The End...Of Year Review
This time last year I was just getting into the first trimester of my second pregnancy and traveling around Spain with my husband and our one year old son. We spent New Year's in Santander, listening to the fireworks exploding off the river just a block from our hotel. We decided not to venture out because 1.) it was freezing 2.) we had a one year old 3.) I was incredibly nauseous from the aforementioned first trimester. So we listened to the fireworks and partying that was happening not only outside our hotel room, but in the adjacent rooms as well. Needless to say it was not a night filled with meaningful and pleasant sleep, but it was a New Year in a memorable place during a memorable time in our lives. One neither my husband nor I will soon forget. We had a lovely time wondering around the city, playing in the parks, going to the beautiful alcove where the sea joined the old city and the new city, and riding the carousel. We ate almost all of our meals inside the hotel room cobbled together from food we got at the supermarket with the exception of one Burger King meal and a lovely steak dinner. We really know how to live it up and on the cheap. I think I hated almost every minute of that trip at the time and for about a month or so afterwards as I fought to recover from the lack of sleep one gets from traveling with a teething one year old while pregnant and nauseous. But the fact that it was the last trip I will get to take with my family for a very long time has helped me remember so much of it and I have extremely fond memories of it looking back. Retrospect has a way of making nostalgia creep in and leave even some of the most difficult circumstances tinged with heartwarming feelings.
January was filled with illness and recovery from our last family vacation and capped off with my birthday.
February was much the same. Honestly, can't remember much about this month either. I felt much more nausea with this pregnancy than the last so a lot of my time was spent trying not to throw up and attempting to close my eyes and nap for a bit while my first born ran around playing.
March, who can recall? Probably more of the same. That first trimester is a real beating as far as energy is concerned.
April, we celebrated our anniversary on opposite sides of the world and lived to tell the tale. Easter was lovely and hunting eggs was fun for the first time since we had children because it was our first Easter at home. The year before we spent Easter in France and it was the same day as their time change. I remember because we missed out on getting our hotel breakfast by an hour and I was devastated by this. I love my breakfasts when traveling. This year we managed a few different egg hunts and a little photo shoot of me and the boy for a local company that makes breast slip covers for nursing mothers. It was such a fun little shoot that resulted in a couple of beautiful shots of me and my boy that I'll treasure forever.
May, can't remember offhand.
June, we traveled down to Austin at the beginning of June so I could attend MommyCon. MommyCon is a fun little conference for parents who love to babywear, breastfeed, cloth diaper, etc. While I fit into some of those categories, not all, I found it to be an enjoyable experience for the most part. I was heavily pregnant and carting around my toddler with me to all of the meetings and while it was child friendly and every room had toys for the children to play, I found it difficult to pay attention to the presentations because of having to monitor my child. All in all, I enjoyed it and would go back again if it was held relatively close to me. There's not one in Texas this year, but I recommend looking into it if you're wanting to check out really great products and learn some parenting skills or meet with like-minded parents. We rushed back from Austin to get back just in time to watch one of my nieces cross the stage for her high school graduation.
July, we prepped for baby's impending arrival. She was due at the beginning of August, but managed to make her grand entrance in July. A true summer baby. She appeared like lightening and was a welcome arrival. My family was out of the country visiting my brother and his family so they missed the birth, but we knew this was a great likelihood ahead of time so I wasn't completely distraught. My sister was still in the country and she managed to make it there right as my little one made her appearance. My husband has been a great coach through both babies births, and this time was no exception. It was an incredible birthing experience and I'm eternally grateful for every minute of it. Luckily my husband's family was also still in the country so they helped a lot with brother.
August, we arrived home as a family of four for the first time this month. You would think it would be a difficult transition, but sister is such a champion. She managed to settle right in without a fuss and I will be forever grateful for the ease of her transition on us. Brother was so pleased to have her in our lives and his adjustment was likely made easier by tandem nursing. The babies bonded so well together as they lay in my lap and nursed. We all managed to get more sleep with this one than we ever did with the last. Maybe it's because we sort of knew what we were doing this time, or the fact that we were already in an established routine, or that she is a wonderful, magnificent baby who is just simply fabulous. Maybe a little of all of the above.
September, we said goodbye to dad at the airport as he left for his two month tour. He released his new record September 8. We settled into a routine at home filled with preschool, library school, and playdates. We cheered and prayed for dad daily from afar while texting constantly and Skyping occasionally.
