The good thing about snow is what it makes you think of. Snow covers up so much and leaves everything looking beautiful. It's also good because it reminds you exactly where you've been- just look at the tracks! So it seems fitting that snow would occur in December, right before the new year, when it's time to cover up some things from the past year (i.e. forget the bad and move on), but also a good time to look back at everything that has happened over the year (seeing where you were and where you are now). So... (along with some pics of course)... here is a wrap up of our past year.
January- We began the New Year at some friend's house... the highlight: noodles... yep, she made home-made noodles. I have honestly never had anything so good (maybe it's the current cravings remembering this, but they were delicious!). We also made a day trip to Matt's parents where Caylee was able to meet some aunts and uncles for the first time. It was her first snow- what a mess getting there! I can't even believe that Caylee was just in her 3rd month of life in January. It seems SO long ago. I just remember that I was finally feeling "normal" again after having her and we were finally starting to figure out life with a baby. Ya, maybe to some of you that seems like a long time, but when you are stuck in the house for about 6 weeks post-op and then everything seemed to be a mess, it's not until about 10 weeks that normalcy seemed to return somewhat for me... and sleep. It's a good thing "normal" returned too because with January brought foaling season. We were still in Lexington at the time and foaling season is their busiest, craziest time. It meant super long days for Matt and hardly being home... very tedious work.
(first trip to Ohio)
February- My highlight in February for sure was taking Caylee to Florida. I was SO ready to see my mom again and SO excited that Caylee would get to meet her Great Grandparents and Great Aunt while we were there. Just to have a little time to myself with my mom helping out with Caylee was great. Plus, the weather- although it rained a lot- was still better than Lexington. Again, Matt was stuck at work-- still foaling season.... at this point we realized this job would never work out. The ideas we came up with (including me going back to work and Matt staying home)! Sometimes I wonder where we'd be now if we had made that decision, but mostly I'm glad we chose to plow forward and wait for something else...
(Beach time in FL)March- Another trip! 2 actually... By March I was ready to go and get out (I was feeling much better!).... Caylee and I flew to Texas and drove to St. Louis. Again, seeing friends and family that I trust completely with Caylee is a huge blessing and we had a fantastic time. Still hoping for change, Matt and I kept looking for ways to be closer as a family- ways to spend more time together. He was great about coming home and immediately seeing Caylee, she's definitely a daddy's girl. These months in Lexington (especially the foaling months) were difficult for us as a family for sure. However, I will also say that they were HUGE growth months for me- I had a strong support from my family and friends and also had a strong support from the ladies in the bible study I went to. What a huge blessing these people were to me during these months.
(Bath time in Texas)April- Easter fell in April this year. It wasn't an abnormal holiday because Caylee was still too young to understand. However, the fact that Matt was able to get part of an afternoon off so that we could make our annual trip to Texas Roadhouse for a meal was VERY wonderful! Again, to most people this sounds silly, but we have been eating at a Texas Roadhouse on Easter for 8 years now! It's so random, but for some reason it really means a lot to me... just reminds me of past years I guess. It was also this month that we FINALLY sold our house in Texas, we also found out we had to leave the Calumet Farm in Lexington (new ownership). So... we lost 2 homes in April... it was definitely time to make some decisions, but we still had no answers.
(Easter)May- A definite highlight for me was my first Mother's Day! We also found out that a practice was looking for a vet--- one problem--- it was in Ohio. (God worked on me, see My Journey series back in July's posts) We visited Memorial Weekend and I knew driving up there that we'd be going- unfortunately that weekend brought on enough drama of it's own that I knew what we'd face by moving. It was a trying time for sure and I had to really keep quiet and trust that we were following God's will. I definitely had to keep an open mind.... but thankfully, my web of support was strong and I had lots of people praying for me. Overall, the move has been great as far as Matt being home more and spending more time on weekends with us. We can go to church as a family- really for the first time in a long time (since I had morning responsibilities at my old job it rarely happened there either).
(hotel, Delphos, OH)June- June was a whirlwind.... we accepted the job in Ohio, Matt had his first Father's day, made a quick weekend trip up to find a place to live, another weekend trip to Iowa (Caylee saw her Grandpa for only the 2nd time in her life!) and moved by the end of the month. The highlight though.... finding out we were pregnant again! We were both shocked, but in the midst of so much chaos it was such a blessing! The other highlight... our first date night since Caylee had been born. Yep, you read that right. It wasn't until my friend came to visit that Matt and I were finally able to get out (after his work) to see a movie. This was definitely a packed full month.
