2019 Recap & the Plan for 2020

I happened upon my new year's blog post from Jan. 1 of this year and saw my goals for 2019. I actually like how simple and reasonable they were. To report back, I didn't blog more. Ironically I already told Darrin that was a goal for 2020, even before I knew it was for 2019 also. I had good intentions to be more prepared for Christmas but alas I did not do that either. The fact that Thanksgiving was so late didn't help. I have to say that is a goal for 2020 as well. I had already thought about that too. I might have done a little better preparing at night so mornings weren't so rushed. There is still much room for improvement in that area. I feel like I accomplished the last two goals. I stepped up my dress game for work and definitely pushed myself harder at the gym. Since Darrin and I joined 9 Round it has been easy to work harder. The format just lends itself to that for me.

I thought I would talk about a few things that happened in 2019. Carson was potty trained! He did a great job and was a quick learner.

Carson graduated to a big boy bed. I would have preferred to leave him in his crib for much longer, but he kept climbing out of it.

It's been the year of accidents for Miles. He chipped his two front teeth during recess.

He got hit by a line drive while pitching. Thankfully, the bill of his hat caught the brunt of the ball and that protected him.

He busted his pinky nail on a bat while throwing down a batter from catcher to third. This injury proved to be the most painful, but was a surprisingly fast recovery.

In one of the most notable events from this year, I resigned from my job of 18 years and only lasted three days at the new job. Definitely not the highlight of my year, but it has proved to be a valuable experience and has given me tremendous perspective. 

We grew a huge garden and may have ruined the fun of a garden for us forever. We will have a new plan in 2020. I'm not sure what that looks like, but it won't be anything of this proportion. 

We watched a lot of baseball. We enjoyed time with friends and enjoyed watching Miles play. Carson loved being outside during our baseball adventures.

At times, our team lived up to our self given name of the "Real Housewives of Medina". Sometimes competitive sports is not for the faint of heart. 

We went on a "trip" to the beach where Miles played in a World Series. It was a fun trip. The boys loved the beach and definitely made good memories.

There were countless 4-wheeler rides, which never get old for Carson.

We endured some rough patches with Carson. Life, specifically communication, is frustrating at times for him and we are doing our best to guide him through it. 

We celebrated Carson's 3rd birthday.

And Miles hit double digits on his birthday.

The stars aligned and Darrin and I celebrated our 43rd birthdays and our 18th anniversary with a weekend away, something that has never during volleyball season. 

Car rides weren't anymore fun in 2019 than they were in 2018. Here's hoping 2020 brings some progress in this area.

Darrin had an unforgettable volleyball season, breaking records and earning coach of the year. It was a fun year with these girls, on and off the court.

We lost my nephew to cancer in December. It has been incredibly sad, and heartbreaking to watch my family endure this. He is and was so special. He was witty, fun, genuine, and kind. His celebration of life was such proof of how loved he was by so many.

Now, I am looking forward to 2020 with this crew. 

Darrin and I had some conversation in the car the other day about our goals and plans for the new year. I can't say I had much on my mind. Some quick thoughts are:

1) Blog more. I want Carson to have as many memories on the blog as Miles does. 

2) Be diligent and hard-working in my job. This is not new, but more of a continual goal to always do my best and put forth my best effort.

3) Get involved in a small group at church and really invest in relationships. We've been consumed in the last year mostly with parenting, but it feels as though we have a reprieve and have the time and energy to spend on a small group. We start this Sunday.

4) Accomplish some short term financial goals that we have for our family budget. This will require us to be a little more earnest than we have been. We shall see...

5) Tackle some projects around the house, mainly small decorating plans or cosmetic things. I want to paint the living room, entry way, and hallway, rearrange/decorate the sun room, and add some décor around the house. Also, I'm always on a mission to purge and organize, so I will find areas in the house that need that. 

6) Eat healthier and absolutely serve the kids better options. This is a must for all four of us.

Like I said, just some quick thoughts, no major life changing resolutions for me. I do love a new year and a clean slate, full of possibilities. Happy New Year! May God bless this year and all that is to come.

Weekend Wrap Up

We spent the weekend celebrating Christmas with my family. We stayed at my mom's house for two nights. Carson was 100% entertained by her toys all weekend. It was as if he didn't have any at our house. 

Miles drank coffee both mornings we were there. This is a new thing, but I think he genuinely enjoyed it. He won't get it every morning, but he enjoyed the treat. He and Darrin slept in the bonus room together while Carson and I stayed in the guest room. Darrin and I enjoyed a little one on one time with the boys, but I think that meant late nights for them. Meanwhile, Carson and I went to bed early.