October, we celebrated birthdays, saw animatronic dinosaurs, went to the zoo, went to pumpkin patches, and trick-or-treated. We continued our routine listed above.
November, we continued with our routine and traveled back to the airport for a tearful reunion with dad followed by a visit to Santa. We celebrated Thanksgiving and eased back into life together as a family of four with a full blown toddler and a jet-lagged dad.
December, we finally adjusted and celebrated Christmas all month long with cookie exchange parties for mom, Christmas party and program for brother, and family Christmases. We looked at Christmas lights, went ice skating, and exchanged gifts. We played with cousins, sang songs, and played a lot of Batman. The final day of the year we played in the snow and celebrated 5 months with sister.
Happy New Year!
January was filled with illness and recovery from our last family vacation and capped off with my birthday.
February was much the same. Honestly, can't remember much about this month either. I felt much more nausea with this pregnancy than the last so a lot of my time was spent trying not to throw up and attempting to close my eyes and nap for a bit while my first born ran around playing.
March, who can recall? Probably more of the same. That first trimester is a real beating as far as energy is concerned.
April, we celebrated our anniversary on opposite sides of the world and lived to tell the tale. Easter was lovely and hunting eggs was fun for the first time since we had children because it was our first Easter at home. The year before we spent Easter in France and it was the same day as their time change. I remember because we missed out on getting our hotel breakfast by an hour and I was devastated by this. I love my breakfasts when traveling. This year we managed a few different egg hunts and a little photo shoot of me and the boy for a local company that makes breast slip covers for nursing mothers. It was such a fun little shoot that resulted in a couple of beautiful shots of me and my boy that I'll treasure forever.
May, can't remember offhand.
June, we traveled down to Austin at the beginning of June so I could attend MommyCon. MommyCon is a fun little conference for parents who love to babywear, breastfeed, cloth diaper, etc. While I fit into some of those categories, not all, I found it to be an enjoyable experience for the most part. I was heavily pregnant and carting around my toddler with me to all of the meetings and while it was child friendly and every room had toys for the children to play, I found it difficult to pay attention to the presentations because of having to monitor my child. All in all, I enjoyed it and would go back again if it was held relatively close to me. There's not one in Texas this year, but I recommend looking into it if you're wanting to check out really great products and learn some parenting skills or meet with like-minded parents. We rushed back from Austin to get back just in time to watch one of my nieces cross the stage for her high school graduation.
July, we prepped for baby's impending arrival. She was due at the beginning of August, but managed to make her grand entrance in July. A true summer baby. She appeared like lightening and was a welcome arrival. My family was out of the country visiting my brother and his family so they missed the birth, but we knew this was a great likelihood ahead of time so I wasn't completely distraught. My sister was still in the country and she managed to make it there right as my little one made her appearance. My husband has been a great coach through both babies births, and this time was no exception. It was an incredible birthing experience and I'm eternally grateful for every minute of it. Luckily my husband's family was also still in the country so they helped a lot with brother.
August, we arrived home as a family of four for the first time this month. You would think it would be a difficult transition, but sister is such a champion. She managed to settle right in without a fuss and I will be forever grateful for the ease of her transition on us. Brother was so pleased to have her in our lives and his adjustment was likely made easier by tandem nursing. The babies bonded so well together as they lay in my lap and nursed. We all managed to get more sleep with this one than we ever did with the last. Maybe it's because we sort of knew what we were doing this time, or the fact that we were already in an established routine, or that she is a wonderful, magnificent baby who is just simply fabulous. Maybe a little of all of the above.
September, we said goodbye to dad at the airport as he left for his two month tour. He released his new record September 8. We settled into a routine at home filled with preschool, library school, and playdates. We cheered and prayed for dad daily from afar while texting constantly and Skyping occasionally.
October, we celebrated birthdays, saw animatronic dinosaurs, went to the zoo, went to pumpkin patches, and trick-or-treated. We continued our routine listed above.
November, we continued with our routine and traveled back to the airport for a tearful reunion with dad followed by a visit to Santa. We celebrated Thanksgiving and eased back into life together as a family of four with a full blown toddler and a jet-lagged dad.
December, we finally adjusted and celebrated Christmas all month long with cookie exchange parties for mom, Christmas party and program for brother, and family Christmases. We looked at Christmas lights, went ice skating, and exchanged gifts. We played with cousins, sang songs, and played a lot of Batman. The final day of the year we played in the snow and celebrated 5 months with sister.
Happy New Year!
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