2013 Re-Cap

Finley turned 3//Cousins at the Science Museum//Swimming in California//Easter Bunny came//Fiona's First Birthday//We anxiously awaited spring.

It just kept snowing//We kept snuggling and drinking cocoa//Hiking at Gooseberry Falls//Finley started soccer//We made trips to the park//The backyard "pool" was a hit.

Moosh got married//We spent weekends at the Mill City Farmers Market//4th of July bike trip//We finished our backyard project//Basilica Block Party date night//Splash Pad!

More nights at the park//ECFE class//Gymnastics//Trip to Grandview Lodge//Apple Orchard with the cousins//Family picture in Bloomington, IL.

First Day of Preschool//State Fair mini-doughnuts//Labor Day on the North Shore//Fall Soccer//Apple Jack Orchard//White Sox game with Papa.

Go Bears//Fall Decorating//Cousins at the Pumpkin//More ECFE//Reece's Peanut Butter Cake for Pat's birthday//Halloween!!

Disneyland with Goofy//Collecting lemons in California//Thankful//Playing in the porch//Meeting Frosty//Celebrating Holidays

This seemed to be both the longest and shortest year all at the same time.  I've hinted at it before on the old blog, but this past year was the hardest year we've had as a family, and likely as individuals.  Our marriage was stretched, our parenting skills were tested, my sanity was maybe in question (!), our professional lives were changed, and my goodness - we bought a mini-van (my sign of emotional duress - ha!)

Life was all too often messy, hard, complicated, and down right tiring.  But in the midst of all of that, we have the above memories which seemed to carry us through - searching for better days ahead.  

Pat changed jobs in June and it has been the single best move for our family to date.  We hadn't realized the drain his old position was (on commute time, work time, and general unhappiness).  With that change, we strongly considered a move to Southwest Minneapolis this summer and even had a neighborhood and potential house picked out.  We had interviewed realtors and were about 3 weeks away from listing our house, when the market in our neighborhood had a few developments that caused us to pause.  While we briefly thought things "didn't work out", we quickly realized they DID.  Shortly thereafter, I had the opportunity to cut back my hours at work and am now home T/Th with the girls.  I truly feel like I have the best of both worlds and have achieved more of a balance in all areas of my life.  Finley started preschool and we have been so pleased with the friends she's made, all that she's learned, and the girl she is becoming.  Partner that with the great neighborhood we are blessed to live in and we are so happy to still be living on Waconia Circle.  

I recently read an article about motherhood and it said something to the effect of "if you are feeling weary, it is NOT because you are not enough.  It means its time to get CONNECTED".  If you were someone we reached out to this year - thank you!  From family, to neighbors and friends, to co-workers and parents we've met - we reached out and people reached back!

In January, we started attending Eagle Brook Church and after a year of getting to know how this church works, we all agree it has participated in changing our lives.  We look forward to going to hear The Message, our kids look forward to going, and most of all - we've learned to turn it ALL over to God. 

So, while things are far from perfect over here (really far), we have so many blessings to count.  We are stronger for enduring this past year and excited to see what 2014 brings us.