Sunday, January 13, 2013

2012 ... Year In Review

Every year I try to do a recap of the entire year, mostly in pictures. I'm afraid this one is going to be VERY baby-centered!

January

New Years Cake Pops

After a very quiet New Year's Eve/Da (home watching Twilight Zone) I took my birthday off and went shopping. My boss and friend, Emily, was moving to Berlin this week and we had a party for her ... she will forever be known as the one who ruined my birthday.
auf wiedersehen Emily

iPhone Birthday

With a itty baby at home I also didn't get to go out for my birthday dinner. The Ravioli and chocolate mousse cake was pretty good though.
Birthday Dinner!

Birthday Cake!

Rowan continued to be adorable.
Happiest Baby.

Baby got all four top teeth in the same week.
Another tooth! No wonder he was grumpy!

Then we all got the plague. Over MLK day my parents came down to visit, and immediately after they left I began puking, et. al. That night Chris got it, and while the plan was for my parents to come back down and take care of the baby while we recovered, they called in the morning and said they were both sick too. The only one that didn't get sick was the baby.
Tired baby

Baby started crawling and climbing on everything, and so his side-car crib got an adjustment so he couldn't climb out.
Side Car-ed crib


February

We hosted our annual Super Bowl party with friends from the neighborhood.
Mini Tom Brady

Super Bowl Food

Super Bowl Food

Super Bowl Dip

Super Bowl Commercial signs

Baby had his first bleeding incident! And it was my fault!!!
First bleeding incident -- thumb nail plus baby gums. oops.
I may have cried more than him. Bright side was we were at a friend's for a playdate, and their kid had just been to the ER at least once in the last month for way worse injuries, so they were not phased when I cut his lip with my thumb-nail.

Another bout of Mastitis had me bed-ridden fora  few days, and Auntie Stephanie was great and came over in the morning and brought baby to daycare.

On President's Day we met the Forest Hills gang at the Bowling Alley! Babywearing Bowling!
Babywearing Bowling!

Babywearing Bowling

Standing baby!
Standing!


March

Baby got really good at going to brunch.
Brunch at Georgio's
Georgio's

Brunch at 5 Burros
5 Burros

Brunch with Grampa
Tower Diner with Grampa

We started topping off the bottle with Cow's milk. A few weeks short of my 12-month goal, but this child has never had a drop of formula in his life, so it was worth it.
Milks of all kind

I got to start planning for the R's First Birthday!!!
Rainbow Cake Test (6)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!
St. Patty's day outfit

Apparently he really wanted to walk in the parade, because the morning of March 17 we had our first steps!



Emily was far away but we kept in touch.
Skyping with Emily

And big boy moved into his own room! We all had been having some trouble sleeping; he was nursing on and off all night, but I could no longer dose off while he nursed, so we were both up all night. After about a week of very long nights, he was sleeping like a champ!
Still sleeping

March also found the first of FOUR throat infections in FIVE months. I was on a Jamba Juice liquid diet for several weeks.


April

R is great at helping!


We took the train up to Gramma's to set up for the Birthday Party!
First Metro North Ride

We went to the annual "Margar-Easter" party in Otis.
Holding Court, with the puppies

Happy First Birthday, Rowan!!!
Birthday Photo Shoot (2)

Birthday Cake (1)

Gift Bags (1)

Decorations (1)b

Rowan's Birthday - Candles

Eatin Cake (1)

Rowan's Birthday - presents

(fun fact 1: when you feed a 1-year old rainbow cake, his vomit will also be rainbow colored.
fun fact 2: when your 1-year old vomits all over his PJs and you have to use the 6 month-size PJs leftover from Christmas, don't let him walk on the newly-waxed hard-wood floors. 6-month PJs don't have grippy feet because 6-month olds can't walk, and 1-year olds aren't supposed to still fit their 6-month size PJs.)

On the baby's actual birthday, Mom and Dad celebrated having survived a whole year with their own special party.
Mom and Dad's "Birthday" Dinner

R continued to be a little too advanced for mommy's comfort



Daddy finished his MA at Columbia! No more (new) school loans!!!
Chris's Graduation Cake


May

Daycare had a (totally necessary since baby can't sing or dance?) Mother's Day concert.
029

Gramma and Grampy came down for a Mother's Day visit. All went well until they were about to leave and someone broke into their car. boo.
132

In May we took baby on first first airplane ride!!! We flew to Indianapolis for Polly's wedding!
008

011




162

2012-05-17 15.33.42

021
Indianapolis Children's Museum

064

177

2012-05-19 13.19.23

086

111

117

2012-05-20 07.54.46

2012-05-20 10.54.43


June

I got to see the Space Shuttle out my office window!
Space Shuttle on the Hudson

Another wedding!
My boys
The price-per-wear of all our fancy clothes went really low.

In June I got my first Tattoo!!!
photo.JPG

photo.JPG

Tattoo

Tattoo

We spent Father's Day at the Queen Zoo. Ro loved pointing at all the animals.
Father's Day at the Zoo

Father's Day at the Zoo

Father's Day at the Zoo

At the end of June Chris and I went to Ohio ALONE for Chris M's wedding, leaving baby home with Gramma and Grampy.

