2011 in a Nutshell...

Wow, to cram a whole year into a nutshell. I will give it a try......

Greg started the year still driving 65 miles round trip to work. At a store that he hated. With a crappy staff. But, being the Mr. Awesome that he is, he not only held it together, he was able to persevere and make it better. At least to a degree. We waded through crappy days off. But it all paid off in June when he was able to put in for a transfer to a store so much closer to home. We go the offer over 4th of July weekend, and six very long weeks later he was able to transfer to his new store. So August was a good month here. He has a great staff, that is super nice and he is back to a "normal" schedule. Which we are all so grateful to have. Greg didn't go to Alaska this year with his Dad, which has been the case for the past 6 years. This year the whole family went on a cruise to Mexico in September and it was so fun. Us, the kids, Greg's parents and his brother Mike and his cute wife. We had a wonderful time and I am sure we will be doing that again. Throw in some fantasy football (or 10 teams) and a whole lot of reading books (his new passion) and I think Greg would list 2011 ending on a high note.

I spent 2011 pursuing a lot of interests. I spent my 6th year on the Ronald McDonald House Gala Committee. I got the chance to work for the March of Dimes with March for Babies. A charity especially near and dear to my heart. And I also continue to watch my nephews, be a stay-at-home mom and also still work part-time as a pharmacy tech. My plate is plenty full and I am grateful to be able to do so much and have a chance to give back when I have so very much. Along with our cruise we also took the kids to Disneyland for a week in December. It was a truly lovely trip. We got to meet up with friends we adore and spend sometime with them, and also just relax and enjoy our children. I am also a room mom for Nathan's class so I have mastered the art of planning classroom parties. The end of December also brought a show of my natural grace when I stepped down to what I thought was the bottom stair (it wasn't) and I broke my left foot. I spent 4 long weeks in a boot, but am happy to report things seem to have healed well.

Speaking of Nathan, where to start! He tried tennis in 2011. He was good at it, but didn't want to continue to play, so we have moved on to other endeavors. He broke his other arm this year, in February. So for those keeping track he has now broken BOTH arms. This time there was no cast, he broke it high up by his shoulder, and so we spent 3 weeks in a sling while trying to make a 6 year old take it easy. He finished up kindergarten with flying colors, and breezed right into first grade where he is in an immersion program learning Chinese of all things. At Fall parent/teacher conferences, he was reading on a late second grade level and doing well at everything but sitting still. Nothing new there. He has had the chance to speak to a handful of Chinese speakers, and they are always very impressed with him. The blond haired, blue eyed boy who speaks Chinese. He almost always takes them by surprise that he speaks so well with such clarity and accent. He has some great friends that he loves to play with and we spend our Fridays and Weekends taking turns with extra children or dropping him off to play. Also, Nathan decided to give dance a whirl (ugh....sorry for the pun) and he is taking a tap/jazz class at the studio where Alex is dancing. He loves the class and I think is looking forward to recital in June. Nathan ended the year with his seventh birthday and trip to Disneyland. And he is begging for our next cruise to be on a Disney ship.

Alexandra, as she does every year, started 2011 with a birthday. She was 3 and at our house 3 is much worse then 2. Most of the year was spent hanging with mom, but she did have a few huge milestones. First, she had her tubes out of her ears and the holes patched in June. Never to be "normal" after 25 months her tubes never fell out, so we had to have them pulled out by the ENT and then had to do a lot of praying that they healed properly. After 6 long weeks of waiting she was proclaimed whole and it has been great. No more ear plugs and her hearing has returned to normal (big collective sigh of relief here!) Top that off with no ear infections in almost three years and I am good! The Fall brought the start of preschool and she loves it. Her teacher reports that she is really quiet in class. WHAT?!?! Alex quiet? I am going to have to take her word for it. She learns so much different then her brother, I am still getting used to it. She also started ballet. She is so cute in her pink tights, leo and skirt. I totally admit to reliving my favorite times through her. She also loved the cruise and Disneyland, and was excited that Santa brought her a "waza" scooter like Nate's.

So let's see, 2 big vacations. Broken arm for Nathan, a little surgery for Alex, broken foot for me. Greg kinda got off easy in the personal injury department! Can't wait for the adventures of 2012!