the rowleys

This year review has been hard. 2019 was by far the most difficult year of my life. Losing my dad unexpectedly in January was so traumatic and it definitely colored the rest of the year. It has almost been a year and it still seems so surreal and I still forget I'll never see him again. I am grateful for my family though and I've needed them so much this year.
There have been amazing times this year too through the dark times and pain. That's what I always have to remember.

My mom and I feeling so raw at my dad's burial

February

we had been training to run the Phoenix Marathon but it ended up being the same day as my dad's funeral. we signed up for the Lost Dutchman Marathon a couple weeks later and ran that race instead.

my sister had a baby girl Tessa! I got to be there when the older brothers met her for the first time and it was a really special moment.

we got so much snow in the desert in February.. more than we've ever seen and it seemed like a gift from my dad. we took advantage of it and went up to the cabin in Strawberry for some sledding.

March

I went to New York with Jason's sister Ginger and brother Jesse and his family. we stayed only a couple blocks away from Central Park and we had a great time.

these pictures were taken my last morning in New York when I woke up before sunrise and walked around Central Park by myself. I was trying to find a bridge that my dad had taken a picture at and I spent hours walking around looking for it. I found myself crying to a French stranger who I stopped to ask if she knew where it was. it was a surreal, emotional, but beautiful and cathartic morning.

my mom, my sister Brindy and I spent a lot of time together after my dad's death. I slept at my mom's house for about a month afterwards and even after that I went over to her house everyday. we spent a lot of time going through my dad's things, reading his poems, organizing stuff, or just hanging out. after a while we started going out and doing things liking hiking and rock climbing. it was such a raw and emotional time but I'm so glad we had each other.

after the amazing snow we got in March I felt like my dad gifted us with an incredible amount of wildflowers in the desert. my sister in law Loretta had been so supportive to me after my dad's death and it brought us much closer. she wanted to get back in shape and so I signed up to run the Whiskey Row half marathon with her. we trained on some hills together and we went for a trail run at Tom's Thumb trail one day. the flowers were so amazing. later while going through my dad's photos I found some of him in wildflowers just like these.

I went to Out of Africa with my mom, Brin and her family. we stopped by the cabin afterwards and it was the first time we had been since my dad passed. we went through pictures that he had brought up there for a long time.

Jason's family likes to have family parties at Usery Pass while it's still cool outside. the desert is always so beautiful at sunset

while running down the wash path near by house I noticed there was white flurries everywhere that made it look like it had snowed. I realized it was coming from a large cottonwood tree and seeing the white cotton fly around looked so magical. my appreciation for nature has definitely increased this year, and even more so in the few months after my dad passed. it seemed like everything, colorful wildflowers, a roadrunner flying over the canal, cottonwood blossoms that looked like snow, seemed like a message from him that he is OK, and that he wants me to appreciate the beauty in the world.

I took some pictures of Loretta's daughter here for her birthday. taking pictures of toddlers is really hard but I love how this one turned out.

I had a bunch of dried/dead flowers from my dad's funeral so I did a little photoshoot with Tilly (our hedgehog we got last december). Taking pictures of hedgehogs is really hard too

April

my dad had bought my mom tickets to see Wicked for Christmas. she took me to go with her and it was bittersweet because my dad should have been the one to go with her. I'm so glad I go to go with her though and it seemed like another gift from my dad since he's passed. we had amazing seats and the show was incredible.

family alpaca walk

a couple weeks later some of Jason's family came over to my mom's to join us :)

we went hiking near Strawberry for Brin's birthday

Loretta and I hiked the Flatiron trail in the Superstition Mountains. it was very difficult with A LOT of climbing and we got a little lost on the way back. although challenging it was a fun hike and worth it at the top with an incredible view. my phone died on the hike so I had to get pics from Loretta

and more hiking with my mom and Brin's fam :)

we broke out our old rollerblades and rolled around our old blading route

and went horseback riding

and more hiking!

May

Loretta and I ran the Whiskey Row half marathon in Prescott. it was difficult with intense hills the first half but it was a beautiful race

rollerblading/biking at Tempe Town lake. we were taking advantage of the unseasonably cool weather we were having in May

mother's day

we said goodbye to Sparky. he was Jason's brothers dog that we took last year and he got to the point where he wasn't able to walk anymore. he was such a sweet boy.

playing guitar to sparky pic------

Loretta had me make make this giant Bumblebee cutout for her son's birthday. she only gave me a day's notice so I drew it out and we stayed up til 1 am painting it.

in May I traveled to England with Jason's sister Ginger and her kids! we were mainly visiting her pilot friend Claire who lives in a dream town along the Thames River. it was the most beautiful place I've ever been.

June

one of my mom's fallow deer had a baby and my mom bottle fed it so it'd be tame. she was so small and adorable! my mom named her Honey and she is still super sweet although not inside anymore.

my siblings and I went to Top Golf for my brother Clint's birthday. I can't remember the last time we did something just us siblings (maybe since we were kids) and it was a lot of fun!

the next day was my birthday and we left early and drove to California. we stayed at a beach house with some of Jason's family.

July

free Chik-fil-a day!

I borrowed Loretta's mountain bike and started going for weekly bike rides

rock climbing again

August

September

Feed My Starving Children with my dad's old office in honor of him. it was one of his favorite charities. at the end all three offices surrounded my family chanting "Lepetich" and it was a very powerful and emotional moment

we saw the National at Comerica theatre

we took a day trip to the Grand Canyon

pups of gold

we went to Utah for Jason's family reunion. on the way there we went to Bryce Canyon national park and then on the way back we went to Zion.

we stayed in Midway, Utah and the fall colors were incredible

Loretta and I saw went to a Mumford and Sons show and they were amazing

October
Jason did an Olympic distance triathlon at Bartlett Lake!

November

I ran Ragnar a relay race on a team with my sister Brin and brother Clint. in total I ran 15 miles and I was exhausted at the end because I got so little sleep. my first run was at 7 pm friday night and my last was 7 am saturday morning. it was a fun experience though especially since my siblings did it too

Jason's family was in the Gilbert Day's parade with their firetruck and they did a Whoville theme. Jason was the Grinch and he was hilarious

December

we welcomed a new dog into the family! he name is Sage and she is super sweet and loooves playing fetch. she was a lot more energy than we're used to but she's a lot of fun