It's a New Year!

Honestly, I don't think any year will ever shake us up as much as 2014 did (in a good way). Needless to say, I am sad to see it go. Cecelia joining our family was the happiest, most exciting and most rewarding adventure I have faced yet, and the great part is that it will continue to be. 2015 may not be looking as glitzy and glamourous as 2014 was, but it will bring its own adventure, and I am looking forward to it.
I'm hoping 2015 beings me two new sisters, a home of our own, an officially designated CPA for a husband, and maybe even a second baby bump. Mostly I know that it will be another year filled with Eric and I learning together, Cecelia growing, and fun times with friends and family. That's enough to look forward to I think.
I am usually one to take advantage of the new year and to start setting goals and making changes and plans, but this year I'm not really in that spirit. I am taking our lives day by day, and while there are things that I can see that definitely need changing, I not going to try to take those all on right way, just because the year has switched from '14 to '15.
I was inspired this morning looking at a post from a friend of mine on Instagram. She posted a word for the year. I really liked the idea of one general concept driving my year and being my motivation, as opposed to specific goals - at least for now. I think that having the spirit of one attitude in the back of my head will encourage me to make the changes I'd like to see, just a bit better than specific dates and deadlines.
I talked it over with Eric and started to come up with a  word. I started with what I'd really like to do a bit more, which is relax. I'd really like to slow down a bit more and soak things up in the moment and not always be rushing around to get things done, or worrying about what my life looks like from the outside. Taking pictures is a really hard thing for me - and is just one small example of this. I would love to take more pictures, but sometimes I think I am taking them for the wrong reasons, and so I get discouraged and don't take the camera out as often as I should. After a little bit of back and forth I realized that my word for this year is ENJOY. I really want to take time to enjoy what I'm doing this year - even if it's busy and fast paced.

Sunny Arizona

On Christmas Day we said goodbye to my family in a very very rainy Halifax, and flew to Arizona to catch up Eric's family. We were sad to go, but really looking forward to a break from Canadian winter.
Here are some snapshots from Arizona.

Cecelia on Christmas Morning

Christmas morning was a weird thing this year. Cecelia is at this weird age where I want to get her involved and give a Christmas experience, but I know that she really isn't old enough to care for herself yet. Sometimes I'm a little disappointed that I didn't get a picture of her with Santa this year, but then I realize that Santa's not even real and that she really couldn't care less - then I'm a little less bothered.
I had a hard time decided what to get her for Christmas. She needed some new toys and things in the weeks and months leading up to Christmas and so I got them for her - she's not old enough to be spoiled, and not old enough to understand and appreciate the anticipation of waiting until Christmas. When she was bored of all her toys, I picked her up a couple new ones. So I had a hard time deciding what to put under the tree for her. To be completely honest, it came down to what fit best in our suitcase. She opened the toy that was light enough and small enough to travel, and that would keep her entertained while we were away on vacation.
It was really fun to watch her open presents. She opened one the week before we left for Halifax - from Grandma and Grandpa Persson - and a couple from my family on Christmas morning, and then her Santa present. She does a really good job of opening presents. She was quick and efficient - pull of some paper and throw it away. She never once got distracted by the packaging, she was headed right for the good stuff each time. I'm glad I didn't decide to just get her an empty box or some paper to play with. I think she'd have actually been disappointed.

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve was a nice relaxed day spent at home with my family - just kidding! It was a crazy day or people running in every direction and doing a million last minute things and trying to get done everything that we had all year to prepare for in one afternoon, before the big day. But then we sat down to dinner, and things calmed down a lot. It was a lovely evening spent with people I love dearly and just enjoy spending time with. That's what Christmas Eve should always be about, in my opinion.
We really did miss you Rachel. Don't think that we took any of these pictures without wishing you were standing in them with us. It's hard to be away from home for Christmas, I remember, but we love you very much and in the grand perspective of things, being away this Christmas is a small thing. I hope you had a good Christmas Eve wherever you were.

Laura and Sophia are back in town

Laura came back to the great city of Calgary this week, and I was one of the honoured hits on her list. I had the pleasure of hosting the two lovely ladies for a sleepover on Thursday night. It was so nice just to spend time with them - just grocery shopping and chatting.
Then of course with Laura comes a party, and so we hosted a Christmas party for the babies of 2014 (just like the Halloween one from a couple months ago). We had another great time eating and visiting with wonderful moms and their beautiful babes. I just will never be able to express enough love for the women in my life I have as friends, and teammates in this journey of raising children. It really does take a village to raise a child - and we are in a really good one.

These are a couple of my very best friends. We had brunch together January 1st, 2014.

 Cecelia (February) - Enzo (January) - Sophia (October) - Porter (August)