2011 is Here

2011 is here.  After three-plus hours, my Christmas decor is stashed away for another year and my living room is clean, cozy, and ready for spring (I know, I'm getting a little ahead of myself).  Taking Christmas down is always a little bittersweet, but every year, I'm pleasantly surprised with how roomy our living room looks without a massive tree in front of the picture window.  Tonight, the three of us are hibernating in the house, piled under blankets, getting ready to start our second movie of the night.  Are You My Mother has been read twice, candles are lit, and popcorn is popping away in the microwave.

2011 is here and we're off to a great start.

Last night was our first official 'night out' since Cruz has been born.  I haven't been too keen on leaving him for too long yet, but thought NYE was a good start.  Grandma and Grandpa Jorgensen came to ring in the new year with our little man, and left us to enjoy a night out in Cedar Falls. 

I took my time getting ready.  Spent extra time on my mascara, tried on three pair of heels, and tucked a fresh tube of lip gloss in my purse.  I sipped a mojito, devoured my favorite raspberry chipotle pasta, and enjoyed lots of adult conversation at Montage before ending the rest of the night at the Voodoo Lounge. 

I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss our little man, that I didn't think about calling every hour to see what he was doing, and that I didn't feel extremely old in a bar filled with lots of skinny college girls.  At one point when Kelli and were discussing breast feeding and daycare in the line to the bathroom, I caught one girl staring at me with a look of utter disbelief.  Funny.  I guess you can't disguise motherhood, no matter how cute your dress is ;).

We played darts and took turns trying on Starbuck's sports jacket.  We ordered melon fishbowls, sang along to the DJ, and discussed the length (or lack thereof) of girls' skirts.  At midnight, we made our way to the dance floor, counted away another year, and shared a kiss to mark a new one.  And after we made our way to Pablos, ate some tacos, and made friends with a few strangers, we made our way home to slip a kiss to a baby, sound asleep in his crib.  

I have high hopes for 2011.  I'm not sure what God has in store for us; however, one thing is for sure.  2011 will be a journey and I'm ready for the ride. 

Living in the Moment

Last year, on New Year's Eve, I was looking forward to ringing in the new year with good friends, a fancy dress, and a glass of champagne.  I was happily married, happily teaching, and optimistically anticipating a new year of change and growth in my life and for our family. 

It's hard to imagine that last year, as we rang in the new year with a balloon drop at the Bourre` Lounge, I was just a few short weeks of becoming pregnant.  The growth I highly anticipated for my life came in the form of 'Baby J' growing in my belly.  A baby boy that would change my year and my life forever. 

I think I have grown as a person more this year than any other.  It's called motherhood.    
 
I'm not much for New Year's resolutions, but this year, I want to be present.  2011 means going back to work and beginning to balance life as a mother, a wife, and a teacher.  Life is going to get busy and likely, stressful.  But in the mix of it all, I want to constantly remind myself to stay present, in the moment, and try to ignore the mundane details of life.  In the last three months, I've realized just how fast little babies change.  I want to be more than just there to see it happen.  I want to live in it, bathe in it, soak in it, until my skin wrinkles up like raisins.  It may sound cliche`, but my resolution is to live in the moment, watch my baby grow, and know that every expression, movement, and milestone is changing, shaping, and molding us into better people.     

This year, I'm looking forward to a night out on the town, a night out with good friends and an even better husband.  I'm more than ready to ring in the new year with a fancy dress, a mouth-watering meal, and a glass (or two) of the bubbly stuff.  And what makes this NYE even better than last year, is that I'll have a sweet baby boy sleeping soundly in his crib when we get home. 

The blessings of 2010...in pictures of course...

January.  The test that started it all.

February.  I became an aunt for the first time.  Charly Grace.  

Warm weather and a growing belly.  March.

News of a baby BOY.  May. 

A Babymoon.  Kansas City.  June.  

A Master's Degree.  June.  

A trip to the Lone Star State.  July. 

A bigger belly.  July.  

A whole lotta this.  Summer.  

A belly ready to pop.  September. 

Hello, birthday month.  We made it to October.  

We made it to this.  October 12.  2010.  

The rest is history.  Hello, baby.  

Here's to much love and happiness in 2011.  It's going to be a great one.