2010: In Review

That's right, your very own recap of our lives from the past year. No need to thank me...

One year ago seems like a distant memory, thank goodness I have pictures to remind me of the past year. It went something like this...

January 1, 2009, I made resolutions.

January 15, 2009, I promptly broke them.

Exactly one month after Christmas 2009, Braedyn completely understood the Santa/Presents/Christmas connection. Exactly One. Month. Too. Late.

We put our house on the market in early February, had highs and lows during this process, and just recently took it back off the market.

Is it just me, or is this post starting to sound really depressing?

Shortly after that, Braedyn's love affair with all-things-animals was in full effect. We made multiple trips to Animal Kingdom and the zoo.

The Easter Bunny came for a visit, and Braedyn was super excited since he finally got it, and was excited and anxious and constantly asked questions about the Easter Bunny and the impending visit. Chase was basically along for the ride, and if Braedyn was excited, then he was excited.

Lost track of time between then and summer, realized that I really needed to start blogging again, as it truly represented my mental journal of events I wanted to remember.

Somewhere in here, we fit in more trips to Magic Kingdom, Sea World, and Animal Kingdom. And then, before you knew it, the Florida Heatwave was upon us. Chase followed in his big brother's footsteps, and embraced the pool and his floaties this summer, and became very comfortable with the water.

The boys began playing really well together, entertaining each other as Ben and I were finally able to just sit and relax and watch them from the couch. It was almost as if we had won the lottery. Almost. But not quite.

Sweet Mother of Miracles - Braedyn is potty trained!!

Chase had his second birthday, and loved anything with wheels. He didn't say a whole lot of words, and we often wondered, "Will he ever speak in a sentence?", much in the same way we used to wonder, "Will Braedyn ever get potty trained?" (By the end of the year, he's having conversations with Braedyn!)

Somewhere around this time, I began to feel more in control as a working mom of two kids, rather than just flat out overwhelmed. There was more free time to myself, it was much easier to leave the boys with Ben if I needed to go somewhere, and I started to see a major turning point in my chaotic life as a mommy.

Family from out of town comes to visit, and fun was had by all.


Braedyn goes to his first movie at the theaters - Toy Story 3. Later, I take him to see Disney on Ice: Toy Story. The show recaps moments from all three movies, including Zurg, the bad guy from TS2.

Braedyn is suddenly scared of monsters named Zurg, and makes his way to mommy's room every night. Surely you know how this story ends.

Halloween!! Drove to the nice neighborhood in town, and watched in awe as my boys trick-or-treated all by themselves, and got lots of good candy for me.

November was a big month... my wonderful husband gave me an iPad for my birthday. I love my iPad; however, I can't seem to pry it out of my boys' hands long enough for me to actually enjoy it! (Note to Self: Stop downloading preschool apps for their enjoyment!!)

The County Fair came to town, and this was a defining moment for us, as we stood on the sidelines and watch both boys go on the rides all by themselves.

Ben and I went on our first vacation, sans kids, in 4 years. We went on a short cruise, and this picture of Ben below is the epitome of what our time was like... pure relaxation, the perfect escape to our hectic lives. Thanks Grammy Wormeck for taking good care of our boys while we were gone!!

The boys' cousin, Montana, introduced them to the 4Wheeler. This was the moment when I realized that Braedyn could drive better than half the senior citizens on the road today. Sorry, but it had to be said.

My first-born turns 4 years old, a bittersweet moment for me. His love for animals is still going strong, as you can tell by his cake.

Then came the Christmas Program at school. Braedyn was so excited about it, Chase was very excited too, until he actually got on stage. This was an extremely proud moment for us, as parents.

I had stress and anxiety over creating a fabulous Christmas card as I just couldn't get any great pictures...

Christmas came, and I loved every single moment of it. These are the golden years for Christmas, the years when Christmas truly is magical for the boys. I am already thoroughly looking forward to this time next year.

A small miracle happened on New Year's Eve... for the first time in five years, I was able to stay awake until midnight.

And was fast asleep by 12:10 a.m.

No resolutions, at least, not any that I'm putting in writing. Because honestly, why bother?

Welcome to 2011, it looks to be a promising year!!