Our 2015

This year has been busy. Proof is in the lack of blog posts, right? I had to have a little talk with myself about the pressures of keeping up with this blog (for who? I mean, really, how many people read it? It's mostly for myself and my girls to read when they are older, so I guess that's my answer). Once I realized that it was okay to step back a little, it was a lot easier to write posts on the milestones and leave it at that. So this post is more than just a typical end-of-year post. Instead of recapping blog posts, I'll just recap the year with fresh information that I haven't really shared on here.

This year was started out with a very pregnant me waiting for the arrival of Amelia, who stretched out that pregnancy to my longest yet, going three weeks overdue. She was huge at birth, 9 lbs 12 oz (so many things could have gone wrong and we are so thankful for the medical team that we had and God's provision through it). She averaged out and actually ended up being a petite little thing throughout the year. She ends the year at 16 lbs 9 oz, in the 16th percentile, and she's so very happy and healthy. 

I have to admit that I didn't really let myself think about her in the future until after she was born. With the pregnancy being my hardest one with a scare in the beginning, I had kind of closed off my heart in fear of something awful happening. For example, last Christmas, instead of getting her a stocking during the after Christmas sales, I avoided it like the plague because what would I do with that stocking if she didn't survive childbirth? Morbid, I know. 

God works in all kinds of ways, and He used my fears, sinful though they were, to prepare me for having a more challenging baby. Honestly, she was dramatic and unpredictable for the first six months. I managed to remain optimistic and enjoyed her as much as I could, and we got through it, sleep deprived and living hour by hour. She blossomed after that period, and is a completely different child now. God is so good to use my weaknesses like that. I can't imagine what a mess I would have been if Audrey or Josie had been like that. I just wasn't ready for it at that point in my parenting journey!

Also, this is the year that I actually got to my pre baby weight after a pregnancy. While the last month or so has not done me any favors (hello, Christmas goodies), I've made some huge changes that have helped me make better choices and see real results. I'm still an avid gym goer and the idea of eating healthy is not overwhelming anymore. Hallelujah. I'm actually looking forward to jumping back on the wagon. 

This is the year that Josie started reading. At four years old, I didn't know if she could handle it, but she's loving it and has made me tear up a few times while watching it connect in her little mind. Teaching her is one of my biggest challenges and joys. I'm so thankful for my little mini me. Thankfully, her being so much like me has been a positive when it comes to teaching. I was worried that it would hinder us, but if anything it's made us closer.

She also went from being afraid of everything to overcoming some bigger fears. Riding her bike, even with the training wheels, terrified her but you would never know by how she rides it now. She now enjoys group activities like her "tons of fun" parks and rec class she did this summer (remember ballet class last year? **shudder**). She has big questions and understands more and more about the world these days and I can already tell that she is going to keep me on my toes.

Josie is quite musical (mama the music nerd loves this) already and hearing her sweet little voice sing is one of my favorite things. She loves to make up songs or sing back and forth with me and is always asking for me to "turn it up" when we are in the car. I haven't started any formal music with her (piano lessons will come in a few years) but we do a lot in our daily lives and I have already seen her learn a lot. She also loves puzzles like no other. While she has a lot of energy and can run around like a mad woman when it's built up too much, she can often been found doing puzzles or reading books for hours. I can't wait to see how that manifests as she gets older.

Audrey Joy is still the sweetest child I've ever met. She loves asking questions she already knows the answers to so she can celebrate. For example, she will ask, "Are we going to Grammy and Papa's house?" to which I say, "yes, tonight" and then she claps her hands and grins at me while adding, "I love going there!" 

She has started enjoying puzzles more and more (not quite as much as Josie, but definitely more than the average kid) and will sit and be read to for as long as possible. She doesn't really enjoy coloring yet, and it's hard to get her to sing out when sing songs together, but she loves to dance (she really loves to just through herself into it) and play around on the piano. Towards the end of the year, her imagination has exploded and she often tells us that she's Elsa and that Audrey is at Grandma's house. More often than not, she is in her Elsa dress and gets lost in her little make believe conversations while playing alone during quiet time. I have to be sneaky when I watch or listen because if she notices me watching she immediately stops. More and more, she comes out of her shell (especially when we're at home) and has started performing for us with a make believe microphone and stage (the rug by the door). She can be quite entertaining. 

