Looking Back and Looking Forward-->2021
Out of all of the years that I've recapped, I have to say that 2021 is one of the least eventful. There weren't any monumental changes or exhilarating adventures, and I didn't check any boxes off of my bucket list. But...I did take the most pictures this year, which tells me that events happened, even if it was just Caleb doing something adorable.
So..here's a look at my 2021.
At the start of the year Caleb became wayyyy more mobile. He started really crawling and getting into everything.
In February, we celebrated Valentine's Day. Andrew and I made some fun French toast.
Caleb "painted" some portraits for the grandparents. (:
We were able to celebrate Easter with each other and my family. It was a beautiful day! I hadn't dressed up in about a year, so that was also fun.
We took a trip to California in May to visit Andrew's family. Our flight out there wasn't spectacular as we had a 2 hour delay on the tarmac in Indianapolis, which then made us miss our connecting flight in Dallas. We had to stay at the Dallas airport an extra five+ hours. Caleb was a trooper. We didn't make it to California until around midnight their time (so 3am our time). Let me say, that night I slept well.
Sleeping before our second flight.
Boat day! Caleb napped under the towel. haha
We saw the sunrise every day because Caleb was up at 5am.
Over the summer, we ventured to several splash pads. Caleb LOVED them. We tried to go about once a week when the weather wasn't too hot.
We also were able to go to the Farmer's Market almost every week from May-September. Caleb loved seeing all of the different produce and wares available. We bought bread from a bakery called "Debbie's Daughters" owned by our sister-in-law's family.
I was able to be a bridesmaid in one of my best friend's weddings in June and it was very special. I've known Rachel since college, and I was just so happy to be standing up there with her.
I need to find an excuse to wear that dress again because I loved it.
We celebrated Caleb's 1st birthday at the beginning of July. It was so fun to see people love on him. He even tried a cupcake, but he was very skeptical of it at first.
At the end of July, we went to Michigan with some family friends (my sister-in-law's family). We spent our days relaxing and went to the lake one day. Caleb was initially not sure about the sand, but he ended up not wanting to leave. (:
Andrew and I celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary in August and I celebrated my 26th birthday in September. For both occasions, Andrew and I were able to get out and have a meal together while the grandparents watched Caleb. (:
I was able to be in another wedding in October, which was also a special and joyous occasion.
I'd also never worn fake eyelashes, so that took some getting used to.
I've known Allison since 2nd grade, so this celebration was so fun and awesome. I love seeing my friends get married. :')
I was also grateful for Andrew, as he watched Caleb the whole day so that I could enjoy the festivities. <3
Thanksgiving and Christmas were celebrated with family. My aunt and uncle and some of their family came during Thanksgiving to spend time with us. It was fun to see one of my cousins and her family again...it had been several years since we had seen each other.
Over Christmas, Andrew's parents and grandma came and visited. We were thankful to have the time together as it had been several years since we had been able to celebrate a holiday together. We had a lot of fun and Caleb enjoyed the time with his other set of grandparents. (:
Several other events that happened this year that I can't mark with photos:
My mom's parents moved in with my mom and dad in July/August. This has been a transition for everyone involved, but such a blessing. I love seeing Caleb interact with his great-grandparents and I love being able to see my grandparents more often than once every year or two.
Having an in-person Christmas recital with my piano studio for the first time in over 2 years! It was soooo much fun and we were even able to play on a baby grand piano.
I worked a couple hours a week at the flower farm sowing seeds. It was nice to get out of the house and do something productive.
At the beginning of 2021, Andrew and I chose the word "Trust" as our word for the year and selected Psalm 23 and Proverbs 3:5-6 as our verses. There were definitely moments this year we had to really trust in the LORD's strength and wisdom to get us through tough parenting moments. There were moments we had to trust God with our finances and know that He would provide all we need while we obey Him in giving to those around us. I know there are many more smaller moments that built our trust. I think the coolest thing for me to think about as I reflect on this year, is that all of those small and big moments of trusting the LORD build on each other. There isn't one moment where I chose to trust in Him that went to waste. I know that in a year, five years, 10 years, 20 years, etc I will continually grow in my trust in Him and will look back at this time in my life so thankful that I took the steps needed to have that kind of relationship with Him.
As Andrew and I prayed and reflected on what our word should be for this year, a word that came up several times was "Renew". The verse that initially popped in my head was from Psalm 23:3, but as I was looking at other verses that have the word renew here are a few that also stood out.
-Romans 12:2
-Psalm 51:10
-Ephesians 4:21-23
So many good ones to meditate on this year.
Tell me, what were your favorite memories from this past year? Did you have a goal that you accomplished, or a word that you reflected on? Let me know!