We saw Stanley Hudson at the airport.
IMG_1209

We did amazing things like relax and eat lunch together in peace.
IMG_1212

I even got my nails done.
IMG_1213

We got to witness mid-west weather.
IMG_1219

Gramma and Grampy had lots of fun with the baby.
IMG_1228

With Grampy at the park


July

Happy Birthday, Gipper!
IMG_1267

And Happy Birthday, Daddy!
Chris's Birthday Cake

Headed up to MA for Kerri's baby shower!
IMG_1256

027

Baby came to work with Mommy
IMG_1264

Headed up to MA again for ANOTHER baby shower for Kerri!
067

IMG_1367

2012-07-28 18.10.51

We also got to meet Great-Grampa Chamberland
Hour Generations of Chamberland Men
Four Generations of Chamberland Men!


August

Happy Summer!
IMG_1438

2012-08-08 17.55.35

Baby was in desperate need of a hair cut
IMG_1404

012

019

032


September

Our "Summer" vacation to New Hampshire.
Nana's Beach

First look at the lake

Swimming!

Hartford Family

First Boat Ride!

Babywearing Swimming

Ruffit Sunset

026

We started prepping for Halloween!
082

084

116

163


October

Happy Halloween!
093

Daycare Halloween Party

28002_547663761713_1344083386_n



Hurricane Sandy
2012-10-29 18.58.11



Hurricane Sandy Damage


November

Election Day!
3C18704E-F459-4046-B4BB-54DE7B49DCA6

C71BBCF0-0588-4221-8B42-E4C9BCF77BA4

887B6C06-0BE6-4AED-BDD0-31DF8584F266

C3FEAF61-1FF5-43B5-87A1-B70C22A4927D

And then a random snowstorm ... a week after a Tropical Storm
2012-11-07 17.22.04

8B19A40B-DAD2-4368-869E-805F54A1EFCE

28B33789-D5D9-46FB-921C-DC30397B9D3C

E4F3B8C0-87CE-49F0-8E33-15ADE938E557

Kids' Day at Work
3A5E7C70-765D-4769-B289-EE4FB5030A68

266943_10151159273838543_1494525321_o

ABD6AB2E-193B-4BC2-B694-F6F6D14F6A8C

Happy Thanksgiving!
029_b&w058

9A606184-7E4B-4FE3-B5EE-1766DEF7544F

146C29BD-CEDD-4CCF-A0E6-D6B9CD81653E
Date night!

2012-11-24 13.08.16
Heismann!


A9367DD6-D298-45B1-97ED-C56DC1D19798
Small-Business Saturday shopping

Setting up for Christmas!
47274C63-5F97-416B-97D2-CBBBD75F4C65


December

Advent, Day 1!
2012-12-01 08.46.56

2012-12-01 08.47.21

IMG_2825

9ECFA5C4-D539-4A60-B187-518309C7AF5E

Christmas Card
card_words

Grandparent Gifts
040

Kid Gifts
2012-12-15 20.09.25

Chris gave me an early Christmas present ... a night to myself!
Mom's Night "Alone"
Skyping with Emily

FW:

Mom's Night "Alone"

Mom's Night "Alone"
Dinner with Stephanie

Mom's Night "Alone"

Mom's Night "Alone"

Rowan continued to be adorable
Picking out his own clothes

Daycare Christmas Party
083

081
Really, other kid's mom. Really?

094
I had vetoed "sitting on Santa's lap", as his age plus naturally occurring, evolutionarily appropriate fear or strangers would have actually traumatized him this year. Holding and waving worked out much better.

Packing to leave for Gramma's!
2012-12-21 17.40.43

Merry Christmas!
Daddy and Rowan

Rowan and Gipper

Big Happy Family Christmas XIII
Big Happy Family Christmas

IMG_2897

IMG_2898

IMG_2910
Cheers!

IMG_2915

IMG_2943

Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve

IMG_2954

IMG_2988

IMG_3008

Christmas Morning
Christmas Morning

IMG_3034

IMG_3070

Best Gift for me - a cappuccino machine from Chris's mom
New Capuccino Machine

Best Gift for Rowan - a Cabbage Patch Doll we've named Max. He has a belly button that looks like a cheerio, and R insists on chewing on it.
Max

Best Gift for Chris - a trip to Miami for the National Championship game! (he also doesn't get a birthday present, or probably a christmas present next year.)
2013-01-07 19.26.12

Getting ready for the new year, it was time for our annual "get this crap out of our house" cleaning spree.

Here's what we did this weekend:
- Cleared out my magazines (because I can read them on my new iPad!!!)
- Cleaned out and wiped out all the drawers
- Wiped down all the cabinets
- Took out the shelves over the sink, cleared out unused classes, turned shelves upside down (to fix warping)
- Cleared out the fabric I'm never going to use
- Donated 5 bags of clothes (some of those from the "fabric" bin)
- Cleaned out the hall closet, getting rid of a bunch of canvas bags, a rolling suitcase, a swiffer sweeper (no more hard wood floors)
- Pulled out the shelving in hall closet and re-installing shelves that actually function as shelves
- Put away christmas decorations and got rid of the tree

Closet Before:
closet

Closet After:
Closet Makeover

IMG_2348

New Year's Eve

I spent new year's eve at Jenn and Elvin's house, playing games and generally making a ruckus.
New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve

Chris was so good to stay home with the baby ... and also to deal with my slightly hung-over self the next day.
New Year's Eve


Happy New Year Everyone!