On Saturday night, we had a family get together. We played a game where you had to unwrap presents wrapped inside each other while wearing oven mits and a Santa hat. When the person next to you rolled doubles, you had to pass the present to them. The goal was to find one of the little presents along the way or unwrap the last present which was a gift card to Subway. There were six presents total and my nephew's wife below got three of them. She was good or lucky!

It definitely revealed the competitive members of the family, one of which was Miles. This was his face when Darrin rolled doubles and he had to pass everything along.

Carson got to play with my great nephew, Will. He is over a year younger than Carson and as tall, if not taller, than him. They are completely different body types. Will is also like a feather compared to Carson.

They played well together even though Will is a little more serious and Carson is very energetic. I took 4-5 pics and Carson looks the exact same in all of them :)

A rare moment of Miles and Carson playing well together. It doesn't happen often. Darrin and I comment how nice it is every time it happens. 

On Sunday, we helped my mom take down her Christmas decorations, straighten the house, and then it was time to say goodbye. Carson handled goodbye better than I thought he would.

I must give a little credit to Carson. He was a pretty good traveler driving to and from my mom's, which is a little over two hours. He got a little restless both ways, but overall he was pretty good. I had to crawl in the backseat twice, but again, it was manageable. Miles sat in the third row b/c dealing with Carson can be extremely frustrating. 

After we got home on Sunday afternoon, we unpacked, watched the Titans win, and played a new game called Rack-O. I think it's been around a long time, but we just discovered it. We are hooked at the moment.

That sums is up. Christmas 2019 is officially in the books. I went back to work today. Carson went back to daycare. Miles went with Darrin to work and then they hung out a while. It's been a long month poor eating, crazy schedules, and spending way too much money. I'm happy to get back into a more disciplined routine. Bring on a new week and a new year.

Stubborn

Carson wasn't feeling picture time with his cousins, Olivia and Ava, the other day. When we made him sit on the couch, he refused to look at the camera. He looked at his hands...

He looked to one side...

Then, the other side...

When we finally threatened him, he looked at the camera, but refused to smile.

Even though he was very stubborn and uncooperative, it was so funny. We couldn't help but laugh, which is not helping our case!

All the Christmas Things

It's always hard to wrap up Christmas b/c there are so many different get togethers and a gazillion pictures. This year was no different. Here is what our Christmas looked like with just a few words.

PJ Day at daycare for Carson. Miles had pj day too, but he didn't participate. He's kind of outgrown that.

Church...

Watching TV in the living room and enjoying the tree after everyone has gone to sleep is one of favorite things about Christmas.

Working puzzles. When we got to the end of this one, which was a challenging puzzle, we were missing the last piece. Despite our efforts, we never found it :(

We've never done the Santa tradition except at daycare. Miles never liked him (or any characters) and honestly my kids have never behaved well enough to get dressed up, wait in a line, and sit nicely in Santa's lap, so we never put ourselves through that.

Our elf was fun this year. Sometimes he just moved around, but he also did some cute stuff like this.

We had some fun family time.

Carson got a Nerf gun the size of him. He loves all Miles' guns, but he can't cock them, so Uncle Steve and Aunt Crystal found one that doesn't have to be cocked. He loves it.

The cousins enjoyed hanging out together. They always have fun even though they range in age from 15-3.

Christmas Eve boxes are always a big hit. They get pjs, candy, cookies for Santa, and usually a book and toy.

We enjoyed a visit from Marmee. She's been out of town and had a few other things going on, so the boys were really glad to see her.

I enjoyed some extra time with the boys.

This is what Carson did when we told him to put his arm around his cousin, Emmitt.

I have to say that Carson's behavior has been pretty good over the holidays. He never bothered any of the presents or the tree. He inquired about the presents and when we could open, but he waited patiently until it was time.

Since Christmas was so warm, the boys loved playing outside. They rode a big wheel down a sizable hill over and over at Granny & Pa's house on Christmas Eve. Carson had the best time.

Carson loved seeing Pa.

Reindeer food on Christmas Eve.

When we walked outside, Carson said, "Here reindeer, here reindeer".

New pjs for Christmas Eve night.

Carson has enjoyed helping us cook over the holidays.

The boys slept on our floor on Christmas Eve. Miles fell asleep first and Carson immediately said, "I want to sleep in YOU bed." He's no dummy. He knows the bed > the floor.

Pure joy over what Santa brought. A Paw Patrol tower for Carson and a big Lego set for Miles. Carson told Darrin tonight that if he could see Santa he would tell him thank you for bringing this. He is the most grateful child ever.

Lots of presents, lots of paper, lots of smiles and happiness.

This was a fun year with the boys. Their gifts made sense and didn't feel too excessive. We enjoyed all the get togethers and spending time with family. We still have some fun ahead with my family this weekend so that is exciting!