2009 Year-in-Review, Part 1

Well, it is officially February, and so far I'm still not updating my blog as frequently as I'd planned to in the new year. I think part of my problem is that there were so many events that took place last year that I didn’t write about, and now I feel guilty going forward. (Yes, my obsessive-compulsiveness is more a hindrance than a help). My solution is to do a series of entries, each of which will include a number of events or milestones from 2009, so that I can feel free to move ahead with 2010. So, here goes...

To begin, 2009 was a big year for Sophia. She turned 1-year-old in March, so obviously she had her share of milestones. To begin with, she became quite good at playing by herself.

Here she is at 11-months-old. She already loved feeding her baby dolls.

At twelve-months-old, she already loved a purse and makeup. I can't deny that she's mine!

Sophia also learned how to walk, and my life hasn’t been the same since. She was about fourteen-months-old when she decided she was ready; she never looked back.

This was just before her first birthday. She loved any toy she could walk behind and push.

By Mother's Day, she was ready to take on the world.

One of the hardest milestones for me was the last time Sophia rode in her infant carrier. I knew she was getting too big for it. I knew she was bored facing backward. And, I knew the front-facing car seat is much easier and more practical. However, just knowing that I wouldn’t be carrying around an infant carrier anymore was really hard, especially since I had carried one since September 2006!

Here she is on the day after her first birthday. It was her last rear-facing ride.

Isabella also had a few milestones of her own last year. The first big one came when we transformed her crib into a toddler bed. We knew it was time when she began climbing out of her crib, but I chose to ignore the obvious next step; I just didn't want to see my baby grow up. At first she only climbed out occasionally, but soon she was doing this...

pretty frequently.

We knew it was time, so we decided to make the change to a big-girl bed. This was a hard day for me. Especially when she did this...

Isabella saying good-bye to her crib.

This was her last night in the crib.

Once it was done, I think she liked the change. Now there's more room for her books. (I can't deny that she's my baby either).

Mommy and Daddy also had a "first" of their own last year—we took our first overnight trip without the girls. Phillip and I went to Asheville for our sixth anniversary in March. We only stayed away one night, but I really missed my girls.

We're at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, NC. Phillip proposed there in 2002. We even had dinner at the same restaurant.

We also ran into John Boy (i.e., "John Boy and Billy" on the radio) who was at the Grove Park for the Annual Comedy Classic. He's not the first person you expect to run into at a super-fancy resort, but it was fun to meet him and he was really nice to us.

I think this first year-in-review will have to end here. Isabella and Sophia just woke up from their naps, so my "free-time" is now at an end. I'll continue with my next installment of 2009 highlights soon. I know you're on the edge of your seat! :-)