I want to take a few minutes to really reflect on 2011 since it was definitely an action packed and memorable year for us! While 2011 had many great times for us, it wasn't always happy! Here's a look at 2011 in a nutshell...
January has me cozied in my home with my new little bundle! The cold weather was outside but our house was never more comfy and cozy. I spent pretty much all of January at home recovering from giving birth and getting settled into our new life! My mom came up to NB and spent 2 weeks with me and I was never more happy to have her with me. She helped me with everything from baby stuff, house cleaning and meals! When the time came for her to leave I cried like a baby and considered chaining her to the house to keep her from leaving -haha just kidding, kinda ;) Although my mother had to leave my wonderful mother in law came next so I was very lucky to have more help for another couple of weeks! She too helped me with Forrest, cleaning and meals and I'm telling you I was never more appreciative of those 2 amazing women than I was then!!
February came and my dad came up for a few days to spend some time with his new grandson! We enjoyed having him here and I know he enjoyed spending some quality time with Forrest!
Valentine's day came and I finally got with the times and got a cell phone. My handsome hubby and beautiful son also took me to lunch and then we went home to have a yummy supper and toast with champagne once the little man went to bed.
February was also very special because Erin had her little baby Fisher on the 25th.
March came and we headed out on our very first trip to Nova Scotia as a family of three! We went to Halifax, and I went to the Sarah MacLauchlan concert while John stayed home and watched Forrest. I also made a quick trip to visit Erin and her brand spanking new adorable baby boy! After Halifax we made a one night trip to New Ross where lots and lots of family and friends came over to meet Forrest. From New Ross we went to Cape Breton. It was very important to me to go to Cape Breton so my Nannie could meet Forrest. We had a great visit with her and were able to get a nice 4 generation picture!
Also in March my brother in law, Kyle and his girlfriend Jaime got engaged!
April brought the Easter bunny and Forrest's first Easter! My mom and Donald came up to spend this holiday with us.We had a great Easter with lots of treats, a visit from the Easter bunny and of course dying Easter eggs!
I celebrated my first mother's day in May! My boys made the day very special for me by making me breakfast in bed, bringing me flowers and a gorgeous necklace and then we went out for a drive together and had a late lunch at this cute little restaurant in Hampton. I also started taking some photography classes in May.
June arrived and it was John's turn to be pampered - father's day! We had a great day starting off by making John breakfast in bed, giving him the Toronto jerseys for him and Forrest and taking some great pictures. We spent the day playing, going for a drive and I made him his favorite meal for supper. June also brought more exciting change - John got a promotion. He was promoted to manager of the Saint John crew and has a crew of 27 men! It was wonderful news and yet another thing that reaffirms why moving to Saint John was definitely the right things for us and his career!!
And before we knew it July was here which meant a super busy and fun filled summer! Forrest celebrated his very first Canada day! The three of us got all decked out in red and white and headed to the new QPlex for fun Canada games activities. Later that day my mom arrived to spend a couple of weeks with us. Mom and I and Forrest went on a little shopping trip to North Conway NH and Bangor Maine! We had a blast and shopped lots! We got back to NB and spent a few days at home before leaving with my mom to go to Cape Breton. Forrest and I were spending the week down there and then John was meeting us there on the weekend to start his 2 weeks summer vacation! While in Nova Scotia we did lots of visiting! We also went to Erin's Jack & Jill bridal shower in Chester which was lots of fun! Forrest went swimming, met new people and had lots of fun during our Nova Scotia Summer vacation. July was also very exciting because John's cousin, James and his wife Amber had their baby boy Hayden!! My step brother Darcy and his wife Sarah had their baby boy Owen! It was definitely an exciting month!!! And Forrest had 2 new cousins in less than 2 weeks! WOW!
August brought us another super busy but fun month. I went out of town to Halifax leaving Forrest overnight for the very first time. I was Erin's maid of honor and we were having her bachelorette party so Forrest stayed home with his Daddy and I scooted down to Halifax with my bags packed - party dress and breast pump -hahaha! We started the night at the Delta hotel where Erika and I spent the day getting things ready and decorating and running errands and getting food and champagne! The girls all arrived and we had a blast at the hotel chatting, dancing and sipping champagne! After the hotel we went to Taboo for more fun and champagne!! Of course we couldn't make a trip downtown without hitting up pizza corner so we went there and then made it back to the hotel around 5am! What a night!
