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Cutie Gwen Bell has kicked off her Best Of 2009 Blog Challenge – taking the last days of this year to review the peeps, events and awesomeness that has made 2009 the bomb diggitiy.  Each day has a different focus that hundreds of Bloggers are making their own.  Check it!

I don't travel so much these days, beyond my Houston adventures (which are wide and varied) and the occasional speaking gig and conference.  This is tough on me, given my wanderlust and love of places with good food and non-English native tongues.  But worth it.  Completely worth it.

So while 2009's NYC trip (to speak at SketchyCon and for a brief visit with my much-loved Courtney), Californian jaunts (for Net2 and eTech) and various Texas trips (for SXSW and speaking gigs) were rocking-cool — those weren't the defining trips of my year.

The trips that mattered were the precious moments spent with Ella and Adam – and the rest of my family and friends.  This year, more than ever, has brought some really wonderful at-home adventures that I couldn't treasure more.

Watching Ella go from a 2 year old toddler to a 3 year old little girl:
 

Lazy sunny summer jaunt to the beach with Adam (with fruit and vodka in tow):

 
Ella's first pedicure and hours splashing barefoot in the Discovery Green water fountains:
 
Explorations through our ever-growing vegan and raw cookbook collection:

Falling in love (again and again) with my sweet little family – truly the journey of a lifetime:
 

Where did 2009 take YOU?  Leave your comments here – but be sure to be Blogging and Tweeting your own 'Best Of's' using the #best09 tag.  xo