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Thursday, January 2, 2014

Reflecting on 2013

What a year it has been for my little family. We have grown, changed, learned, struggled and dreamed. I'll recap the highs and lows of our year. Its always nice to reflect.
| January |
Our little boy got his MRI (Scariest moment of my life to date) to ensure his dilated pupil was not caused by scariness in his brain. All turned out normal. THANK GOD. This moment really restored my faith, and allowed me to let go of some control as a Mom. 

| February |
We lost my Grandpa. It was a really tough time for our family, the last of my grandparents were gone. Forever. All we could hold on to was the memory of his laugh, his singing, his penmanship and his sense of humor. He was a great, great man. I miss him so much. I am thankful that he got to know Levi for a little while.
 

 | March |
Josh and I took our first weekend getaway ever as a couple, and for the first time we left behind our little man. I was a nervous wreck, but it was a much needed time alone. We learned how important it is to take time for ourselves. Our marriage really felt refreshed when we got back, and essentially allowed us to be better parents to Levi.


| April |
Josh and I celebrated two years of marriage together. Life truly gets better with this man with each year. We laugh more. grow more, and love more. Beyond lucky.

| May |
<Gasp!> We left our little man for another weekend getaway. We went to Put in Bay (my first time) with these lovely folks for Memorial Day. It was such a fun time and the perfect amount of time to sleep in, have a few adult beverages, and relax.

|June|
Josh celebrated Father's Day, we went to Country Jam (Horrifying experience), Levi was finally getting into the walking spirit. He was non stop running at this point. We had a wonderful, relaxing Summer together.

|July|
July was a busy month. We celebrated the fireworks, and we also celebrated the life of my Grandpa by holding a Memorial. It was so beautiful to see family from all over come in to share stories about my Grandpa and truly let themselves slip into the memories. 



|August|
Celebrated my sister Holly's 26th Birthday in Hocking Hills for a weekend of camping. It was another perfect getaway. It wasn't too hot at all for August and it was refreshing being in nature. Nothing but good laughs by a campfire. 

|September|
Josh celebrated his 32nd Birthday! We dove into Fall Season with bonfires, football and lots of trips to the park together.

|October|
I celebrated a birthday! The big 2-5! Levi also celebrated his Second Birthday, and developed an obsession with Elmo. He was Elmo for Halloween, and still wants to sleep with his costume at night. We had a lovely "By the Campfire" birthday party theme for him which kind of got rained out, but whatever, he still partied and enjoyed it!


Please excuse the lack of pictures for November and December. I have yet to upload them all from my camera! <bad mommy>
Here is some more of our year as a family:

| We began and ended our journey with Help Me Grow. Levi picked up walking at the end of Spring and attended school in the Fall. A month into school we were told Levi no longer needed services, and was right where he needed to be. So his case was officially closed. |

| I finished another year of school, and will officially graduate next Spring, lord willing. |

| Josh made a big decision and joined the Police Academy in September, which many people do not know yet. He will graduate in February. He has been attending school 30 hours a week Mon-Fri and working 40 hours a week Thurs-Sunday. So when I am down a lot about being alone, this is the reason. He has proven himself to be such a hard worker, he is so driven, and this is the most attractive quality a man can have in  my opinion. He really cares about his happiness and the future of our family. I am beyond proud of him. 

| Levi has had many firsts this year. His vocabulary has jumped leaps and bounds since the Summer. He is still in the two word phrases of his speech but trying hard to form longer phrases. He knows almost his whole alphabet and points out letters while we are at the grocery store, during a car ride, in a book, on a food carton. Anything. He is so so smart. We are working on counting and colors right now. As of now, everything is blue and most numbers are two and ten. ;) He loves to make big piles of all his stuffed animals and jump on them. He loves to read. He loves being outside and roaming. He does not like to be contained. He loves to color and take baths. He also likes to play with his Sissy whenever she is here. -And he is starting to use those vocal chords. Ha. All in all he has been perfectly healthy all year, has all his teeth, can undress himself, say a million words it seems, use his utensils, ask for help, and he loves, loves to learn. |

| I learned how to shoot manual with my camera. I even made a Facebook Page to get clients and practice on people. I have a passion for Photography and it has been quite the journey learning all that I have since this Summer. I haven't picked up my camera in a while to do photos for anyone. But I plan on it soon! |

| 2013 was a blessed year for our family. We celebrated holidays, we made memories, we laughed, we cried and we dreamed. Our goals for 2014 are: 
-Attend Church more
-Levi to have more play dates and socialize
- Josh to get a job doing what he loves (fingers crossed, could be soon)
- Me to stay focused in school and keep pushing through
-Continue to live a healthy lifestyle
-Go on walks as a family more
- Turn off the phones and TV and do things out of the box more
-Tell each other we love one another every chance we get
-Make memories that will last a lifetime
- Be creative
- Make Mommy and Daddy alone time
- Surround ourselves with only those who truly care and forget the rest
-Help out strangers
- FINISH LEVI'S BABY BOOK ;) |

I can only hope the Lord will bless us as we venture into another year as a family. I do not know for sure what this year holds, but I do know that I am blessed and fortunate to have the two best boys by my side through it all. 



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