elk, hiking, bird watching, and tent camping inside the park.
In the fall, we celebrated Kyle’s birthday with friends camping in central Michigan along the Au Sable River. It was the first and only time we were able to get out on our kayaks – here’s hoping we get more use of them in 2026. My second obsession of the year began in the fall, Dancing with the Stars. I remember watching the show with my mom when it first aired 20 years ago! I had fun “replicating” the dance moves at work with my coworkers, anything to get a laugh.
Our lovable cat Bohdi turned 14 this year. He’s showing his age more and more these days, displaying more caution jumping to and from furniture. He spends a majority of his days sleeping. In 2026, I hope to learn some basic sewing skills so that I can hem clothing and make pillow covers. Kyle’s excited to camp throughout the year and test out all his new equipment he’s been collecting. We are planning a road trip through east Texas and New Mexico to visit 3 new-to-us National Parks: Guadalupe Mountains, Carlsbad Caverns, and White Sands. Aside from the gorgeous scenery, I’m most excited to visit the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe.
Until next time, Meryn
MERYN MADE 
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