She loves giving Amelia kisses and hugs, climbing up the crib bars to grin and say good morning to her, and getting her toys that are baby appropriate (in Audrey's mind) when she's playing nearby. It is so fun to watch her be the big sister. Her relationship with Amelia is quite different than Josie's was with Audrey when they were babies. Part of it is their age gap being bigger, but I think most of it is Audrey's nurturing side. She naturally feels a lot of of empathy and delights in seeing others happy. It's truly in how she was made. 

Audrey's big milestones this year include potty training pretty easily right after Amelia was born (I thought was dooming myself doing that while dealing with a fussy newborn but Audrey did fabulously), coming out of her shell to talk to others more easily, even with enthusiasm, riding her trike like a champ, and losing her baby fat ( **sob**). She turned three in November and has lost all of her toddler/baby looks that so defined her. It was jolting for me to realize that I had two preschoolers. 

Smaller milestones that have happened around here: with our yard fenced in (yay, hubby, for finishing that this year!) the girls can play outside without me right there with them, they can also play out of sight from me in the basement play room which has saved our sanities on rainy days, they both have small chores to do (empty dishwasher silverware and children's dishes, set the table, empty kitchen recycle bin into the big bin in the garage, clean up room, make their beds, put away laundry, etc) with Josie now having a responsibility chart and an allowance that works off of that. When we go out in public, the stroller is really only for the baby with Audrey sometimes riding along if she's tired. More often than not, though, both big girls walk everywhere and I'm not concerned about one of them running off (thank you Lord). We've had coloring on the walls, snacks stolen and eaten in secret, messes cleaned up by stuffing everything in a closet, toys broken, and talking back (girl cattiness is inevitable, I'm afraid), but generally my big girls are pretty well behaved. This year was big for behavior. Josie coming out of her three year old year meant that we had way less tantrums. Audrey's three year old year has shown a few of those bigger tantrums but with such a different temperament, it hasn't been so bad. We are only a month in though, so ask me again next year!

Hubby had an extremely busy year with his business. He was busy building decks during the warm season and also added fences to his workload. With the extra work, he ended up hiring two young men to help in the summer. Both of them have been able to work oddball days when they are off from school also. This winter has not slowed down at all and he thinks he has enough work to get all the way through to next year's deck season. We are so grateful for God's provision. We don't take it for granted that he has work all the time. Since he's been in business, we've tried to be prepared for a slow season without big jobs, and God has seen that we haven't had to worry about that. While it can be hard to parent alone for his 12+ hour days, I really can't complain. He's very present when he is home, and very rarely does he miss bed time routine (all his, and the girls love it). He is home just about every single weekend and often takes one or both of the big girls with if he does have to work, which usually includes running to a hardware store or working at the shop. 

Hubby still dreams about building a spec home and loves new projects that challenge him to be creative with the design and installation process. If you have something you want done along these lines, even if he hasn't done it before, he would love to do it! He truly enjoys learning new techniques and perfecting what he does know. It's definitely one of his gifts.

As for the rest of our family, my parents are in their last year of teaching so we keep talking excitedly about "next year at this time" and what we will do when they have all that free time. I've got them booked for the next ten years at least. We are so thankful to have our families all close to us. My sister lives in West Fargo and has become my gym buddy (very motivating for us both). She loves to take the girls on adventures and surprise them with little gifts (her love language for sure). Hubby's family all lives within a mile of us so we seem them regularly. The girls still go over to Grandma's on Mondays while I give lessons, something they look forward to each week. Grandma and Grandpa sometimes have sleep over parties with the girls just one at a time, and they both feel so special and loved when they get to choose where to eat and what movie to watch. 

2016 looks good from this side. We don't have any major plans at this point besides just continuing what we are doing now. Who knows what will happen? If it's as good as 2015 was, we'll take it.