The kiddos and I had an eventful and whirlwind year, but we somehow made it through and are looking forward to a blessed 2012. As my first post of this glorious new year, I thought I'd do a recap of 2011.
January 2011
Nate was the Karate Kid for most of 2011. He went from Tiny Tigers with ATA Martial Arts and advanced to Juniors in less than a year.
This is a picture from his first tournament. He was so proud.
Although we are taking a break from martial arts right now, I have to say it was one of the best things he was ever involved in. He learned so much more than some kick-@ss moves. Teaching core values such as Integrity, Self Control, Anti-Bullying and making Goals were a huge part of what ATA did. Nate took what his instructor had to say to heart and really thrived under his direction.
If you have a child with ADHD or any other behavioral problems, I totally recommend getting him/her into a martial arts program. It was a life-changing and positive experience for Nate and really our entire family. He thrived and excelled as his confidence and maturity grew. For more information on how to sign up for an ATA program near you, visit The American Taekwondo Association.
February 2011
Whoever says it never snows in Texas (mostly we do only get layers of ice in the winter) got it wrong in 2011. The kids were out of school on snow days for over a week and a half due to some major snow that didn't let up.
Somehow my sanity survived and I made it through the "I am bored" whining, the "my boots are too wet to go back outside!" arguments, and the "why don't we have any more food to snack on?" questions.
We did have SOME fun with it. Thanks to the tops of my plastic crates and a decent hill next to where we live. My kids experience some sledding on a dime and enjoyed it immensely.
Now that February 2012 is around the corner, I am wondering what we have in store for us this winter. So far it's been pretty mild (knocking on wood, and by "wood", I really mean my head). Guess I better go find the tops to the plastic crates again soon. It's better than the laundry baskets we used when I was a kid!
March 2011
In March we traveled down to Houston to celebrate my nephew's 2nd Birthday. My sister, Misty, really set up a beautiful train-themed party. It was fun helping her set it all up and taking photographs of her crafty work. She certainly set the bar high for future family gatherings. The decorations were adorable (thanks to the awesomeness of the Cricut and our family addiction to Hobby Lobby and Michaels.
(Aren't the cupcake toppers ADORABLE?!)
For more pictures from this sweet party, you can check out my Flickr album for Chase's Birthday.
And of course the party was a HUGE hit for the man of honor himself. He loved his cake and having friends over, but missing his nap around the time gift opening started was probably too much for this two-year old. Good thing he had cousins Jenna and Nate there to help him open and enjoy his new goodies.
I love time with my family no matter what the occasion. And being an aunt is second only in my heart to being a mom, I feel so blessed to have the honor to be a part of this handsome boy's life. And most of all, feel so lucky that my sisters are two of my very best friends.
April 2011
As usual, the Spring brings better weather and Easter celebrations and more excuses for time with family and friends.
This was my last year as a Lifestyle Director for Highland Shores, and as such, my last Easter Eggstravaganza. It's been fun planning their resident events for the past 4 years, and I already miss it so much. My kids were lucky to be a part of most of the family events, like this one.
Nate even found the GOLDEN EGG this year during the egg hunt, which thrilled him after 4 years of trying to win one of these big baskets.
Jenna of course was a little bummed, but she was happier once brother shared some of his candy with her (see picture above), ha. And we love that Nonna and Papaw come every year with us, since Mommy has to work and the kids have someone to drag along to all the different booths and activities.
May 2011
Brother Nate and Papaw were the only boys allowed to come and have cake and watch the present opening party, after that it was GIRLS ONLY. Thank GOD my sister Megan was there to help corral and maintain order at this very giggly-silly-never-ever-quiet-and-lots-of-girls-party.
We also had a photo booth and did scrapbook pages as a fun activity (i.e. a HUGE mess that made me grateful for hotel housekeeping). I set up the photo booth by hanging a Damasque fabric piece on the back of a door, putting a couple chairs in front of it and a bucket of hats and props for the girls to use to be silly and pose with. I took a series of pictures and then while the girls watched movies and snacked, I quickly edited them and printed with a portable 4x6 printer I purchased for less than $60. Each girl got 4-6 prints to use on their scrapbook pages, which I had a ton of paper, ribbon, stickers, markers, scissors, tape and glue. Best activity for 9 year old girls ever. They loved it and had a wonderful take home memento from he party (much better than cheaply done goody bags).
Of course this was all after swimming in the heated outdoor pool (thank goodness it was a sunny day in May instead of raining) and then all jumping in the shower together to rinse off and get into PJs.