August also had lots more bridal fun - Kelly, my good friend I grew up with, was getting married and I was her maid of honor! I went home a week before her wedding and we had a little bachelorette party for her at Tracie's Spa where we had mani's and pedi's and ate yummy snacks and sipped on non-alcoholic champagne and then went to dinner and had virgin drinks - Why all non-alcoholic you ask when it was a bachelorette party?! WELL....Kelly was pregnant!!! She was about 9 weeks at the time so with that in mind we planned for a low key and classy party! It was a lot of fun! We did lots of other wedding stuff that week! The wedding came quickly and Kelly was a stunning bride! What a fun time! My mom and sister came to the Inverary In hotel for the night to baby-sit Forrest while hubby and I danced the night away! It was a beautiful wedding and lots of fun! I was so honored she asked me to be her maid/matron of honor!
September started off as an extremely sad month as I lost a lady who means more to me than words could ever express, my Nannie!! My Nannie passed away on September 7th with her loving family at her side and although it is extremely hard on us, we know she is in a better place! She is deeply deeply missed though and I think about her many times every day! I'm really happy that Forrest had a chance to meet her and she had a chance to meet and hold her great-grandson!!!
Mid September things got a little brighter when we went to Halifax for Erin & Davey's wedding! We had such a great time the week of her wedding getting mani's and pedi's done and I hung out at her house that week and we got everything ready for the wedding! Soooo much fun! The day of her wedding was a beautiful day for a beautiful wedding! She was a gorgeous bride and it was such a special wedding! I was her maid/matron of honor and Forrest was in the wedding too with Fisher and Zion as they were pulled down the aisle in a little red wagon - holy cuteness overload!!! After the ceremony, my Dad and Ivy took Forrest back to their place so mommy and Daddy could enjoy a night of drinks and dancing with good friends! What a blast! John knew a lot of people at the wedding too since he and Erin went to school together! SUCH a fun night! I seriously haven't danced that much since...well probably ever! I literally danced the entire night away! What a great day for great friends! I was thrilled to be her maid of honor and feel lucky to have such a special friend!
Here comes October - Forrest celebrated his first Thanksgiving at the Camp in East Dalhousie! We had a great time at the annual washer toss and crib tournament and love this family tradition! It was a little extra special for us this year since we were able to bring our amazing little man with us!! It's so awesome being a little family! Not long after Thanksgiving, we went to Moncton so John could have laser eye surgery! His surgery went great and he now has 20/20 vision and no longer needs to wear contacts or glasses. October also brought Forrest's first Halloween! He dressed up as a little monster (cutest monster I've ever seen) and went to a few friends homes trick or treating!!
November was pretty low key. We made another trip to Moncton for John to have a check up, did some shopping while we were there and spent the rest of the month getting ready for Christmas!!
December came in with a bang and we were non stop the entire month. We got our Christmas tree, made a quick trip to Halifax, decorated, baked, shopped, wrapped and did all things festive! I had my 'staff' Christmas party with my boss (Forrest) and John! hehe! We went to Thandi's and had a nice lunch together. We went to the UCut to get our tree which was a lot of fun and got 2 trees - one Christmas tree and a small Birthday tree for Forrest! John's parents, his grandfather, my mom and Lauren all came up for Christmas and Forrest's 1st birthday! We had a fantastic Christmas and were so happy to have spent it with our families!! We're so grateful for them making the trip to spend the holidays together! My Dad and Ivy arrived on the 27th and we had a Christmas and Birthday part 2 with them. We had great visits with everyone and enjoyed our holidays!! New Year's Eve was also one of my best New Year's yet!! We had a family supper of lobster, bacon wrapped scallops and salmon and then had a little dance party in the basement. Forrest is so cute boogying and it's hilarious!! We danced danced danced and then put Forrest to bed ad enjoyed a little nap before the countdown! It wasn't long after midnight for John and I to go to bed!
Such a memorable year! Mostly wonderful with one very sad event! I feel like for the most part, 2011 was very good to us and I'm sure 2012 is going to be another amazing year with lots of great things in store for us!! We're excited to see what it may bring!!!
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