2013 In Review!

I love seeing all of my friends recap their year on Facebook. It got me thinking about everything that we've had going on this year…it's been a big one full of many life changes. In the spirit of recapping here is our year in review…

January:

Ed and I took our first real vacation since becoming parents! We had gone away for weekends for weddings and the such, but we spent a week in Lake Tahoe. We were able to ski/snowboard, relax, and even took a day trip to San Francisco.

February:

We found out I was pregnant in February and took a weekend trip to Connecticut. Preston got to visit his girlfriend, Lila. Don't be fooled…he's not as leery of her as he seems in these pictures. We looked at possibly buying a house, but thankfully found out we wouldn't be stationed there before it was too late!

March:

We found out that we were expecting not one, but two babies and I prepared this birth announcement to share later! Preston and I prepared to leave Memphis at the end of the month and spent time taking in the touristy things like seeing the ducks at the Peabody with our friends Ayden and Marie. 

April:

I spent a lot of time loving on my sweet boy, as I spent the longest amount of time away from him to date. While I got settled in Connecticut he had the chance to stay with all 3 sets of grandparents for a total of 2 1/2 weeks. Needless to say there were lots of tears on my part. Ed had lasik eye surgery in Florida and I flew down to surprise him with these two dresses -- we found out we were having GIRLS! I worked part time at the Stonington Country Club (where I worked when we were stationed in CT before).

May:

We got settled into our new house in Connecticut and Preston joined me! He got his first real haircut (and did an awesome job!), we spent a lot of time with our dear friends (and Preston's girlfriend), we spent as much time outside as possible (here is Ed and Preston at Cows and Cones in Ledyard, CT petting a donkey). And I hit the 5 month mark!!

June:

We spent a lot more time outside enjoying the beautiful New England weather! We took a couple of trips to the beach (which Preston wasn't a huge fan of), played in our pool outside and ate a lot of popsicles! The house we were renting didn't have air conditioning so we did whatever it took to stay cool. I also had the wonderful opportunity to see one of my favorite bloggers speak. Glennon Melton over at Momastery is one of my favorite people that I don't know in real life, so I was so excited to hear her in person! 

July:

We spent the beginning of July in New York with Ed's family. Part of it in Buffalo and a few days in Alfred at his grandparents farm. It was nice to get away from everything, let Preston get dirty playing outside, and cook over the campfire! Not long after that, though, little man had surgery to fix his hypospadias. He was such a trooper and we were so glad to get him taken care of while we could offer him our undivided attention! Towards the end of the month Preston and I took our last solo trip to WV to visit my family. Also…my stomach got really big. 

August:

My friend Amanda threw me a "sprinkle" for the girls arrival and I enjoyed having so many of my favorite ladies in the same spot! Also, we finally got rid of our boat! They say the two best days of a boat owners life are the day they get a boat and the day they get rid of it. It was definitely worth a champagne toast!

September: 

Of course, September was busy welcoming our little girls! Addison Margaret May was born on September 17 at 9:01 am weighing 5 lbs 6 oz and Delaney Gail May was born at 9:02 am weighing 4 lbs 15 oz. A good friend of mine from high school sent me a picture of the sign above and no truer statement was ever made. That is how I feel on so many days (though, I admittedly tend to focus on how full my hands are and less so on how full my heart is. Hey, I'm only human!). 

October:

         

We were very lucky that my parents were able to come to Connecticut and help us with the girls and Preston while we adjusted to having the girls home! Mom and I even took the first adventure out with all 3 of them to the park. Look at Preston's face…he is so proud to be a big brother! Ed and I managed to sneak in a couple of date nights before being apart for a couple of weeks during the move, as I went to WV for a couple of weeks with the kids while he went to NY and then headed west on his own.

November:

Preston went to NY to stay with Ed's family while my mom and I drove the girls cross country (my in-laws flew him out after we had arrived). He got to spend Halloween with them and he was the cutest pirate. I, personally, am amazed he not only kept the costume on, but sat in it for a picture! The majority of the month of November was spent driving and getting settled into our new house. You can see how ridiculous the car was during the trip, and no, we didn't drive with Laney in the center console. Girlfriend just needed to stretch out during one of our many stops. Finally…home sweet home!

December:

December found us finally settling into the new house and getting some projects done. Preston got upgraded to a big boy bed and he LOVES it! He has done such a good job with the transition and generally stays put until someone comes and gets him (for now anyway). This was the first Christmas that we spent in our own home, as we generally travel to my family or Ed's. It was fun to create our own traditions, especially now that Preston is understanding the concept of Santa and was so excited! 

We have had a wonderful (and busy) 2013 and I look forward to all that awaits us in 2014!