2011: A Year in Review

Last year, I did a recap of 2010, so I thought I would do the same for 2011.  It was a crazy hectic year for the Houghams; so much has happened.  But I'll try to jog my memory and give a brief recap of the big highlights.  Here we go down memory lane!

January:  Well, a week into the new year, we welcomed our sweet Chase Cooper into the world.  After an uneventful planned c-section, our second addition made his debut on January 7th.  He has completed our family and can't believe how well Austin adapted to having a baby brother.  Chase has been another terrific eater and sleeper and we couldn't be happier.  He's the most chill, mellow, roll-with-the-punches fuss-free baby ever.  It's hard to believe that this time next week, we'll be celebrating his first birthday!

February: We finally made the transition to the big boy bed for Austin.  He just looked too big for the crib when he was all sprawled out, so we converted his bed to a full size and he picked out Toy Story bedding.  His new found freedom took a little getting used to, but it's been a great change.  And Chase continued to be a great sleeper all cozy in his crib. :)

March: Since I was still on maternity leave, I was able to enjoy Spring Break with my sister while she was off.  We spent time with the boys doing all sorts of fun stuff, including taking Austin to the zoo.  I hadn't been to the zoo in about 20 years, so it was fun for all of us.  And I continued to enjoy time with both of my lucky charms!

April:  Sadly, it was time for me to return back to work and leave Chase in the capable hands of our 'family' at daycare.  It was an easy transition, and I can easily say that he has become a favorite up there, just as his big brother is.  We also celebrated Easter and colored & hunted eggs with the family.

May:  After 10 years, Jordan made the big leap and left his job.  Ultimately, it was what was best for our family in the long run.  With his new job at AT&T, we have been faced with challenges in adjusting to his new hours and schedule, but we're making it work.  We definitely make the most of whatever family time we all get together.  And I celebrated Mother's Day with both of my boys; it was twice as special!  And finally, we took a short trip to Great Wolf Lodge; it was so much fun that we go back in this week for two days!

 June:  Work slowed down for me in June, so I took some time off and Katrina and I took Austin down to San Antonio to Sea World for a couple days.  We had a blast, but it was my first time away from Chase.  He was in good hands with Daddy, but he sure missed out on some fun!  And Jordan celebrated Father's Day with the boys!

July:  Jordan turned the big 3-0 in July, and we celebrated with having a few friends over to the house.  It was much  more mellow of a 30th than I would have expected for our wild party animal, but that's okay. :)  And Jordan and I celebrated our 8 year anniversary with night away to the Gaylord.  Meow Meow and LoLo watched the boys for us so that we could enjoy some time away.  And finally, Austin got potty-trained in a week!  We were ecstatic at how well he did with our 'boot camp' attempt at just throwing him in undies.  We got rid of the diapers and haven't turned back!  And now, he's not even sleeping in a pull-up at night....yay!  Oh, and we finally took Chase for his first haircut! Even though he wasn't quite 7 months old yet, he was long overdue to cut his crazy hair!

 August:  The time finally came! Logan popped the big question to Katrina at the Dallas Arboretum, and she said YES!  We were over-joyed to finally learn that he would officially be joining this dysfunctional family that we have. :)  Wedding planning is in full force now trying to get everything together for the July 2012 celebration.

 September:  Hmmmm, looking back at my blogs, it doesn't look like we had much going on in September, other than a stomach virus striking our house.  Bleh!  And Chase started crawling, everywhere!

October:  We kicked off the month by getting tubes in Chase's ears.  It seems like he constantly had ear infections, so it was pretty much imminent.  But he did great and we've seen vast improvement! Then Jordan and I took Austin to the State Fair and had a blast! (I swear next year we're taking Chase with us to do all the fun stuff, too!    For Halloween, I let Austin choose his costume first (Spiderman), and then I coordinated Chase's after that (a spider). 

 November:  Happy 3rd Birthday to our big boy, Austin Jordan! It didn't seem nearly possible that we have been parents for three years now.  We celebrated the big day with a Toy Story-themed bash and it was so much fun.  He's grown into such a precocious little boy that acts like he's going on 10 years old.

December:  There was sooo much going on in December celebrating the holidays.  We visited Gaylord ICE, got pictures with Santa, Christmas shopping, cookie decorating party, cookie swap party, Christmas class party, baking at home, etc.  It's been crazy, but so thankful that I've been able to enjoy some time off from work the holidays to spend with my precious family. 

Whew! So much happened in 2011, and I probably didn't even capture all of it in the blog.  But we're definitely looking forward to 2012, and hoping it's drama-free and stress-free.  We've got Chase' birthday next week, I turn the big 3-0 in June, and Katrina & Logan tie the knot in July (which also means showers and bachelor/bachelorette parties!).  And these two boys will be growing up even more!