Reflections on 2013

When I look back on 2013, I literally cannot believe it's been only a year.  I was looking through pictures from the year and I had to double check that these pictures were taken in January 2013 and not January 2012!  (I was barely pregnant in January 2012- it just blows my mind!)

He couldn't even sit up on his own!

Still taking a pacifier!

Taking baths in the kitchen sink!

Using the bumbo!

Just barely starting solid foods!

So I think I can safely say that a lot has happened this year.  And yet, when I sit down to write out the highlights, I can think of only a few.  Daniel switched jobs from DISH to Comcast, we bought a new house, and I guess that's about it.

Visiting his Dada at Comcast over Christmas

I think something that I am just getting used to is that when you are raising a child, the year seems so full of important events (Elijah eating solid foods, learning to crawl and then walk, starting to talk) and at the same time it can all be summed up in one phrase: "we raised our child."  I noticed the same thing when we would get together with friends after we hadn't seen them for a few months.  They ask "what's new?"  and all I could think was..... nothing.  We're just plugging along, raising our child.  And yet that means so much.  In the last month for example, Elijah's learned to say so many new words and signs.  He has demonstrated that he understands so much of what we say.  He uses utensils and dishes now instead of eating with his hands off of a high chair tray.  It's absolutely remarkable and yet completely predictable.

When I think about what 2014 has in store, I get pretty excited.  We have this beautiful new home to transform and make our own.  We just finished redoing the kitchen, which took much less time and turned out much more beautiful that I could have imagined.  We have big plans for the bathrooms and that's pretty high on our priority list.  And thanks to some very fortunate events, we actually have the money to do it soon!  And of course expanding our family is always in the back of my mind.  We are inching closer and closer to a plan.  And I wouldn't be surprised if this time next year I find myself pregnant.

The truth is that in 2013 many of our dreams came true.  I don't say that nonchalantly.  I have literally dreamed of becoming a mother for nearly 10 years and though Elijah was born in 2012, I think it's accurate to say that I really became a mother in 2013.  For a solid year I have been caring for this human being and in that time he has gone from an immobile blob to a toddler who runs to greet me when I pick him up from school, gives me hugs, brings me books to read and sits on my lap while I read them, gives me kisses when I ask (and when I don't!), laughs at silly things I do, and shows genuine love and affection for me as his mother.

Christmas Eve

At the Georgetown Railroad

Another huge dream of ours that was realized this year is our new home.  Daniel and I have been discussing the kind of home we want to live in ever since we graduated from college.  Our current home was a great starter house, but it definitely wasn't where we wanted to raise our family.  We really wanted something in a good school district, and in a nice quiet suburban neighborhood.  Just a few months ago, that dream seemed nearly impossible.  The fact that we had to save up such an enormous amount of money, on our current income, with one child's worth of expenses, was insurmountable.  Add to that the fact that we knew we wanted to have another child- which is always a considerable expense- and we felt that it would be a very long time before we could realize any of those dreams.  We had been saving our money aggressively, but then we found that we would have to choose- have another child, or move to our dream house.  We just couldn't afford both.  It was an incredibly difficult decision, and one that we never really came up with an answer for.  But through the incredible generosity of our family, and our own hard work and determination, we find ourselves here at the end of 2013 with our considerable savings in tact, and in our dream home.  Which means that another baby can't be far behind ;-)

To sum it up, 2013 was a year full of incredibly happy surprises.  There is nothing I would change about this year.  I have never been so full of happiness and joy than I am now.  And yet, I feel that 2014 can only get better!  I do have a few goals for this coming year:  I hope to gain clarity in my career path.  I don't necessarily need to move forward in my career- I just want a clearer picture and a clearer goal for that area of my life.  And I also want a plan for expanding our family.  Again, I don't need to necessarily get pregnant this year, but rather I would like a clearer plan for what we need to do to get there, and how much time that will take.  I don't think that's too much to get done in 365 days, right?

Santa pictures just because ;-)

I love Elijah's cheesy grin!