Memories, Dreams & Reflections

I love looking back at my photos at the end of the year. Not only to remember what all we accomplished and achieved as a family and as individuals, but like any mother, I like to look back and see how much my boy (now that will be boys) have grown. When I saw Ashley’s linkup I thought it would be a fun way to reflect and look back on 2012 and all that we did this year. If you’re interested in joining be sure to hop over to her site, grab the button and go link up!

1. ME

2012 was a big year for our family. A BIG year. Not only did we welcome our second sweet boy, but Josh and I both made some big leaps career wise. I worked more than I ever imagined that I’d be able to work this past year; coming in at a total of over 100 clients, websites and projects for the year. It doesn’t sound like a lot…but when you figure that there are 52 weeks in a year, that means that I launched at least one site or a project a week. Josh advanced and made rank this year and is already working on his next advancement. We’re so proud of him.

I also learned a lot about myself as an individual and a wife and mother this year. Some personal milestones and achievements. We spent lots of time with our biggest boy and enjoyed the dwindling days we had with him as an only child.

2. I LOVE YOU

I think this pretty much sums up everything I am loving about life right now. These three boys…

3. STILL LAUGHING

There really isn’t a funny story or hilarious tale that goes with this picture. I wanted to take Noah out and shoot some photos with him and this old sword that Josh’s grandfather made him when he was a kid. So we went. He ran and played and jumped for almost an hour. The whole session was one of my absolute favorites to date. It was just a genuinely perfect afternoon.

4. WINTER WONDERLAND

Our first big snow of the season. Noah was sick and couldn’t go outside, so he sat and stared longingly out the windows for hours while we watched the snow fall.

5. BIRTHDAY

We had Noah’s fourth birthday party a couple of weeks early, so on the day of his actual birthday I made him a chocolate cake (his request) and we spent the entire day focused on him and what he wanted to do/eat/play. This was probably my favorite shot of the entire day.

6. FRIENDS

My friend Jessica threw us a baby shower this year while we were waiting on Jonah man to make his appearance. She made this cute little chocolate mustaches herself. We couldn’t resist snapping a fun photo to commemorate her craftiness.

7. I WAS INSPIRED

I saw an image similar to this on Pinterest earlier in the year and couldn’t resist the opportunity to capture something similar. Noah spends a better part of his time playing with tiny toys and trinkets. While we have an abundance of “big” toys, it’s these little things that he is the most partial to when it comes to playtime. He spends hours and hours making up scenarios and playing out stories with these.

8. SPRING FEVER

We don’t get much “spring” here in Alaska…at least, not here on our island. Spring for us comes about July and lasts about a month. We never plant flowers or anything because the frost and cold air tends to kill them off quickly. But, we did spread mulch this year to cover up the gravel in the “flower beds” we have.

9. VACATION/TRAVEL

We took a much needed trip to Anchorage last May while Josh went to EMT school. Granted it wasn’t a huge trip, we didn’t stay in an extravagant motel and didn’t really do much of anything, it was one of those perfect trips. Josh got his EMT2 certification, Noah got to take his first (remembered) trip to Toys-R-Us and I paid more than one visit to Target and Olive Garden. It was great. Looking forward to heading back there-and back to Alabama-in 2013.

10. SUMMER DAYS

Yes. This photo was taken during the summer. See Noah’s sandals? That’s about as “summery” as we get. There are occasional days where we wear short sleeve shirts, but the air always has a little chill to it. This year we spent a lot of time outside playing in our backyard, blowing bubbles and drawing on the sidewalk. Lots of steak grilling and BBQing, even in the cooler weather.

11. A DAY IN MY LIFE

Noah is a coffee drinker. Surprisingly enough, it really doesn’t do much for him in terms of being hyper. He just likes coffee. Many, many mornings he joins me in a cup while we eat breakfast and watch cartoons.

12. ALL SMILES

This photo gets me every time. How could you not smile?

