Year Three

I've been so wrapped up in being a new mommy this summer that I completely forgot to acknowledge our Blogiversary!

I can't believe it... three whole years and Life As Always is still going strong. 

It makes me so happy that so many of you have chosen to stick around, and to my new readers... welcome! As I look back at the past year of blogging, it becomes increasingly clear that the general direction of this blog is likely to change a bit going forward. Life with a tiny human will do that. But I hope that my posts about parenting and its many adventures will continue to keep your interest.

Until then, here's a recap of what's been going on...
 

• We spent quality holiday time with the families, like Fourth of July, Labor Day Weekend, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter.
• We took a summer vacation to a resort in Oregon and subsequently got burned out by wildfire, so we headed out to the Washington coast for some fun.
• We went on our usual summer camping and boating trips, which are always a blast.
• We attended two weddings in one night to celebrate some dear friends tying the knot.
• I went to a family reunion in Port Townsend while Stew won the gold at the annual Old Man Games.
• My darling, lifelong friend Brooke and I met up in Denver for the weekend and had an absolute blast.
• I started a link up with a few other bloggers called Live & Learn Thursdays, and shared quite a few life lessons.
• I spent a weekend at the coast celebrating my little sister's 30th birthday.
• We spent a fantastic fall tailgating and attending Seahawks games -- they made the playoffs and went on to become world champions at Super Bowl XLVIII! The parade and celebration in downtown Seattle afterward were some of the most epic moments of my life.
• We announced our pregnancy news! After finding out I was pregnant, I experience extreme exhaustion, morning sickness, and emotional instability during the first trimester. I began writing weekly letters to our unborn son, tracking his progress and my pregnancy experience.
• I turned 32, and as the best birthday gift ever, we found out that we were having a baby boy! Stewart turned 33 and I failed to throw him any sort of party.
• I spent the winter nesting and preparing for our baby boy's arrival, and really began to struggle especially in the third trimester.
• I got glasses and can finally see again!
• I was thrown not one, not two, but three baby showers in preparation for our little boy's arrival.
• I met some fellow Washington bloggers in person!
• We dealt with the sudden tragic loss of a very close loved one.
• We celebrated our second wedding anniversary!
• I attended a bachelorette party in Leavenworth while incredibly pregnant, and then we missed Alissa and Matt's wedding because I was far too pregnant to attend. It was a busy summer full of weddings, so Stew and I attended quite a few bachelor and bachelorette parties.
• I cooked a few things, and read quite a few books.
• We attended the wedding showers of some of our dearest friends.
• Our son, Ryder Steven, was born!
• We took him on his first road trip to Oregon and over to Port Townsend to meet a bunch of his extended family members.
• We adjusted to being new parents, and I began writing monthly update letters to Ryder, which I plan to print in a book and give to him when he's older.

 

As usual, another year has provided us with an abundance of luck and love, and we continue to look forward to what the future has in store.