This year has been quite a year for us! I’ll try to keep this concise.

• January: We found out we were pregnant in December 2008, but didn’t tell anyone until after we’d seen the doctor in January. We were only going to tell our family, but ended up telling everyone, though I didn’t announce it on my blog until my 2nd trimester. I started back at my job part-time (three days a week). Because I was sick all the time, I pretty much hid under a rock for three months.
• February: We visited California and I met Paul’s relatives for the first time. I had a lot of trouble with headaches, having to call in sick to work at least once a week. My boss was so understanding!
• March: I attended a women’s conference with my church at Calloway Gardens. I finally started feeling better by the end of the month when I was 17 weeks along. I switched from my OB-GYN (who would not help me with my headaches) to a midwife, who was kinder and more understanding. We also contacted a realtor and began our house search.
• April: We found out we were having a girl and started discussing names! I started growing out of my clothes, and hit up all the thrift stores on the north side of Atlanta to furnish my maternity wardrobe. At the end of the month, we went camping with Jes and her family.
• May: We put an offer on a house being sold short sale on May 5th, and started the loooong wait. I ended work in the middle of the month, which made me sad, but I was excited to be moving on to the next phase of my life.
• June: Traveling month! We first went to Indiana for the Gerig reunion, then I went on to New England to see friends and visit with Paul’s family. When I got back, I photographed a wedding for a friend of mine. I was exhausted by the end of the month. We also started taking a Dave Ramsey class that lasted all summer, though we had to miss the last two sessions because of Savannah’s arrival.
• July: The heat was starting to get to me, so I stayed indoors and rested a lot. Our offer was approved for the house, so we did all the inspections and stuff, and we had to make big decisions about whether we wanted to continue to pursue it. We finally decided yes, but the appraisal came back lower than the offer price, so we resubmitted our new offer and waited again. My mom and sister drove up for a baby shower my Atlanta friends threw for me. I also found out my midwife was leaving the practice, so at 34 weeks I switched to a new midwife/practice.
• August: Knowing I was due at the end of the month, I started winding down and wrapping things up. I made lunch dates with friends, tried to catch up on blog posts, etc. On August 21, we found out the new offer was approved on the house. Savannah arrived on August 22nd! The next 9 days were so chaotic as we dealt with trying to get insurance on the house, I dealt with trying to nurse, and I battled some major baby blues. My parents came up the weekend Savannah was born, and Paul’s family visited the following weekend. We closed on the house on August 31st.
• September: Whew, what a month! My parents were here for most of the month, and my sister and brother also visited for Labor Day. We spent the entire month working on the house. I got a breast infection and finally was able to nurse Savannah, after 2 weeks of pumping exclusively. Baby blues and hormones raged, and I was overall stressed with packing, moving, and new baby. We moved into our new house at the end of the month, thanks to some wonderful friends who graciously helped us.
• October: Life settled a bit as we started our Bible studies again. We went up to Indiana in the middle of the month for Isaac’s wedding. CNN did a redesign that kept Paul extremely busy – working 6 or 7 days a week, and putting in 10 or more hours each day. By the end of the month, things were back to normal, the hormones settled down and the baby blues finally faded.
• November: We had several visitors coming to see Savannah, which was wonderful. Paul’s parents were two of those visitors, and we had an early Thanksgiving dinner with them and his brothers. We were surprised to get time off for Thanksgiving, so we ended up being able to go to Orlando for the week. We bought a video camera on Black Friday – yes!
• December: We put up a Christmas tree, but didn’t have the energy to decorate any more. Next year! Savannah got her first set of shots – I’m such a mean mommy! We also left Savannah with a baby-sitter for the first time while we went to a Christmas party. We went back to Orlando for Christmas, which was lovely, and I turned 27. We got back last Monday, and had two more days of vacation before Paul went back to work today. We plan to ring in the new year with our usual boringness, at home, since Paul works tomorrow too.

Oh and since this is the end of a decade too (I know it isn’t technically, but I’m going with the crowd), I’ll do a decade in review: I started 2000 living in Peru. I graduated from high school, moved to the States, learned to drive and got my license (that was a busy summer!). I went to Taylor for college, met my future spouse, and graduated after 3.5 years. I moved to Atlanta, started my first “real” job, and got my first apartment. I got married, moved 4 more times, and then had a baby three years later. We also bought our first house! This has been quite a decade. :-)