2017

It's a strange feeling to end a year in a different location and situation than you expected to be in. Not that any year is predictable, but at the beginning of 2017 I didn't really see our lives changing a ton. I sort of figured we'd get pregnant sometime this year, but I didn't really think we would move back to Fort Wayne (yet) and definitely wouldn't have predicted the road that got us here. Thankfully it's ending well, in a happy spot, but the middle portion of this year was fairly stressful and not one I would enjoy repeating.

Some highlights...

As with most years, our favorite weeks were spent in Florida and Michigan. The boys were great ages to travel and hang out at the lake/beach and we loved every minute of it.

Saying goodbye to our Fishers home at the beginning of June...

This house/neighborhood ended up being a huge gift. Safety and security that I needed a lot during that season. Great neighbors and new friends. So thankful. I know we're where we should be long term, but I look back so fondly at our time in this home and know there will be some element of missing our life there.

Getting pregnant with baby boy #3...

Henrik starts school at Blackhawk Christian...

In short, he loves it and is doing really well in the school environment. So thankful and trying to wrap my brain around sending him for full days this next year.

We moved into our very quaint home in the '05...

Henrik's performance of Caesar in his school Christmas play was not a true highlight, but I love this picture and how it represents the boy's brother relationship. Not for one second did Ira consider letting us get a picture of just Henrik. I think he sees himself as an extension of his older brother. And Henrik doesn't consider taking a picture with Ira without putting his arm around his little bro. There's lots of arguing as things with siblings go, and often they do their own thing, but overall their relationship makes me happy and hopeful for the future.

And seriously, they are so handsome. I'm their mom, but still, good looking boys for sure.

We had such a nice Christmas together. Henrik was very happy to receive the drone he had been asking for for months. Ira was most thrilled with a new stuffed dog, who he named Homer.

At Christmas we also gave the boys confetti poppers to find out the gender of their new sibling. Henrik had been hoping for a girl but quickly adjusted to the idea of "more boys?!" as he exclaimed upon seeing blue confetti. I'm pretty sure "more boys?!" encapsulates all of our reactions. :)

I would say I did fair with my overall goals for 2017. As usual, I didn't read as much as I meant to. We meant to establish regular one-on-one dates with the boys which also didn't happen. Despite that, lots of good happened this year. Lots of growth. Devin and I got to experience some challenging decision-making which we didn't do all that well but it taught us a lot about ourselves. Marriage-wise it was a pretty solid year with more ups and consistency than previous years. 

It was an eye-opening year for parenting. I realized just how much intentionality and energy it's going to take to do this thing well. And I'm starting to see some of the challenges we're going to have. I knew it was never going to be easy, but I think for awhile I focused (rightly so) on just getting kids to sleep, eat, and use the toilet that I forgot there would be a whole new stage after the toddler one. I also can see that it has the potential to keep getting so much more fun. Babies are sweet for sure, but getting glimpses of fun events and conversations with our kids makes me excited for the future. 

Goals for 2018...

Finish growing a human, give birth to that human, and feed that tiny human from my body multiple times a day for the rest of the year, while also caring for that tiny human's two older brothers and maintaining some sort of sanity in our home. Yep, that's about it.

One other goal I have pre-baby is to cook really well and often. After the baby there will be lots of reason for takeout and quick meals and easy but not quite as healthy food. Until then, I'd love to really feed my family well with lots of fresh, whole foods so I can feel good about where we are nutrition-wise when the baby comes.

I think that wraps up my thoughts year-end! Cheers to a new year!