I know it sounds totally cliche, but I seriously cannot believe that tomorrow we will begin another new year. It sometimes seems like my days are so long {but filled with lots of sweet moments}, but they also disappear in a flash all at the same time! It’s so weird how that happens.
After seeing some fun 2013 recaps, I thought I’d share one of my own along with some lessons I learned during the year.
JANUARY
I honestly don’t recall how we rang in 2013, but I’m sure it was pretty relaxing. We were still adjusting to life with our two blessings and probably still a bit sleep deprived, so it’s okay.
FEBRUARY
We enjoyed a weekend with the students from our church at the beginning of the month. They keep us young, that’s for sure {as you can see from our 50’s themed costumes}!
MARCH
We head to Baltimore for Matthew’s 2nd birthday party and Savannah goes to her first Easter Egg hunt. Brady is also dedicated at church.
APRIL
I attended the Priscilla Shirer Live event with some dear friends. After being part of the steering committee, it was truly a blessed time of worship, teaching, and fellowship with ladies from around our city.
MAY
We begin potty training with Savannah. Wow! She finally got the hang of it, but those first few weeks were rough. We also celebrated with our friends who burned their separation papers. Praise God for working miracles.
JUNE
I met up with some old friends from college during reunion weekend {10 years} and enjoyed catching up. We were thrilled to have Kev’s parents visit with us for a few days in June. At the end of the month, Brady had his big cleft palate repair surgery.
JULY
Brady continues to heal beautifully from his surgery. The Baltimore cousins come to town for a visit and Kev and I celebrate 10 years of marriage.
AUGUST
The month started off with a fun girls getaway in Charleston and ended with my family vacation in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. These were some much needed times of rest and relaxation. I also felt led to kick it up a notch with my blogging, in hopes of using my hobby to eventually supplement Kev’s income. It’s still a work in progress! 🙂 We celebrated Andrew on his 4th birthday in heaven.
SEPTEMBER
We sold Kev’s truck and purchased a “new to us” SUV from my parents this month. A week later, Savannah began preschool. We ended the month with Brady’s birthday celebration at the apple orchard. In the middle of the month, we were shocked to discover we were pregnant again.
OCTOBER
Brady turned 1 at the beginning of the month. We discovered I had miscarried the week leading up to my cousin’s wedding, but decided we still wanted to celebrate with my family. We were disappointed and sad to loose another baby, but God was with us.
NOVEMBER
This month was pretty low key, but Brady did have a checkup with the craniofacial clinic. He’s doing really well, but they recommended him for an early intervention consult regarding his speech. We also found out that the baby we lost in October was a little boy. Our Thanksgiving was a wonderful weekend with family and friends.
DECEMBER
Our December came and went as fast as could be. We celebrated Kev’s and Savannah’s birthday and then jumped right into Christmas festivities. We didn’t get to everything on our Christmas bucket list, but we sure did enjoy lots of moments together with family and friends.
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LESSONS LEARNED
1. Adding another {living} child to our family is a huge adjustment, but so worth it! Kev and I had a lot to learn about life with 2 children. It was hard to adjust to man-to-man defense, but it has been so neat to see us work together as a team to care for these precious blessings. We are so blessed to be their parents and don’t take a single moment of it for granted.
2. Pediatric surgeons can do remarkable things. We are so thankful for Brady’s entire craniofacial team, but I was especially amazed at the work by his surgeon this past year. It amazes me to think that God has skilled these doctors so they are able to operate on a little baby and repair a cleft palate. I count it a miracle that Brady’s cleft has been repaired with the help of modern medicine.
3. Babies are resilient and bounce back more quickly than I ever imagined. I was so nervous as we approached Brady’s cleft palate repair and the thought of my baby going under general anesthesia was terrifying. I was astounded at Brady’s resilience and how quickly he bounced back. His little personality really blossomed after his surgery and we are so thankful.
4. Beach vacations are the best. I am officially a beach bum. I love any vacation, but I learned this summer that a beach vacation is truly my favorite. It had been a while since we had been to the beach and I had forgotten how badly I missed it.
5. Experiencing one loss doesn’t mean you are immune from experiencing it again. I have actually “known” this for a while, but living it is a different story. Our miscarriage was a very different loss than our son Andrew’s stillbirth, but it was a reminder that experiencing loss or tragedy once does not mean it won’t happen again. We continue to look forward to the day when all will be made right and heaven will be a reality.
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Whether your year has been filled with happiness or heartache, I pray that you can look back and find at least some joy in it. And if you can’t, that’s okay too. God knows.
Our year certainly wasn’t picture perfect, but we know that we’ve been blessed beyond what we deserve and we are so thankful.
Here’s to ringing in 2014 with the ones you love!
Linking up with:
God-Sized Dreams
I am so glad you linked up with us Sarah and I loved your recap!! What a year you have had and I am excited to see what 2014 brings for you and your family!
Thanks, Kristin! I'm looking forward to following along with your new website! 🙂
You all had quite a year–with some very tough moments and joyful moments as well! A friend's son had his first cleft lip and palate surgery this summer, too–it's such a blessing how resilient and quick at healing those little ones are!
It truly is remarkable! Cleft lip/palate babies will always have a special place in my heart now. 🙂
Sounds like you had quite an eventful year. I hope 2014 is amazing for you and your family! Happy New Year!
Thanks so much, Meagan! I hope your new year is off to a fantastic start!