2008 - The Year In Review

I have really enjoyed reading everybody's New Year Resolutions and reflective posts on the year 2008. I have become a rather sad blogger and spend way too much time reading all of your blogs than updating my own. I, for one, am glad to bid 2008 goodbye... it has been a really tough year and I am trying to pat myself on the back a little to recognize the fact that we made it through and still have optimism looking forward into 2009!

I guess that the hardships of life have kept me from sharing much about our own struggles here on our blog as I created it as a way to journal and share pictures and allow the kids a place to turn back to someday and see what it is that happened as they grew and what things were important.

So, I thought I would do a reflective post of the year's highlights and just maybe share a bit about where we have been and how far we have come!

JANUARY...

...started out to be a very rough month for our family. We had some family drama that happened between my ex and his wife and my big kids. Without going into detail, it derailed us and we sought protection from the ensuing mess by "running away" to warm and tropical Cancun for a week. While I knew it would not help the issue at home, it helped to regroup the four of us back into a family unit and strengthened us for the healing path we would need to travel together once we returned home. It was chillier than we expected once we got there, but we had a wonderful time.

FEBRUARY...

... Little Sophie~Bug broke her arm above her elbow. It was one of those fluke accidents that happened when playing that age-old game of swinging a child between two adults that we call "One, two, three... wheeee!". It became One, Two, Three... tears and we knew something had happened almost immediately. Luckily, she healed quickly and looked quite adorable in her bright pink cast!

MARCH...

... marked Easter and the season of healing for all of us. I began Weight Watchers in December 2007 and was beginning to see the results of my work. I felt it was very important to become a positive role model for my kids with healthy eating and living habits. I want to be a "young" mom for the Bug like I was for Morgan and Grant.


On my, gulp, 40th birthday, we got an unexpected late winter 15 inches of snow! The kids had a blast playing in it! I felt my age and quickly tired of shoveling us out of our driveway!


APRIL...

... was our annual trek to Destin for Spring Break. It was a very difficult trip for us as Grant was having a very difficult time dealing with his growing depression and inability to control his anger towards life's injustices. I think we were all feeling the tensions mount as we waiting for the next shoe to drop. Sophie felt the stress and needed me more than ever and clung to me like a baby monkey. She could not be more than a few feet away from me without melting down.

MAY...

...marked both of my girls having birthdays! Sophie turned 3 and became more and more independent and beautiful! I just love this age of self discovery and budding independence. Sure, the threes have their shares of attitude and tantrums, but this child just melts my heart every time I look at her.


And, Morgan turned the big 16!! Holy cow! I just can't imagine how she got to be so big so quickly. It was truly only yesterday that I first held her in my arms and thanked God for this precious, beautiful, miracle of a child. I am so incredibly proud of the young woman she has become! She is very mature and responsible and has such a bright future ahead of her. My only fear now is setting her free behind the wheel of a car and trusting all those idiots on the road to leave her alone!! LOL! Below is her surprise reaction to me allowing her to get her ear cartilage pierced on her birthday. She was totally not expecting it and I was completely the "COOLEST" mom for the entire 5 minutes!!


Then... another catastrophe for our little family. An accident in the driveway (toddler vs bycicle) left my poor little Bug in stitches and the most gnarly looking eye and scar I ever care to see on a child... it took all of 6 months for the bruising to go away and to see how evident the scar would be. So much for the FIRST day of summer vacation!!

JUNE...

... found us on a Guatemalan Adoptive Families Vacation in Chicago with some wonderful friends and their beautiful families. Grant, Sophie and I spent the weekend in the VERY windy city while Morgan was off in South Carolina visiting colleges and the beach with a friend learning to surf...


JULY...

...brought us to the beach AGAIN! I guess we were blessed to be able to take these vacations this year! I did not realize how lucky we were!! But, we arrived in Hilton Head with my good friend, Mary Beth and her little man, Roberto. We had the most AWESOME time together and I was so happy to have another adult to share the trip with!!


This was the last hurrah for Mary Beth with one child as she found out her daughter, Eliana, got her birth certificate and received PINK when we got back! Perfect distraction from the wait for her and Roberto and Sophie loved having each other!


AUGUST...

...marked the completion of our front porch addition. We spent every single night outside swinging on the swings this summer enjoying the little things and trying to focus on our family. It also marked time for BACK TO SCHOOL (with much glee from the mother)!!


SEPTEMBER...

...marked Grant's 14th birthday. Some days I was very uncertain we would get to this celebration for him. He has struggled so much this year and has more to come. It is a good thing he is so cute!

It also marked the point where I successfully lost 30 pounds and feel so much younger and healthier in my new lifestyle! My Goddaughter, Stephanie, gave me a new haircut and told me that I was finally "coming out of the 90's" with my new look. ha ha ha

OCTOBER...

... my Goddaughter, Whitney, got married and Morgan, Grant and I were a part of her wedding. We dress up nice, don't you think?

And, if you believe it, I got to go away for the weekend with Bug to Guatoberfest in Myrtle Beach!!! It was a glorious weekend meeting up with friends old and new... Such beautiful families all touched by the miracle of adoption.

Halloween came and went and Bug LOVED dressing up as a kitty cat!

We also made the decision that Grant would be going away to school for a while. It was a very difficult yet optimistic opportunity for him to find himself and discover what it means to be accountable and responsible for his own actions. He was very excited for the chance to go to Military School and we all held our breath.

NOVEMBER...

...came peace and the ability to focus on my girls. Bug really began to blossom and show her spunky and sassy self! And, if it is even possible, grew even more beautiful!

And Morgan found out that she was accepted into the Mercy Ambassadors Program and will be participating in an Argentina Foreign Exchange Program in 2009. Such exciting times ahead for her! And speaking of beauty... it brings me to tears watching her grow up into a young woman. There is no chance we looked like this when we were growing up! Va va va voom!

Grant came home for Thanksgiving Furlough and we all drove him back to school with renewed hope that he was going to be ok.

DECEMBER...

... came my antipated Service Mission Trip to Guatemala with some wonderful friends that I cherish with all my heart. I have not been able to adequately express how wonderful the trip was or really even share pictures like I had planned.

I got to visit with Baby Alex in Tierra Linda and he was beautiful, healthy and amazing!

Morgan was in her element and really learned alot from our time there... including how to be Pinata Security in the back of a pickup truck!!

However...the world came crashing down on us when I found out that Grant had lost his placement at his new school. It was (and still is) a devastating turn of events for our family and I have been at a loss how to share this with many of my friends. There has been so much going on since our return from Guatemala and the future is still uncertain as to where we turn next. I covet your prayers as we begin 2009 with renewed hope and optimism that it will show us the path that is right for Grant and for our family.

We had a wonderful Christmas together as a family and created some wonderful memories along the way, including Bug's eagerness to finally sit on Santa's lap!!

I hope 2009 is the best year ever for all of us!!! Thanks for your continued support and prayers! I consider my blog pals as much my family as the ones I have in real life. You are a gift!!

Happy New Year!!