I should warn you this is going to be an extraordinarily long post-maybe to the point of ludicrous-but if you're here I'm assuming it's because you want to be and that you'll enjoy this.
Goodness knows as long as it took me, we all enjoyed taking a trip down the past 365 day lane together. With 2010 on the horizon, so many new adventures await us!
But let's not get ahead of ourselves...
In January, our wee one enjoyed watching his first snow as eldest played.
They grew even closer, always enjoying their playtime,
and the wee one continued to amaze us with his gorgeous head of dark hair. Care to share, son?
February was a lovely month. We did our best to stay warm with the proper accoutrement,
hugs,
food,
wrapping ourselves with our blanket of Faith during the Lenten season,
and lots of running around on the soccer fields.
We celebrated St. Patrick's Day with a grand Parade in March,
put some lovely art above eldest's bed,
and began preparing for Jesus' return to Heaven as Easter grew closer.
Before we knew it, we celebrated our Salvation at Easter in April. This was a huge month for our entire family.
With it came eldest's ninth birthday-the last single digit year she'd ever have. Wow.
There was much celebrating at home and Monkey Joe's!
The wee one was properly welcomed into our Faith with his Baptism, and it was a real event, let me tell you. Hot, long, and filled with ritual-completely unlike eldest's speedy one. We were so happy for our little guy, but it was one hot afternoon in church. Maybe it was all that Original Sin being washed away.
April also brought trips to the Mint Museum, dances with Daddy, and the end of eldest's year with the Charlotte United Futbol Club.
Let us not forget, April was also the month we decided to accept the offer to Tokyo and move our family to Japan. This was such a big month for our family.
Maywould bring us to the end of eldest's third grade year, and with it, my final year on the PTO Board. Art After Dark is one event I cherished, and will miss being a part of.
The artwork done by the children is amazing and so colorful! Also amazing? the Cultural Chairs I was blessed to work with.
"Landing" the 82nd Airborne right before Memorial Day was a treat for our entire school. They were such good, nice men.
The children walked away proud of their troops, and grateful for the country they live in. They gave us chills with their vocals! I highly recommend you buy one of their CD's.
Of course, May brought us other sweet things as well. Summery sights, tastes, and places that got us ready for the months ahead: lemon meringue pies, Ben & Jerry trips, and flowers!
Not to mention the wee one at eleven months was fully up and walking.
That picture should have told us everything: Summer-and everything past it-was going to be eventful!
We kicked things off in high style with the wee one's first birthday on June 15th.
Our little monkey enjoyed his Curious George party courtesy of eldest's ingenuity.
Father's Day was bittersweet, however, as Husband was preparing to leave for Tokyo.
We did celebrate with a wonderful meal and the company of those we loved dearly, but there was a tiny raincloud hanging above our heads.
If you can't tell, eldest was particularly unhappy with her Daddy leaving.
It was hard with husband gone-really hard-but we still managed to have a great summer filled with good memories.
Unfortunately, Summer came to a close far too soon. It had to eventually, and that was allright as husband was with us! With the arrival of August came eldest's return to school and Fourth Grade. What a change this year has been!
So much more work, and a serious increase in personal responsibility.
Add to that the fact that her Daddy had to leave for his job in Tokyo, and it could have been a very rough start to the school year. But eldest, the wee one, and I held fast, worked hard, and prayed.
We've been each other's saving grace with husband in Japan. The past few months, October, November, and December have been filled with familiar settings and friendly faces that have helped us and lifted us up through Husband's absence.
We've ended this year on the sweetest note possible...
and chocolate chip cookies made from Mother's recipe are only a small aprt of it. We've had an incredible two weeks with husband and my parents and are sad to see it end. That said, 2010 is nigh and with this new year comes so many possibilities!
I can't wait to share them all with you.
Happy New Years Eve, all!
I'll see you in 2010.
