Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Our Year in Pictures

I have to state the obligatory sentence.  Where the HELL has 2014 gone?!  In some ways it feels like a total blur full of sleepless nights, a sore back because of the human I was growing and so much joy, joy that was totally overwhelming. But in other ways, it feels like an eternity has passed.  In one year, I've grown a human being inside of me, got my abdomen cut open to remove this adorable little human and overnight, morphed into my most important role yet.....a mother.
 
It was the best year yet.
 
Here's our year in pictures.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Monday, December 22, 2014

Our 2014 Christmas Card

I have a crush on a card company. Don't tell Hallmark.
 
Two words.

Paper Culture.

They not only have a badass selection of unique & oh so trendy cards, they plant a tree for each customer, with each purchase.

A TREE, ya 'all.
 
And you can even dedicate it with a sweet, personalized message.
I'll give ya one guess who I dedicated my tree to...


I know. Shocking.

Without further adieu, here they are!










 
I've always wanted to do a "Year in Review" card, and what better year than 2014 to do just that!
 
Unfortunately Paper Culture does not release proofs of their cards, so the best I could do was photograph the actual card itself.
 
But hey, if that's the one negative about this company, I'll take it. Because it's impossible to read each month's caption, I've included them below.  Since I can't send a card to all my cyber girlfriends, this will have to do...
 
 
January:  Who knew 2014 would start out with such a bang! We found out we were pregnant a week before Christmas.  We surprised Jon's family on Christmas Eve & Anne's family Christmas morning.  It was a holiday we'll never forget!
 
 
 
 
February: We celebrated Anne's 28th Birthday in a more mild fashion than ever before. The day was spent shopping for maternity clothes followed with a dinner & show downtown.
 
 
March:  March brought SO much joy!  We found out by opening a box FULL of pink balloons, that we'd be welcoming a beautiful baby GIRL! We were both shocked! It was so much fun to share the surprise with all of our loved ones.
 
 
April: We celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary like we always do, with a weekend at The Elms in Excelsior Springs, Missouri, where we got married. We were celebrating so much more this year!
 
 
May: In May we took our last vacation just the two of us.  We spent a week in Naples, Florida relaxing on the beach.  Anne enjoyed a few virgin daiquiris while Jon enjoyed the mustang convertible we rented.  Goodbye, sports cars!
 
 
June: June was full of beautiful showers for our little girl.  With only 8 short weeks to go, nesting was in full gear!
 
 
July: July was spent putting the finishing touches on the nursery.  In between projects we enjoyed as much time as we could out on the lake!
 
 
August:  On August 15th, our lives changed forever.  We welcomed our tiny little Lara, weighing in at just under 7lbs.  She was a stubborn one, breech and not budging.  We scheduled our C-section and the rest is history!
 
 
September: September was spent trying to figure out what to do with our tiny little human we brought home from the hospital. In between bottles & diaper changes, Anne planned Jon's surprise 30th birthday.  What a fun birthday it was!
 
 
October:  In true Xenos fashion we went all out on our Halloween costumes. King Triton, Ursula & the Little Mermaid.  Our little Ariel even wore her own wig.
 
 
November:  In November, Lara finally began to enjoy bath time.  We've come a LONG way from our first bath which consisted of blood curdling screams & ended with mommy in tears. Bath time is now our FAVORITE time. 
 
 
December:  So far, December has brought lots of joy!  Lara is getting more animated by the day.  She enjoyed meeting Santa, only crying once upon seeing he had copied her outfit. 
 
 
Happy Holidays from our family to yours!
 
Love,
Jon, Anne, Lara & Belle
 
 
Merry Christmas Week!!