Thankful for a Kick@$$ Year: A Photo Essay

What a kickass year 2012 has been. I know, it's not exactly the end of the year yet, but when I woke up this morning it hit me that it was actually Thanksgiving. I mean, when did the end of November even get here??! Can someone explain that to me?!

Even with the speed that 2012 has gone by, it has been such an amazing point in my life and I'm entirely grateful to so many things and people. Rather than go off on page-long tangents about how grateful I am, I'd rather share some of these photos from 2012 with you to better demonstrate how damn lucky I've been - and to demonstrate to every person who has been a part of this journey how appreciative I am that life works out the way it does.

And yes, I've officially turned my Christmas music on while writing this. It's Thanksgiving and that means no holds barred to getting into the Christmas Spirit. The only thing I'm missing is my mom's pumpkin cheesecake. Dreamers will dream, right? Ok, let's do this. Here are a few of the things I'm most thankful for this year:

The Traveling Gnome - Staying in Touch Made Fun

Dad "goes" to the Roman Coliseum with me

I was about a month into my study abroad adventure, when a package arrived from home bearing a backpack I'd forgotten and a.....how do I phrase this politely....slightly unflattering picture of my father. I didn't know it then, but that photo would be my ticket to making my study abroad trip as fun for my parents as it was for me.

These days it's not so hard to keep in touch while traveling. In this digital age, there are options aplenty--be it video calling with Skype or Google Voice, calling cards, postcards, email or creating a blog.  All of these methods are great ways to keep your family and friends involved in your adventures. But the list doesn't stop there-- there is another unique option available to you, as I discovered with my father's picture.