2009 Year in Review

I'm slow getting around to this post, but I love to do a Year in Review post at the end of every year. I love to see all the things that have happened over the past year. Here are a few of the highlights.

January

• Caleb starts Primary as a Sunbeam
• Time spent with friends in Wilkes-Barre, dinners, sledding, fun afternoons.
• Lots of cold, snowy days. Even some sledding & snowman building.
• Start making baby quilts
• Inauguration of President Obama
• Card-making opportunity
• Jacob turns 5!

February

• Last weeks teaching gospel doctrine
• Jeff’s 12-days of Valentine’s
• Happy Valentine’s day- date night with Jeff
• Packing to go back home from Wilkes-Barre, saying goodbye to wonderful new friends
• House we’re going to rent gets flooded & move-in date is postponed. Apartment search ‘fun’, sign temporary 2-month lease at SP apartments.

March

• Great to be home & see all our old friends again
• Jacob & Caleb excited to get back to preschool
• Back to running with friends and gym time, missed that!
• Register Jacob for kindergarten
• Preschool Fire station field trip
• Birth of new nephew Tyler Menssen!
• First day of spring, lots of playing outside at the park

April

• General Conference and Easter celebrations
• Lots of errands, ebay selling, running, playgroups, preschool, etc.
• Jeff turns 32, takes OKAPS
• Cousins come out to sell security systems, time with Tiffany.
• More packing, short term lease is up, put everything in storage, continue waiting on rental home.
• Preschool graduation ceremony for Jacob and Caleb
• Leave for trip home. First time back home in over a year. Fly solo with all three kids…survive.
• Enjoy time with family, dance festival, errands, playing etc.
• Grandma & Grandpa Tanner, and Jonny Stevens return home from missions to Mexico & Argentina.
• Jeff & Angela’s long awaited trip to Mexico gets cancelled due to outbreak of silly, overrated “Swine Flu.”

May

• Jeff & Angela instead go on last-minute planned vacation to Las Vegas. Boys enjoy spending time with grandparents and cousins. We have fun together.
• Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure 5K with family members in honor of Grandma Forman and Mom Tanner
• Lots of fun times with family, park visits, game nights, shopping trips, movie nights, birthday parties, date nights, church meetings, library visits, lunches, long runs, boating, Memorial Day fun, trip to Haworth farm, Tanner home, more extended family, old friends, teachers, & some of the most fun of a vacation home.
• Benson Tanner farewell, Jonathan Stevens homecoming, Grandma & Grandpa Tanner homecoming. Lots of visiting with family.
• Say goodbye to Jeff who has to return to work, even though we have nowhere to live yet. He stays with friends for a couple weeks.
• House rental falls through, we scramble to find place to live with only 2 weeks notice. My ‘3-week’ trip turns out to be longest vacation home I’ve ever had-6 weeks, because we had no home.
• Finally find, and sign a lease on a new apartment at SG apartments.

June

• I return with the boys on the 3rd, again flying solo…survive.
• Lots of unpacking and getting settled into new apartment, unloading storage unit. Finding “new” furniture on craigslist & slowly making the apartment a home. Slowly come to realize what a blessing in disguise the whole house/apartment situation really was, even though it was very frustrating & stressful at the time.
• Ward temple trip
• New calling in Young Women’s, camp fundraising, weekly activities
• Jeff busy with work and new residents
• Boys start soccer at YMCA
• Olsens visit from Wilkes-Barre, spend the weekend sight-seeing.
• Swimming at the apartment complex, running, playgroups, etc
• Birth of new niece, Alyson Ruth Sorenson

July

• Find out we’re expecting baby #4!
• Jeff starts 4^th & final year of residency! Wow- 8 years of med school & residency almost done. Busy with work & new residents.
• Family fun day at Hershey Park. Swim park and amusement park.
• Spend a fun day with Tiffany. Time with cousins.
• 4^th of July BBQ with friends at park. Softball game, and fireworks
• Youth Conference for young women, church activities, busy with callings
• Trips to the beach with friends & family, fun times!
• More running, playgroups, errands, date nights, soccer Saturdays, swimming at the pool, catching fireflies, time at the gym, etc.

August

• Celebrate our 7-year anniversary
• My first doctor visit
• Hot summer days, swimming, fountains, and beach trips, Rita’s water ice, and lots of afternoons at the park
• Memorable date nights, Harry Potter.
• Angela turns 25, wow-quarter of a century, get to celebrate with Kristie & Tom- best birthday present ever!
• Jeff has 4-day business trip to Texas for ophthalmology conference
• Houston gets home from his mission to Chile!
• Leave for Outer Banks, North Carolina for week long vacation with friends

September

• Spend a week in OBX at a beach house with friends, have a blast despite the less-than-ideal weather. See sights, play games, hang out at the beach, date nights, and finally even soak up some sun.
• Caleb turns 4! Starts preschool.
• Spend weekend with Menssens on way home from Outer Banks- great BYU football game
• First ultrasound- get to see our sweet little baby
• Jacob meets his new kindergarten teacher & starts kindergarten!
• Home for a few days from Outer Banks before we leave for Idaho! Fly home for Jeff to interview for job positions & for Houston’s homecoming. Enjoy a fabulous week with family playing games, Jeff’s interviews/meetings, sports, tennis, girls shopping trip, play together, Kaden’s baptism, enjoy extended family & share the news that we’re expecting baby #4. Week goes by way too fast!
• Get back into busy life of school, preschool, church, work, and everyday life.
• Car accident #1, takes out our little black jetta, down to 1 car.

October

• General Conference, busy weekend.
• Sell jetta, trailer, get a ‘new-to-us’ minivan. Reluctant about the minivan, but it grows on me.
• Baby showers, babysitting, date nights, helping out in Jacob’s class, walks to school, selling items on craigslist & ebay to start to downsize
• Matthew turns 2! Can’t believe our baby is 2.
• Caramel Apple Girl’s Night- lots of fun.
• Jeff takes 5 day business trip for Ophthalmology conference in California, we miss daddy & are excited to have him home!
• Find out Tom & Kristie are expecting their 1st baby in June.
• Ward, Kindergarten, Preschool Halloween parties. Happy Halloween- trick-or-treating.

November

• Big ultrasound, *It’s a Girl!*
• Car accident #2 takes out our Ford Explorer, down to 1 car again.
• Birth of new nephew, Michael Mark Howell
• Ward activities, school activities, errands, date nights, girl’s nights, New Moon Movie, doctor’s visits
• Angela gets a hair cut
• Thanksgiving in Virginia with Kimber & Mike. Enjoy a great weekend full of fun activities in Charlottesville.

December

• Jeff leaves for 5-day business/interview trip to Washington/Oregon. We’re all so glad when daddy comes home!
• Getting ready for Christmas, fun festivities.
• Jeff’s resident Christmas dinner. Fun formal evening with friends and co-workers.
• Lots of selling on ebay to earn money to pay for Christmas!
• Blizzard 2009- dumps tons of snow in the city.
• Merry Christmas! Enjoy spending time with our little family.
• Washington DC trip, fun activities for the vacation week.
• Ring in 2010, Happy New Year!