2020 Recap

 Holy Moly - WHAT A FREAKING YEAR! 2020 has somehow been the worst possible year, but also parts of it were the best. At the start of the year we had NO idea that we would all be surviving and global pandemic call COVID. We had no idea how much our lives would be changing. That we would live to see the day where wearing a mask and homeschool was the new normal. It has been so crazy - but we have all thankfully been healthy and kept our sanity (well most of it). We also tried to keep as much or a normal and exciting life as we could. 

Reflecting back on our goals for this year...

• Hurricanes Hockey Game (Blake's first) - Yep! We had a great time and it was one of our last fun outings prior to COVID.
• Blake turns 8 on SuperBowl Sunday (and maybe the 49ers will be in it!) - He had a great SuperBowl/Birthday Party and Ninja Academy. He now actually does Ninja Academy classes once a week. That has been a fun addition to our year!
• Basketball and Baseball Seasons - We were able to squeeze in both sports - some were just a little modified because of COVID. Blake was able to pitch his first game, though! 
• Great Wolf Lodge (our annual Spring Break Trip) - Sadly we were not able to do Great Wolf Lodge this year. COVID shut the US down and we missed out on our trip. BUT we do have plans to continue this next year. 
• Harlem Globetrotters - This also got cancelled thanks to COVID. Sad times. 
• Lots of beach trips - YES! This is what kept us going this summer. Blake got to see the horses on the beach and we got to kayak in the sound and fish in the ocean. Great times! 
• Maybe a trip to Atlanta?! - NOPE
• Working on my National Boards - This also got shut down because of COVID. Hard to complete when we weren't in school. 
• Maybe building a house for our new Fam Jam - We didn't build, but we purchased our first home and we LOVE it. Such a great neighborhood. 
• Blake wants more muscles (haha) - I think it worked. He has grown a ton in a year! :) 

Some other things that happened because of 2020 - that we didn't really expect....

• Joyner and I got married on July 15th - backyard wedding with just family. 
• We survived a pandemic - and we now all wear masks everywhere. 
• We are expecting a baby girl in April 2021 - she was a big surprise! :) 
• We are still back and forth from school and school at home - thanks to COVID. It's been interesting! 

2021 will start in a few days. We aren't sure what it will hold, but we are going to hope it is a whole lot more normal that 2020. :) 

Nice List

 Santa officially found our new house - and we were all on the nice list! :) It has been a heck of a year with new traditions, old traditions, and lost of fun... we are grateful that we were still able to have the amazing Magic of Christmas. It is such a special time of year and we love Christmas morning with family - in our new wonderful home. :) MERRY CHRISTMAS!

This year Blake was happy to get a camera, LEGOs, books, new switch controllers, new shoes, AND a new futon bunk bed and room "renovation". He really racked up and had a great Christmas! Nice list for sure. :) 

Santa Letter

 This year we weren't able to see Santa in person. We were being extra cautious and trying to avoid COVID. So, Santa made sure to call all the boys and girls that he couldn't see. Blake was so surprised to talk to Santa and he loved telling him all about life this year. We also made sure to write Santa an official letter - just to cover our bases. :) We BELIEVE and we are so excited to Santa to come this year - I think we have all been on the nice list! 

Grinch Night

 COVID ruined a lot of our holiday traditions.... we weren't able to see the Rolesville Christmas Parade. We weren't able to see Santa in person. We weren't able to do alot of our typical fun... so instead we created a new fun traditions. We hosted a Grinch Night for Blake and his best friends. 

We had the Jarrell Brothers over for play time and the Grinch Movie - they also had a visit from the actual Grinch - ahem, Joyner. Haha. And don't forget all the sugar. The boys had a blast and Joyner and I survived the chaos. I think we will have to try it again next year! 

Christmas Lights & Doughnuts

 Even though we are in the year of COVID, we still continued the tradition that we started last year - Christmas lights and Duck Doughnuts with Blake and Lilli. Due to COVID (sigh) we had to switch out Christmas lights up a little bit, but we still saw a great light show. Most light shows this year were all drive thru - with extremely long wait times! We actually had to wait about 2-3 hours, but it was worth the wait! And at least we had doughnuts! 

Oh Christmas Tree

 Blake and I went to pick out our tree from Booger Mountain - where we always get our tree. We also invited GG to come with us to pick our tree. We love these traditions. :) 

This year we got to decorate our tree in the new house. We really loved showing Joyner all of our favorite ornaments and the stories behind them. He loved sharing his, too. We also got to relax and drink hot chocolate after decorating. I just LOVE sitting in front of the tree during December. It is just so magical. 

We also get to have two trees in our new house. The tree upstairs is a little more fun for our bonus room. :) The fun just gets better and better this year. 

Rudy is Back

 It is that time of year again.... and RUDY IS BACK! Rudy, our elf, is one of our favorite parts of December. Traditionally, Rudy comes to our house and spends the month with us - doing all kinds of tricks and giving all kinds of treats. :) Blake loves searching every morning to see what Rudy has been up to. Here are a few of our favorites this week... 

Oh yeah, we made sure to write Rudy to tell him about our new address. Thank goodness he found us  - he just got a little tangled in the lights on the way in. Haha. 

We can't wait to see him again next year! 

Extra Thankful

 Happy Thanksgiving! We have so much to be thankful for in 2020... and being healthy is at the top of our list! 

This year, Blake is spending Thanksgiving with his dad - they had family travel in from Utah, so Blake got to enjoy time with the Larsen family. He hardly ever gets to see them, so I am happy that they can share this holiday together. 

Joyner and I went to his parents house at the beach for the day. We were able to share in their traditional holiday meal. I sure did miss my family on this holiday, but I sure did enjoy the wonderful meal with Joyner's family. Joyner also surprised me by walking on the beach with me after our meal. It was so nice to walk (preggers problems these days) and also have a great view! 

