2014 Year in Review

I couldn't decide whether to do my annual Year in Review video this year, since I'm working on Cole's Year in Review for his first birthday and I thought the videos would be too similar.  Also, spare time is hard to come by these days, so it seemed overwhelming, and I always have such a hard time deciding what song to use.

But, after seeing Natalie's post today, I was reminded how fun these videos are to watch, as they capture so many fun moments throughout the year, and the many changes that our kiddos go through in 12 months.  (Thanks for the motivation, Natalie!) And I figured that, with a little planning, I could avoid reusing too many of the same photos between this video and Cole's.  So, Jackson and I spent some time today going through photos and he helped decide on a song - he's so decisive, it made that decision quick and easy.

Here's a quick summary of our year, and WHEW - what a year it's been.

We welcomed Cole into our family at the beginning of the year and while life has gotten a whole lot louder and crazier, it's also been so much more fun and we've had so many fun and memorable moments together a family of four.  I just love both these boys so much.

Jackson grew and changed so much this year.  He said goodbye to diapers back in March, he celebrated his 3rd birthday and very shortly after, he tossed out his pacifier.  He started preschool this fall and took soccer lessons for the first time.  He experienced lots of other firsts including seeing Sesame Street Live, watching the Seafair show, riding his first big boy bike and scooter, raspberry picking and rides at Remlinger Farms), and first field trips (to the fire station and to Remlinger Farm).

Cole went from a sleepy newborn to a loud, food-loving, scooting, furniture-cruising baby.  He loves reading, playing with anything loud or that is part of his cleaning set, (happily) yelling, pointing, climbing up stairs, but does not enjoy car rides or sitting still.

We took a day trip to Suncadia for Mother's Day bunch, spent a weekend in Yakima, celebrated Uncle Scott and Anya's wedding in Bellingham, and a family trip to Maui with the Shawver's.  Corey and I snuck away for overnight stays at Salish for our anniversary and Poulsbo for Corey's co-worker's wedding, and a enjoyed a weekend getaway to Santa Barbara this fall. J and I went on an overnight trip to Bellingham to celebrate Uncle Scott's birthday.

2014 included playing at lots of parks, many Starbucks dates, a few naps, many trips to see the nearby "horsies", countless Play-Doh play sessions, tons of puzzles and games, and lots of singing, clapping and waving with Cole.

And now, I hope you enjoy watching our year in review.

2014 was an amazing year for us, and I can't see what 2015 has in store.  Happy New Year!

(PS: Previous year in review posts can be found here: 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009)