13. AUTUMN HARVEST

My favorite photo from Halloween. This was the first year Noah was really excited about any of the holidays. We bought his costume in September (to make sure that they didn’t sell out…everything in Kodiak is first come, first serve) and he was itching to put it on as soon as we got it. He had the best time Trick-or-Treating this year…running from house to house, asking for candy, and being sure to thank everyone who offered him any.

14. FAMILY OR HOME

I wish I had a good family photo of the four of us to share with you, but our photographer is still finishing up our newborn photos, so I don’t have those to share yet. Instead, here’s home…the view of our little island from on top of one of the mountains. There’s a lot about living in Kodiak that I don’t like, but the view? The view isn’t one of them.

15. CELEBRATE

Our Gender Reveal Party…a celebration of epic proportions. I think that might have been one of the most exciting days of 2012 (next to Jonah’s actual birthday, of course). The entire week we were on pins and needles, itching to find out if we’d be having a boy or a girl. The day we had the party was such a beautiful experience for our little family.

16. LET’S DO IT AGAIN

Oi. This picture was taken about two weeks before Jonah was born. I was run down and absolutely exhausted. So what did we do? Noah and I spent the entire day being lazy. We laid in bed, watched movies, played games, and I did a lot of writing, journaling and photo editing. It was…perfect. Just relaxed and laid back. I’m eager for another day where we can just sit around and do nothing.

17. I MISS YOU

I had to dig way back in the archives (like back into 2010) to find this photo, but it’s the only one of home that I have. And it’s actually not even of home…it’s Turner Field in Atlanta. When Josh was home from A-School in July 2010, we took a family trip to Atlanta. We hit up the Braves Game, the Georgia Aquarium and White Water Water Park. It was…the perfect trip. Sincerely. And while the photo doesn’t necessarily represent my desire to go back to Atlanta, it does represent my desire to go back home..to Alabama. To the South. To our families and the heat and the humidity.

18. BEAUTIFUL

These boys. There’s no need to explain this one.

19. DRESS UP

20. MACRO

21. HOLIDAYS

22. MY FAVORITE

This is nothing more than a snapshot on my iPhone taken by my husband. Parts of it are a bit blurry and the lighting was terrible. But this is my absolute favorite moment from the year. The moment that Noah met his baby brother for the first time. After months of waiting somewhat impatiently for the baby in my tummy to come out, this little boy has been in love with his brother from the get go. This moment? This image? Will probably always be one of my favorites. It completely captures the instant that two individuals become brothers; and my heart grew in size.

23. DON’T EVER CHANGE

I thought a long time about what photo to use for this one before settling on the one below. This is a recent snapshot of Noah helping out with his brother. You guys? This boy? He is so uber-protective of his little brother that it’s almost ridiculous. I knew that he would help take care of him and watch out for him, but I never imagined just how…extreme he’d be. He told our doctor at Jonahs’ two week checkup that if she hurt his little brother that he was going to punch her in the face. True story.

I know that our boys will reach points in their lives where they don’t like each other and don’t want to be around one another. That’s expected. I anticipate it and know that it’s something we’ll never avoid. But…I hope that they always love each other. That they always look out for one another and support one another. Noah’s so genuinely concerned for his little brother and I hope that it stays that way. Jonah, even at one month old, already looks up to his brother and keeps eyes on him whenever he’s within viewing range. I never want that to change.

24. JUST BECAUSE

25. HOPES & DREAMS

I chose this photo for this category because of its composition…Noah’s staring off into the distance, into the unknown. 2012 was somewhat predictable for us. We had a general idea of what was in store (advancement, business, baby…). 2013 is a big mystery. Everything in the coming year is up in the air. So many questions, so many choices to make, so many things that we just don’t know.

We’ll be making our dream sheet in the fall and preparing for our next move in 2014. We’re planning a vacation back to Alabama sometime in the Spring or Summer. There’s possibility of advancement again for Josh and we haven’t decided yet just how much work I’ll be doing in the coming year with two boys at home. There’s so much ahead and I’m eager and ready to embrace it all.

A good year…

A busy year….

It’s been fun to look back and see how things have changed and how our family has grown since last January. Eager (as always) to see what’s ahead.