There is just so much to be grateful for this year... we purchased a house, merged a family, got married, and also have a little one on the way. What an action packed year...right in the middle of a world wide pandemic. It has been chaotic. It has been hard. Some parts have been ugly. But it has also been a lot of good. 

18-20 Week Baby Bump Update

 We are SO excited about today because it is our special Anatomy Ultrasound for baby girl, Kinsley! This ultrasound and appointment is extra special because this is the first and probably only one that Joyner will get to attend. Thanks to COVID, they are really limiting visitors to our appointments - but thankfully he is allowed to be at this one! 

It was a chilly morning and Kinsley knew it - she was tucked in a ball sleeping during the whole ultrasound. The tech was able to check most of her organs and anatomy information while she was sleeping, but eventually they needed her to move. We tried to move her around and get her to wake up, but it seems like she is extra stubborn about her sleep, just like her daddy! 

The ultrasound tech actually made me get up and do squats and work out a little in the room to try to get her to move. I even had to do this bridge movement with my hips in order to get her to rotate just a smidge. Thankfully she was able to move a tiny bit and we were able to see everything that we needed to see. 

I was a little nervous about not feeling her move yet - especially after she didn't move much in the ultrasound. But they informed me that my placenta is on the front, which means there is like a little pillow between baby girl and my stomach. That pillow is cushioning the moves a little so that I can't feel her very much yet. The doctor reassured me that I will feel her very soon! :)

It was so comforting to see her sweet little face. Life is so busy right now, so it is sometimes hard to realize that she is there and coming soon! She is SO loved by our little family. Blake keeps asking when she will be here. When we showed him the pictures of her today, he said "She looks like a real baby now, so she will be here soon right?!". He can't wait to meet his little sister! Joyner and I are excited and naturally a little bit nervous- but we already love her so much. 

School Days

 Blake has been in 3rd grade since August, but only on the virtual level. However, today was his first day actually IN school! Wake County has decided to start rotating students back into the school buildings, while also conquering COVID cases. I think we all feel a little nervous about phasing back into reality, but it also feels somewhat nice to get back to normal. Blake is really excited to actually SEE his teacher and his classmates. He has only seen them on the computer so far, so this will be really fun for him. 

He is also excited because this is a new school for him since we have moved - Richland Creek Elementary. This will be the first time he is stepping into this school. I am so proud of him and his courage! We are also super grateful that a member of our "family best friends" - Ashleigh teaches at Blakes school. She will be keeping a good eye on him and they are already enjoying their first day together! So happy to know their are smiles under those masks! 

Trick or Treat

 Coronavirus and COVID has ruined much of 2020, but it we were determined not to let it ruin our traditional Trick or Treat fun! As always we go trick or treating with our besties, The Jarrell Family. They moved this year, too, so we were able to explore their new neighborhood. We had a blast!

Blake wanted to be a Fortnite character, so we as a family followed with that idea. The only problem was that we didn't really know who we were. HAHA! Either way - we had so much fun. On a side note, we my costume actually was ordered in a kid size. So have fun laughing at the pregnant woman in the kids costume. The boys looked great, though! 

Throwing the Heat

 Blake struggled with kid pitch in some areas...but he also really shined in other areas. For some reason, he wanted to pitch! He really took a passion to it and he was determined to give it a shot. It also helped that he has a shockingly good arm (with great aim). During a practice, Coach let Blake pitch - just playing around. Blake's pitching caught his eye so he stayed after for a few games and practices to work with him. 

Blake finally got his big chance in the last game of the season. Coach told Blake he could pitch to 4 batters and they would see how he did. I was a nervous wreck, but also SO excited for Blake. He ended up pitching the whole inning. He didn't hit anyone, he got his first strike out, and he didn't get the 5 run max - all of which are GREAT things for kit pitch ball! Blake LOVED pitching! I was so proud of him and I can't wait for him to try kit pitch again in the Spring.

For now, Blake and most of his team will be doing a skills class in the off season. :) 

Pilot Mountain Hiking

 Blake and I used to love going to Pilot Mountain, but we just haven't made the trip since our Papa Johnson passed away and the house was sold. So this year I was determined to take us back up there to hike AND to take Joyner to show him around - he has never been! 

Things have changed a lot in at Pilot Mountain State Park. You used to be able to just drive to the top and walk around the top pinnacle. Now they have limited the spaces at the top and they have created a visitors center at the bottom that will shuttle you to the top. Big changes and it looks very different. Our plan was to park at the bottom and shuttle to the top for some great views and light hiking. 

On arrival we learned that the shuttle was NOT running. WHAT?!?! The lady at the visitors center said the parking spaces at the top were full, so we could wait however long for them to reopen the lot (which could take hours) or we could hike the 3.5 miles to the top. Well... we didn't drive all this way for nothing, so we decided to walk! Yes, my 14 week pregnant self committed to hiking 8 miles up, around, and back down Pilot Mountain. The boys loved it and had a great time. The views were amazing and I was just grateful it was a beautiful day! We were tired and exhausted at the end, but we had no regrets! 

We then got to stop by the cemetery and see Granny and Papa Johnson. We also drove to Mount Airy to see my cousin Morgan and her family. Even though there were some unexpected adventures, we still made it a great day! 

Tractors Corn Maze

 Normally at this time of year we would be going to Hillridge Farms to get our pumpkin and on our Fall hayride, but they cancelled things this year because of COVID. Ugh. So we went in search to find something else similar for Fall fun. 

Locally we found this place called Tractors Corn Maze and they had a really cool 8 acre corn maze. We got to go in and complete the corn maze challenge. Then we got to go in and find a pumpkin! We had a blast with all the fall fun things. :)