Happy New Year and reflecting on the decade

Happy 2010!
So it's already 2 weeks into the new year and I'm behind--some things never change. As I post these pictures I really want to focus on looking back over the last year, and for that matter, the last decade. It amazes me that at the beginning of the decade we had just moved into our first house. We were fairly fresh in this "marriage" thing and continuing to learn about one another every day. We were also just starting our careers and jobs that we both LOVED. I had finally found a teaching job at a fabulous school with an incredible teaching partner, and students whom I still remain in touch with and hold close to my heart always. Skip was beginning a job at UST finally living his dream in a job that involved talking golf every day. Throughout the next few years he would gain confidence and experience as he travelled out on tour with the PGA multiple times. He added stamps to his passport by taking trips overseas. He met some amazing people and got to live his dream, getting paid to play golf in places like Bandon Dunes. We really enjoyed having him at UST and will forever be thankful that he had that experience. I also lived my dream of being a 3rd and 4th grade teacher and developing relationships with families and students that I will never forget. I was so lucky to have been at a school in which I could include God in my discussions each and every day. I had the support of parents, faculty, and friends. I felt blessed to have received a "Teacher of the Year" award and celebrated with my students. Those same people were there for me in the lowest and highest times of my life. We were far from our families, and our Texas friends became family to us.

We were blessed to get a great house for us. We loved when we added to our little family and brought Laney into our lives. She is amazing and will always be our first baby. Some other experiences we had over the next few years are forever etched in our hearts. This decade brought many travels including trips to China, Mexico with some dear friends, Alaska to stay with a former student (I told you they were amazing), Colorado to witness our sister getting married, Kansas to witness our brother getting married, Florida to see family, New England to witness gorgeous fall foliage, Wisconsin to visit a friend and see a fantastic hot air balloon festival, Chicago a couple of times once for a wedding, the beaches of the Gulf of Mexico, San Antonio, Houston's NASA, too many trips up and down I-35 to come "home" and to go "home" (funny how Kansas and Texas each were called home to us), Arkansas too many times to count, thru the middle state of Oklahoma, Arizona, Nebraska, St. Louis, Orlando, Oregon, Seattle, California, and so, so many other locations. We are blessed!!!!! These travels allowed us to attend weddings, graduations, funerals, family reunions, vacations, get aways, holidays, visits with new babies, trips to see family who was sick, job trips, and much more. Some of these trips were taken together, some were separate trips, but each was special and treasured. If I ever mention I love to travel, you can understand that I TRULY mean it!

This decade has brought about a lot of change in our lives as well. As I mentioned, we have had some lows in this time. My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, and being 360 miles away could have meant being a universe away. I won't ever forget when I heard the news. I won't forget seeing her lying there after her surgery, after her chemo. Thank God she is fine and healthy today! We also fought thru 5 years of infertility, which was hard! I can now easily look back and understand that God did have His own plan for us. If we had been able to have a child right away, I wouldn't have the beautiful babies in my life that I call my own. I wouldn't have taught more years and been around those precious children. We wouldn't have traveled to so many places. Our lives would have turned out differently. Funny to think that at the beginning of the decade I longed to hear the pitter-patters, and now I hear it so loudly ever day! Funny how we fought thru infertility and we ended up with 3 babies within 3 3/4 years! This decade brought us a robbery of our house, making me lose a bit of innocence. One week later, 9/11 brought about a destruction of innocence for our entire country, and a loss of so much more. This decade also brought about happy times, like celebrating 10 blissful years with my hunny!

But, the highlights of the decade: I will never forget the phone call that announced Emerald would be joining our family. I will never forget as they brought her into the room to place her in our arms, for forever! I will never forget the 2nd phone call, announcing our incredible son's entry into our lives and the sweet way Emerald got to help me announce the news to daddy. Neither will I forget getting to see Calvin for the first time, eyes wide and a little nervous looking, probably mirroring mine as I had no idea how to raise a son. Then there was the day that I got to share some news of a surprise pregnancy with my husband. We were told that it would probably never happen for us. God had a plan! That special day when Zachary scared me so much as he made his first appearance into the world, a little too early. That sweet day when we finally got to bring him home and have all my munchkins under one roof! There are many memories over the last decade, but these stand out most to me!!!!! These babies are my life, they are my everything, and I will forever hold them in my heart.

There are so many more things that have happened this decade. Our relocation, Skip's new job, our sweet nephews entering our lives, a car accident, the continued love I feel every day for my angel of a husband. I am blessed, oh so blessed! There is very little I need, very little I even want in life b/c we are taken care of. I can say that this decade has been good. I look forward to another good year and many more memories to be made with my precious cargo! I guess you can say, we are ENJOYING OUR JOURNEY!!!