2013 Review Extravaganza: The Last 6 Months

Well, I crapped out on last week's review extravaganza because it was an extremely hard week for me {more on that in another post} so I decided to make this week's review of the last 6 months. Is that even allowed? Apparently it is since I'm doing it.

July:

July was one of the easiest months this year. Ironically, I wouldn't name it our best month but I sure as heck had no idea what would become of the months after.

I wrote one of my favorite blog posts of the year on self worth and how my perspective had started to change.

 Petey was working so hard in dance and was becoming quite flexible, especially for a little girl who was not born with a flexible bone in her body.

My business was in it's starting stages.

 We were even crazy enough to paint Petey's room "Pepto Bismol Pink" to match her beloved Hello Kitty bedding. She still loves it just as much as she did the day we started.

August:

 My princess had her first day of Kindergarten and looking at the above picture still tugs at my heart strings.

 Petey's flexibility improved even more in August when she mastered her "tummy roll" she had been learning in acro/tumbling class. That girl is determined. If she sets her mind on something, she will do it.

Unfortunately, I didn't blog the entire rest of August. I couldn't bring myself to lie and say that everything was fine but it wasn't yet appropriate to talk about our separation and possible divorce. August was an extremely lonely month for me. I was surrounded by some of the most incredible people but there were so many hardships I was beginning to face.

September:

 I took my boy camping while his sister had her first overnight with her dad. It was an extremely, wonderfullly hard weekend without her but I'm learning how to deal with them being gone more often. Kind of. It's still really hard. Maybe next year I'll get used to it?

I wrote another one of my favorite posts of the year about attaining happiness amidst trials. Going back and reading that was extremely powerful. The timeline of that post was about a month after my husband and I separated. It was also around the time that I knew where that separation was leading us. I find happiness in knowing I am a child of God. No matter my trials, I know I have a divine purpose.

Another post that stuck out to me in September was my feelings through music. I don't think I realized back then that anger was starting to settle in. I see it now and understand it is a normal part of the grief process.

October:

 In October, my baby turned 4. I still can hardly believe he isn't a baby anymore. Four is just way too old. :)

I wrote about the story of Suzanne.

 And we celebrated Halloween by taking my friends FOUR children for 3 days. That was an adventure I'll never forget. :)

November:

 Petey had her first dance team performance at the Arizona State Fair. Even though she looks way too old with all that make up, she was a rockstar and did absolutely amazing.

 My friends and I did the ROC (Ridiculous Obstacle Course) Race. Oh my goodness, was it fun! I am so lucky to have the best friends ever who make life so very interesting. :)

One of my favorite posts in November was this one on judging others. "Good choices don't always equal good consequences right away. Sometimes it takes a little bit of pain before we get to feel the good."

I blogged about our annual tradition of attending Time Out for Women with my sisters and mom.

I talked about how I'm freaking awesome.

I talked about how amazing my friends are.

I even mentioned One Direction in a roundabout way.

November ended with a post on why I'm thankful for my life.

Wow, apparently I had a lot of blogging on my mind in November. :)

November was also the month my amazing friend took some pictures of my kids and I. They are absolutely gorgeous and I will forever be grateful to her for these pictures.

December:

December started with a post about believing in myself. Oh wait, did I not mention I also started school in August? Literally the same week of our separation? And did I not mention I finished all 4 of my classes with good grades and am ready to rock another semester in January? Oh I didn't? Well, I can't believe I skipped over that. Starting school was a big deal for me. I have a long ways to go but I'll get there.

In December, you'll find another good post on surviving trials. This isn't something I've done---it's something I'm currently doing.

You will also find one of my "most read" blog posts on the loss of tradition. It was hard to wrap my mind around not having my kids on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning but I'm here to tell you that we survived and it was a really great Christmas.

If there's anything I've learned this year, it is to have faith. Faith was actually my "word" for the year and it couldn't be more fitting. I know God has a divine purpose for me. I know I am His daughter. I also know He doesn't keep us from feeling heartache and pain. We have free agency and we get to choose whether we are going to be happy or angry or sad with our lives. My goal is to choose happiness.

Thanks for another great year, Emmy Mom. I love recapping with you year after year. :)

2013 Review Extravaganza: April, May, and June

 Hello, once again. This week's recap is April, May and June. Let's get started, shall we?

April:

-I posted about our 6th year, a post that is no longer easy to go back and read but a significant post that I think will be important to my children someday.

I had to laugh at the messes this boy makes or I would probably go insane.

 It was a wonderfully sad day when we had to say goodbye to Sister Crockett for 18 whole months. The best part of remembering that day is realizing this month is her halfway mark. Yippee! The kids talk about her often and we love sending and receiving packages and letters.

May:

May is a birthday month at our house.

 Petey turned 5 and looked gorgeous while doing it.

 Mother's Day was celebrated by getting pedicures with my sisters and mom.

 Petey had her end of the year dance recital. There are so many things I could say about her wonderful teacher. We sure miss having her this year because of how incredible she was.

June:

 June started out with a super fun visit to Disneyland! We learned that Petey is a daredevil and LOVED Tower of Terror and many other big rollercoasters that mommy refused to go on. It was also my first time riding Tower and Terror and I may or may not have cried during the ride. Seriously, I shudder just thinking about that experience.

 As soon as we got home, Petey had a few days of dance workshops before her tryouts. Guess what? She made the team! We were so excited for her and we've loved the new experiences she's gotten to have this year in dance.

June was also the month my big boy, Spidey, learned how to float all by himself and became a great swimmer.

As you can see, I'm so proud of my kids. These months were full of accomplishments and so many fun things. I am so grateful I get to enjoy being their mother every day of the year.

2013 Review Extravaganza: January, February, and March

I start this series off the exact same way every year. It just simply cannot be the end of the year yet. It was just January!
But here we are, reviewing the year, month by month. This week's post will have January, February, and March.

January:
I started off my year by making my new year goals. Re-reading that post was hard but it helped me realize that I had picked the perfect word for the year. Faith is something I've relied on to get me through so many things this year. It's actually hard for me to believe that at the beginning of the year, I was still hoping and praying and doing fertility treatments to try and have another baby. That is nowhere near where I am right now. My miracle wasn't a baby. My miracle was having enough faith to endure things I thought I wasn't strong enough to endure.

We were busy taking a gazillion trips to the zoo with our new membership. {And seriously, I forgot how long E's hair was back then and how short Petey's was!}

I talked about being about how I can do hard things. I'd like to revisit that post in a new post someday.

And we can't forget the annual cabin trip for New Year's with my family {which obviously happened before the other picture but I can't seem to switch it to the top of the page}. Maybe in 5-10 years, we can visit that trip. It was amazing, seriously hard, and more amazing to be with my family. I remember that trip vividly and am so glad we went.

February:

In February, my brother in law got married, Spidey got strep throat, and we got Netflix!

It was Spidey's first time having strep and he was miserable.

Then, Petey got strep throat and ended up at the emergency room because we thought there was more going on. There wasn't. Maybe I'm just overprotective.

I wrote a short post about why I'm too happy to be this sad. Though my circumstances are different, that same concept still rings true today!

March:

Petey had her 1st dance concert of 2013. It was hectic to get her there and it was raining and they were dancing outside but she did it!

Immediately after her dance performance, we headed over to Carlsbad because it's a family tradition!

This year, we went to LEGOLAND and both of the kids were big enough for the rollercoasters they wanted to do.

We celebrated my brother in law's wedding and had a wonderful time there.

The last thing we did in March was celebrate Easter.

Stay tuned for next week's review!