2013 was quite the year. In twelve short months we became a family of four, built a new house, and Nick and I started new jobs. Our hearts grew, we learned patience and forgiveness, and we watched our lives fly by in a blur.
We started the year with planning and preparation for Logan's 1st birthday party. Family and friends gathered to celebrate the sweet little boy that had changed our lives forever.
In February I said goodbye to everything I had known in nursing, and began my new career as a home health nurse. It has been challenging and frustrating in so many ways, but I love it. My patients have become my family, and my heart has grown with a place for each of them.
We spent our weekends in the spring and summer celebrating new friends and watching Logan explore the world around him. The days were never long enough, but we enjoyed every minute we had together.
Nick left for annual training in July, and I struggled with the task of working full-time and taking care of a walking, energetic toddler... all while 9 months pregnant.
Logan and I survived, and Nick returned home just 2 days before we welcomed our sweet Adaleigh Rose to the family. On 8.8.13, at 2:22pm, she stole our hearts with a full head of dark hair and big, beautiful eyes.
At the end of September, we finally moved into the house we had fallen in love with over 5 months before. It had space for our growing family and touches that made it feel like home from the moment we walked in.
In October we made our annual trip to Honeysuckle Hill Farm, and left with kettle corn, pumpkins, and memories.
We celebrated Halloween with friends alongside our very own Peter Pan and Tinkerbell. It was storming and cold, but our hearts were warm and full.
We welcomed family any chance we could get. Living so far away from the ones we love the most never gets easier, but we've learned to cherish every moment we have together.
I turned 30 on Thanksgiving and celebrated the only way I knew how... by working. Nick cooked an amazing dinner to share with friends. We spent the weekend decorating, listening to Christmas carols, and visiting Santa at Opryland.
Nick left his career in security in December, and began the adventure of learning IT recruiting. With it becomes hope and possibilities that are sure to make the next year interesting.
We traveled to NC for a short trip in December to celebrate the union of Bob & Carol, and returned to TN quickly to prepare for our first Christmas together, at home, as a family of four. We spent Christmas Eve at church with friends, and started new traditions as we anxiously awaited "Ho Ho" to arrive down the chimney. Christmas lasted for days, as the grandparents arrived for the weekend with more and more presents. We took a short day trip to Chattanooga before it all came to an end.
We rang in the New Year quietly on the sofa in our new home, with sweet little ones asleep just down the hall. We made plans for 2014, and shared our dreams and goals for the new year.
Like every other day of our lives, 2013 was beautiful chaos. Here's to 2014- the year of no (new) babies!
This month has been such a whirlwind! As I sit here only 3 days before Christmas, I'm amazed at how fast time has flown and how soon our baby boy will be here. Only 36 days left! (and I'm still hoping he comes just a little bit early).
So rewinding a bit, here are weeks 3 & 4 in iPhone pics:
Most of week 3 was spent working, Christmas shopping, and growing a baby (I kid, I kid!). Somehow I still managed to attend a Christmas party with my favorite nurses, a baby shower (my 4th!) thrown by these awesome coworkers of mine (of course I forgot to take pictures), and my first pro hockey game in a fancy suite with the husband thanks to HCA (go Preds!). It was an awesome, exhausting week that I wouldn't have traded for the world.
Reality hit me hard during week 4... Christmas was right around the corner, and I had a baby with no nursery! Nick and I got to work quickly painting the nursery, buying, picking up, and assembling furniture, and getting the room ready for our sweet little boy. There is still decorating and work to be done, but if Logan came tomorrow I would be ready. A huge weight was lifted off my shoulders. I also finished my Christmas shopping, wrapped all of our presents, assembled Nick's stockings (he gets 2 this year!), and washed, folded, and sorted all of Logan's clothes... and still managed to work my usual 50-hr work week. I'm looking forward to slowing down in January and only working 3 12-hr shifts a week! Floor nursing is hard on my 9 month pregnant body.
So there you have it, weeks 3 and 4 in iPhone pics. There is still so much to look forward to in the last week of December!
Our amazing Thanksgiving in NC ended with the best start to a new week- my golden birthday. We didn't arrive home from our trip until 5am on my birthday, so as Nick showered and dressed for work I got cozy on the couch for a much needed nap. My day was spent Christmas shopping around town... a few new decorations, a few things for myself, and gifts for my 2 favorite boys. Nick left work early to take me out to buy our Christmas tree (my only real birthday request this year), after a Starbucks break for my free birthday drink of choice (a caramel brulee latte... so good!). We braved the rain and cold to pick the perfect Frasier Fur, and returned home to eat, decorate, and celebrate. Nick grilled an amazing filet mignon, accompanied by a baked potato, salad, and a garlic/parmesan baguette. He presented me with the most amazing cheesecake for dessert.... the entire meal was perfect and much better than anything we would have found in a restaurant. As the hours grew later we began trimming the tree and finishing our decorations around the house while dancing to the greatest Christmas album of all- Frank Sinatra.
our christmas tree all trimmed and pretty, the beautiful handmade birthday card I received from my very talented mother, and my new "hohoho" blocks courtesy of Target
As cheesy as it may sound, I truly feel that my life is nothing short of golden right now. I have an amazing husband that lives to make me happy, a healthy miracle baby growing and bouncing safe inside of me, a fulfilling career that makes me feel proud and accomplished, and everything in life that I need. Of course I will always wish for more... a bigger house, more money, less stress, etc... but I have nothing to complain about the way my life is right now. I am blessed and fortunate to have achieved so much, and the best years of my life with our new little joy are yet to come. The last 28 years will become a distant memory once this little boy enters the world and makes my life better in every way possible.
