2021 Recap

 Man... what a year it has been! There has been so much going on - ups, downs, and even moments when I felt sideways! Haha. We have still be living a life in the pandemic...recovery...we think. It has been unique for sure. Also, we welcomed Baby Kinsley to the family and that was a wonderful adjustment for all of us. We are getting the hang of it all and I would say we survived 2021 pretty well... we survived nonetheless. Haha. 

Earlier this year we set a few goals... let's see how we did!

• Welcome Kinsley to our family :) - Check! She is here and beautiful and amazing and we love her more and more each day! She has completed our little family! 
• Go to Great Wolf Lodge - Check! It got delayed a little, but we finally got to go in April!
• Blake enjoy basketball and baseball - Check! And add football to that list! 
• Beach trips - Kinda check! We got in one good trip but we didn't get to travel as much with Kinsley. We hope to change that for next year. 
• Explore Mountain to Sea Trail - Nope... epic failure. Haha.
• Successful family garden - maybe a greenhouse? - No greenhouse but we did a raised garden bed! We didn't get to spend as much time in the garden this year. But we tried a few new things!
• Celebrate 1 year of marriage! - Check! Marriage is hard work - but we are showing up and advancing! 
• Zoo Trip- Nope... We made it to the parking lot (funny story). Does that count!?
• Go Ape - Check! Blake and I did the Junior Course again this year. 
• New adventures as a family - Yes - so many! Fishing tournaments, walking goals, pool membership and more! 

Merry Christmas

 Merry Christmas from our little family!!

Santa was SO good to us this year!

We have loved celebrating and doing all of our traditions this month. Christmas truly brings a happiness and joy that brings so much love to our family! We are already counting down the days until next Christmas. 

Rudy and Elfsa

 The elves are back! Yes- I said ELVES. We now have two elves! Rudy brought a friend for Kinsley to have  - and her name is Elfsa! She and Rudy got into all kinds of trouble this year! They were hanging lights, playing pranks, bringing treats, and all kinds of fun! Our elves are the best! 

Angus Barn

 Joyner and I try to go to Angus Barn every year for our Christmas Date. It is something that we "treat" ourselves to... plus we just love seeing the gorgeous lights. And hello, the food is amazing! We even buy the cheese to take home and snack on for the holidays. 

This year we REALLY lucked out. We had originally planned just to go for appetizers, but we ended up being seated in the main dining area. That gave us the best excuse to go all out and eat a full dinner. We don't get date nights very often, so we really take advantage when we do! 

Tans Siberian Orchestra

 Blake is the most Christmas loving boy that I know and his FAVORITE song ever is Trans Siberian Orchestra's Carol of the Bells. He loves the electric guitar mixed with Christmas songs. This year we gave him a huge present and surprise... we took him to the TSO Concert! He was smitten and loved rocking out to his favorites! Joyner and I had just as much as Blake did! 

Grinch Night

 Last year we started the tradition of Grinch Night at our house. Blake gets to invite his best friends over to watch the Grinch and get all sugared up and play! These boys live for this night and they have so much fun. It is also customary for the Grinch (ahem Joyner) to jump out and scare the boys at some point during the night. We love hosting this night. We hope that we can continue it and do the same for Kinsley and her friends in the future as well! 

Lights and Donuts

 This is our 3rd year of doing Christmas Lights and Donuts! We drive to Duck Donuts and load up on the sugar before driving out to see the best lights around town. We were merry and bright for sure! We love this tradition - sticking our heads out the windows and starring at the amazement of all the lights!

Christmas Parade

 The Christmas Parade is back! Yay!!! This is one of my favorite traditions because we all go up to Memommy's front yard and watch the parade come by. Memommy sat and watched from inside since it was so cold. This meant SO much to me to have my whole family up there to watch the parade together. It is a Wiggins Family tradition and I just find so much peace and happiness in little moments like this. 

Santa, We Believe!

 Last year we were only able to write Santa a letter, thanks for COVID. So we were extra excited to actually see Santa this year! This was also Kinsley's 1st time seeing Santa. I think it is safe to say she believes, too! 

The kids were on the Nice List this year! Blake asked for a 49ers Lava Lamp, a smart watch, Legos, Unspeakable sweatshirt, and more. Kinsley "asked" for some new toys, a big girl carseat, and some new clothes. 

Oh Christmas Tree

 It is CHRISTMAS TIME!!!! We live for this time of year... it is our absolute favorite. We have so many exciting traditions that we do for Christmas and we absolutely adore everything about Christmas Magic. 

First step - we have to decorate and get our trees. Yes, plural. We have one live tree downstairs. I always have to have a real tree downstairs. I love the smell and going to pick out the tree and everything. It is so great! 

Before....

After.... so beautiful!

We also have Joyner's fake tree upstairs in the bonus room...

And finally we have the kid's trees. Kinsley has the giraffe tree for her room this year. Blake has the Star Wars Christmas going on...