(First ultrasound of Micah!)July- Life began with a storm in Ohio- literally. The beginning of the month brought on lots of stress with a major storm that knocked our power out for a week. Emotional already, it was not the best week for me. On the upside, the new job was looking promising because Matt was home on Sundays and some Saturdays. That made going to church a little more doable-- in Lexington I did all that on my own, here, at least I had support going into it. It would still be many months before we settled down into a church and I can't say we've met a ton of people yet either.... I was not prepared for the small town life we'd have up in Ohio.
(Goodbye Calumet and Lexington)August- Another trip to Florida... much needed! I was exhausted and worn out, I wanted to be with my family. A few extended days because I was having minor pregnancy complications- nothing serious, but enough that I didn't want to fly with a 10 month old by myself. I needed those days of sunshine though. I also got to say goodbye to my grandma. She would pass away the next month, but I felt completely at peace with my goodbye. She even said she loved me :) August also brought our 6 year anniversary.
(Great Grandma)September- September kind of seems blurry for some reason, but I do remember going to lots of festivals. Apparently, that is what these small towns do is host festivals. It was fun and the best part was that we went to these as a family... even though the area still wasn't living up to my expectations, the job was. It was nice to have Matt home on weekends and get a small break from everything. Losing my grandma this month was tougher than I thought. I didn't expect to get emotional because I knew it was coming and knew it was for the best, but I did. It's fine now and of course the highlight is knowing she's completely better in heaven! The highlight of the month was finding out that we were having a BOY! I was shocked... I kept thinking girl, but a boy will be fantastic. We were so excited that he (Micah James) was healthy too :)
(Festival Food)October- Another trip to Texas... much needed. Also the first time Caylee was sick! It made her a little fussier than normal and travel wasn't easy. I needed a friend... even though the church hunt continued at home, we weren't plugging in as quickly as I had hoped. I also wasn't making much progress in meeting people thru the events we were trying out- even though Matt always encouraged new things. It all takes time I guess.... The true highlight of the month though was celebrating Caylee's 1st birthday! I was thrilled that almost all family could come celebrate. She was overloaded with toys! It was an enjoyable day for me watching and reflecting how much she'd grown.
(TX)November- All month long I kept thinking it would be Caylee's first Thanksgiving... (that just tells you how out of it I was the year before!). Anyways, it obviously wasn't :) Caylee got sick again just before thanksgiving, which made the day less enjoyable for me- she does not react well to antibiotics, yuck! However, we still loaded up and headed to Matt's parents house. The gorgeous weather helped for sure. 60 on Thanksgiving day, yes, I remember things like this when it had been in the 40s previously and I was already getting tired of the cold. It was a full day with lots of people, but Caylee (even a little sick), seemed to be enjoying herself.
(First tractor ride with Daddy! Thanksgiving Day)
December- Ah... here we are. I had to become an Ohio resident officially. That was a more difficult day than I thought it'd be. I kept holding on, thinking we'd be moving again (bc honestly, we've moved so much, why wouldn't we?!). But, finally, things were starting to expire and I had to make a choice. So it is official. The highlight of the month... definitely Christmas morning. There is nothing that I have been looking forward to more than seeing my kids come down Christmas morning and opening gifts... in our house. I was so excited when I got to lay out the presents the night before. I invited family to join us Christmas Day and Matt's aunt and uncle made it. As a parent, I get to do fun things with my kids and this was one thing I was really looking forward to. I wasn't disappointed either- Caylee was thrilled with her gifts and couldn't decide what to play with. I loved us all being in our pj's, opening gifts and having a relaxing breakfast. I enjoyed having the day for Caylee to play with her new toys and having a special (out of the ordinary) lunch for us. The snow we got after Christmas was ok, but nothing compared to the excitement of Christmas Day (for me anyways).
(Christmas Day- new baby doll)So there is the year in review... I've skimmed over the really not so pretty parts and tried to remember the happier parts- although, obviously every year comes with some hard parts as well.... that's what snow does though doesn't it? Cover up the dirt and focus on the beauty....
This upcoming year holds lots of changes for us. Changes in our home, our marriage and our family.... Some I'm not so sure about and not looking forward to.... others, Micah in particular, I am definitely ready for and looking forward too! It'll be interesting to see where this year takes us.... for the first time I feel like 2012 hasn't wrapped up as nicely as other years (it's kinda like a cliffhanger, especially being pregnant), so I'm anxious to get a move on to 2013 and see what happens.
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