Well, we are in the last few hours of 2011. I am actually at home, in my p.j's, and in my bed! Ha! I have never been much of a late night person, not even on New Year's Eve. We did go to a party with some of our friends in our Sunday school class, but we all brought our kids, so of course we had to get them home and in the bed.
I have been thinking today about the many things that took place this past year. Many good, some sad, but each one made up our 2011.
1. Matt and I celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary! A lot has happened in 5 years:)
2. Matt turned the big 3-0 this year! (My turn is coming very soon...yikes!)
3. My Bubbie, Jake, turned 3! He learned how to ride a bike, sleep in a big boy bed, write many of his letters, and became a GREAT swimmer! He went to his first movie (Cars 2), went roller skating for the first time, and went to his first Steelers game!
4. Brooklyn turned 1! She has changed sooooo much this past year! She went from a tiny newborn to a big 1 year old!
5. We spent lots of time together as a family. We enjoyed trips to the park, the splash pad, Monkey Joes, the library, school football games, Dan Nichols park, the NC transportation museum, Discovery Place Kids, and Carrigan farms for apple picking!
6. I was able to quit my full time teaching job and just take a small part time teaching job so that I could spend more time with my kids! What a blessing it has been. I have LOVED every minute with them. I can honestly say I just can't spend enough time with them!
7. We lost my Grandpa this year back in July. His health had been declining for quite some time, but not a day goes by that I don't think about him. I miss him dearly!
8. Brooklyn was hospitalized twice this year for RSV, croup, and pneumonia. We are soooo thankful that she has been healthy since then and growing big and strong! (She even survived a fall down our entire flight of stairs the other day with just a scratch! Wow...scary!)
9. We didn't do much traveling this year, but did make it to the beach and the mountains. We went to Surfside Beach with my entire family for the 22 year in a row! What a fun time that was! The sun, the sand, the surf, and the memories!
We went to the mountains (Boone) for the weekend and crossed the "shaky bridge" as Jake would say!
10. We trusted the Lord (and still have to every day) to provided for us through Matt's job in real estate. Things have been a bit slow these past few months, but we are choosing to TRUST HIM even in the hard times. We are praying expectantly for some BIG changes this next year in Matt's job. We are praying some very specific things for him. We can't wait to see what God will do!
We have grown in our walks with the Lord this past year. I have studied the names of God in my own quiet time and learned about the Gospel in church and Sunday school.
11. And some of the most exciting news of 2011 for us was finding out that we would be adding a BABY BOY to our family! In just a few months we will get to meet him! What a blessing that will be!
Wishing you a Happy New Year's!See you back in 2012!
He practiced swimming back and forth from the table to the steps...
worked on his kicking,
and of course...JUMPING through the hula hoop:)
This girl has no fear! She splashed away and kept putting her face in the water!
Thanks KK and Al!
In baby news...
Jake was excited, but very unsure about things...
Sissy and I sat this one out and just watched as my boys would pass by!
Jake was VERY frustrated at the beginning, 
but after tightening up his wheels a bit, he did GREAT:)
They enjoyed a few laps around the rink and a few skating games too!
and enjoy time together eating, laughing, and sharing stories!
Jake was in heaven when he received his pirate ship!
But most of all enjoyed just being together!
We had a very Merry Christmas 2011
We had a great time! We don't really ever have a reason to go up town, so it was kind of fun to go! We watched the bears for a while
and enjoyed the Christmas music they were playing!
Next, we headed to the fancy Ritz Carlton hotel to see their giant gingerbread house! We felt a bit out of place, but what a sight to see!
I signed up to go and invited a few of my neighbors to come along with their kids too. We got there in plenty of time to grab a quick bite to eat at Dunkin Donuts before things got started! Of course chocolate was the best choice!
Everything was decorated so beautifully!
Every year we get together to make up goodies for our Christmas Eve get together! It can get a little (or a lot) messy and a bit crazy with so many little hands helping, but that is just part of the fun!