My proudest moment was hearing the girls tell their mom's and dad's that Jenna's party was "the best birthday party EVER!" as each one of them left (at 10 am the next morning... oy vey was I tired!).
It was a lot of work, and no small expense, but the smiles and hugs from Jenna were priceless in comparison.
I have NO idea how we will top this for her 10th birthday however. Yikes. Maybe I need to retire on top? Ha.
June 2011
Birthday Party planning continued for June.
Did I say I was retiring? Okay, well I did manage to make a pretty cool party for Nate's 7th Birthday party in 2011 as well. He was determined to have a TRON themed party, but I really didn't know how to execute that in any other way than me just putting it together myself.
We did Oreo topped cupcakes (i.e. Tron Disks) and I got some inexpensive posters for Tron to decorate with. We went with the Blue/Orange color theme from the movie and tried to implement everywhere possible (down to the headbands mom made for each of the kids).
I designed the invitations and printed them myself (bookmark sized and to look like a ticket to a TRON event) and Nate handed them out around the neighborhood (since school was already out for the summer). I expected this party to be like most of his others, under-attended and a little disappointing. BOY was I wrong.
Let's just say, pretty much every kid that lives within a block radius of us showed up. It was easily one of the most fun boy parties I've ever been to. We had hot dogs and chips, juice and lots of fun.
Jenna dyed her hair purple for the event. And organized her own Nerf team against her brother. The ORANGE team.
Uncle Joe and Aunt Megan helped organize bullet refilling stations and boundaries for the Nerf Battle. Having a little sister and brother-in-law that is significantly younger than me has its benefits. No doubt.
Nate enjoyed leading his team to victory (The Blue Team). Action shots below:
July 2011
July was definitely a fun but busy month. Nate got a mohawk from his Uncle Joe for his birthday, I took Nate to a Derby Devils (roller derby) match (which was more fun than I expected), we attended a great 4th of July Festival in Flower Mound, I quit my job with Highland Shores to pursue Photography and Design full-time, I gave my sister a baby shower and we moved into a new (i.e. BIGGER) apartment.
Whew. I am tired just remembering what a full month it was. Not to mention it was my birthday in there somewhere and my friends threw me an awesome party to celebrate all my new endeavors in life. (Thank God for good friends, right? Can I get an AMEN?!)
I have to brag on the baby shower a bit though... it was such a fun event to plan. We did a "Little Man" theme and used Ties and Onsies to decorate. I designed all the bunting, cupcake toppers and other decorations myself and had a local printer produce them for me. It was a lot of work, but so worth it. I also made my first diaper cake. I must say it was a fun shower and my sister looked absolutely lovely with her growing belly.
August 2011
Back to school. That pretty much sums up August. Jenna started 4th grade and Nate started 2nd grade. Their friend Emily is a constant presence at our house. She walks to and from school with them everyday and she is almost like a sister. It's so nice to see the strong friendships that both of the kiddos have made since moving to this area a couple of years ago. We totally love Flower Mound.
Hatchi misses them during the day while they are gone though. He gets very happy around 3pm everyday pacing the door and waiting for me to put on his leash to go meet them.
September, October, November, December 2011
This is what we call the Fall through Holiday Madness.
Dance, Karate, Photo Sessions, Holiday Card Designs, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Family Gatherings... all a blur of activity for 4 months until Winter decends.
September = Baby Wyatt was born
October = Halloween Fun
Party at friends house while the kids had a party at my best friend Alissa's house.
Kid's dressed up as 80's Punk Chick and the character from Scream.
Trick or Treating and lots of candy!
I suck and didn't take any pictures at Thanksgiving because I wasn't feeling well. But I do have to share that I met an amazing and wonderful guy in November who has brought so much love, laughter and blessing to my life. It's still new and we are ridiculously crazy for each other... but I just have to share how absolutely wonderful we look together... don't you agree?
December = Christmas
Christmas in Houston. Christmas in Dallas. Fun, Family, and of course presents and lots of yummy cooking!
So that's our 2011 Year in Review. There were downs, but mostly ups and we finished off the year with a lot of blessings to carry us into 2012. We are thankful most for the friends and family that have always been there and supportive. It's not easy loving our crazy family, but we love with our whole hearts back.
My 2012 resolution list is long, but one of them is to keep up with the blog more (especially now that all our court stuff is mostly behind us now). Here is to a wonderfully blessed and happy 2012, with enough challenges to keep us strong, but with God's grace and will to see us through.
Blessings to everyone reading this and Happy New Year!
