Twenty-Twelve

I'm back on the grid, guys!  It's been a whole year without internet in our home, and boy, am I thankful to have it again!  Looking forward to more/easier blogging, pinning, facebooking, googling, etc!  And I'm sure you've all missed me terribly!

Right?

Okay, you don't have to answer that.  ;)

I've missed my lil blogging hobby and am just so happy to have blogger back on my desktop, ready to scratch my itch to write, and at my convenience (well, sort of...I guess there are a few other factors that demand priority!).

So, 2012.  Lots of transitions.  We moved 3 times, had our 3rd baby.  Lots of blessings.  We faced some really tough situations, learned a lot about the realities of evil and of God's grace. God was always faithful.  We were on the receiving end of incredible generosity and Christian love.  We spent several months as part of a wonderful, vibrant church family, working with the youth group while being loved on and blessed by our brothers and sisters in Christ. I saw my husband face incredible challenges and show himself to be a true man of integrity. I learned a lot about traveling light and what is really important.  My perfectionistic mind was blown away by the reality that a wonderful, happy family does not consist of all the "normal" things "everyone else" seems to have. My ideals were shown to be what they really were...self-serving desires...and I've realized how much I have to be thankful for. We've made wonderful memories and grown so much.  And while I'm thankful that no one is hitting the "Repeat" button on 2012, I'm also thankful that Someone hit the "Play" button last January and intentionally made all these experiences a part of our life story.

As we enter 2013, we are adjusting well to our most-recent move (3 weeks ago) to Northern Wisconsin and Jordan is excelling at his new job!  We are both immensely enjoying this parenting-thing and learning a lot as we go!  ;)  Serena is not quite 3 1/2 and is full of imagination, chatter, and questions.  She loves to tell people how old she is and then show her befuddled inquirer all the different ways she can make "3" with her fingers.  (Thanks to her Grandpa on that one!)  Her appetite for books appears to be insatiable, as we have yet to find the point at which she will ask someone to stop reading to her (the longest stint on record was a full 2 hours by Jordan's grandma back on Election Night)!  She LOVES babies.  Loves them!  And is an awesome big sister.  She also loves learning songs, building puzzles, coloring, and helping Mommy in the kitchen.  Bret will be 2 in 6 or so weeks.  He has an impressive vocabulary and a great sense of humor.  If you ask him who he is, he'll probably say "Bretster-boy" and tell you that he's three.  It appears that he might be a bit of a handful, but thankfully he is also extremely cuddly, ticklish, and kissable!  ;)  He loves being a helper and having 'jobs' to do.  He is also very good at building puzzles and likes to look at and 'read' books.  His song repertoire has recently been expanding considerably and we are enjoying hearing his little crooning voice!  He has an easy grin and tons of energy for physical activity.  If he's bored, the first thing on his to-do list is to pick on Serena, haha!  We're working on that...while realizing that it is probably a life-long reality.  ;)  At the same time, he obviously adores his sister and is so very sweet to his baby brother!  Cody is 4 months old tomorrow and the size of a 9-month-old!  His cheeks and rolls are irresistibly cute and his smiles and coos are addictively easy to come by!  I have to admit that even though he's our 3rd baby in 3 years, I somehow forgot just how "in love" babies are with their mommies at this stage and just how wonderful it is to be the person who gets to be the recipient of that adoration!  He is so social and smiles for everyone.  He really likes cuddling in bed with Daddy in the mornings.  He loves watching Serena and Bret and is easily entertained by them.  He is especially a big fan of Serena right now!  He's getting really good at putting his hands in his mouth, though not quite ready to intentionally grab anything yet.  He's rolled over tummy-to-back a few times, but not very consistently.  This past week he's discovered that he can make a high-pitched squealing-type noise.  It might be more annoying than it is cute.  ;)  We're loving our Cody-bear immensely!!

I think that brings us up to speed!  Welcome, Twenty-Thirteen!