Year in Review
January
Chris was home on R&R from Iraq. We rang in the New Year at Pete's Piano Bar with Candace. It was a fun night despite having booze spilled on me several times. We enjoyed relaxing for the rest of Chris' leave before he had to go back to Iraq again. I bought my first Dyson vacuum and still love it. Started spending a lot more time visiting my girlfriends and we often played Rock Band over the next couple months. First book of the year was A Thousand Splendid Suns.
Saying goodbye at the airport
February
Over Super Bowl weekend I had a lot of fun friend time. We had dinner at Fogo De Chao and went to the dog park together. For Valentine's Day Chris got me a book, the complete Buffy series, and lovely flowers. I lost my diamond heart pendant from Chris at Walmart but the helpful people there found it for me. At the end of the month the girls got their heartworm tests and Audrey had the funniest reaction while watching Sofie: Sofie is a big girl so they got down on the floor to draw her blood. Well people on the floor = fun and excitement for Audrey. She wagged and tried to get close to them but I held her back. As she watched them hold Puff and do their thing Audrey became really still and backed right up into me. She looked very worried.
Valentine's gifts from Hubby
March
On the 2nd we hit the one year mark of the deployment. Sofie got stuck in between the couches. It became a fun game for her over the next few months. Mom visited and we had a great time. We had a lady's weekend with my MIL, Pat, and friends. We learned country dances, ate at the Melting Pot, and went to Pete's Piano bar. It was a great time. Mom and I also did a lot of shopping and made it down to San Antonio for a day trip. March was the beginning of my interest in the Twilight series. I enjoyed Easter at Lisa's with friends. The book club was re-vamped and the first meeting went great.
Puff stuck in the hole
April
My obsession with Twilight continued as I read the 2nd and 3rd books. I continued to spend lots of time with my girlfriends. Sofie took a tumble on the stairs while playing with Audrey and injured her knee. It seems like she stretched the tendons and still occasionally has an issue with her knee cap. I went to visit my in-laws since I didn't go for Easter. I spent my first Passover with Candace and her husband and friends. Candace and I had our last Texas dinner with Lisa and celebrated my birthday at Bess Bistro. April wrapped up with Lisa's goodbye weekend which included dinner at Melting Pot for Misti's birthday, a "Peace Out Army Life" barbecue at Candace's, and dinner at Trudy's.
Last Texas dinner with just the three of us
May
We received our economic stimulus payment and I had a heck of a time spending mine. I eventually got some new clothes including something pretty for Chris' homecoming. I celebrated the 2nd anniversary of my 29th birthday with my girlfriends at The Olive Garden and spent Mother's Day weekend with my in-laws in The Colony. Chris finally made it home from Iraq! We made a tip up to The Colony together to visit family and friends and to say our goodbyes to his dad who was headed to Iraq. Chris got his orders for Maryland.
Welcome home Hubby!
June
Happy 26th Birthday Chris! Chris was awarded his Bronze Star before everyone left for block leave. On our way to Canada we stopped in Chicago to visit Chris and Lisa. It was a great weekend and we had a lot of fun seeing their city. Canada was nice - we relaxed, visited family, Chris played golf, we took the nieces to see Wall-E, got massages, saw many movies, made lots of trips to Chapters and Tim Hortons, and we celebrated our anniversary with a nice dinner out.
So proud of Chris
July
We spent Canada Day in Canada where I made mojitos. The limes set my skin off in a crazy reaction that has left my hand a bit discoloured to this day. We made it back to Texas for the 4th and watched fireworks from the house. We celebrated Candace's birthday at The Spaghetti Warehouse and saw a murder mystery show that was cheesy but fun. We bought our living room furniture but had to wait for delivery. July was the month we made the decision to stop using birth control. Sofie's 2nd birthday was at the end of the month.
Happy Canada Day!
August
At the beginning of the month we headed to The Colony. While there we saw Coheed and Cambria in concert. We met our friend's baby boy, and enjoyed our visit. I picked up the 4th Twilight book. I got to meet Becky and enjoyed a dinner out at Melting Pot with her, Candace, Steve, Misti, and my hubby. We found out that my brother's wife is expecting their 3rd child. We went on a beautiful marriage retreat and renewed our wedding vows. I had my last period at the end of the month. We headed back to The Colony for Labor Day weekend and got drunk at Chris' favourite bar with Colby and Catherine.
Enjoying an evening at Stan's
September
Chris' sister Ashley came to visit and we went to see Esther's Follies with Misti and Candace. I took a road trip to see Sabrina in College Station with Candace and Misti after we were missed by the hurricane. We had our last book club meeting, our last trip to the capital, and finally made it out to Shiner Texas. There was crazy furniture drama that eventually was resolved. Our belongings were packed up and we spent our last weekend in Texas at Candace's. We had a great weekend and at the end had dinner at Salt Lick with all our friends. On the last day of the month, while I was finishing our final cleaning so we could move out we found out that I'm pregnant. Then we said goodbye to Killeen.
Shiner, Texas
October
We had our last visit in The Colony with our friends and family up there. Our goodbye dinner was really nice at Texas Land and Cattle. I was so happy that everyone made it to both of our goodbye parties. We made the long drive to Maryland where we stayed in a hotel for over a week. Morning sickness started and it lasted all day long, every day, until well into December. Candace visited, we got our new home, and then my parents came from Canada with my furniture from there and we told them we're expecting. Our house was really becoming a home especially after our living room furniture arrived. Just before Halloween Misti visited and we carved pumpkins.
Halloween at our new home in Maryland
November
Chris got his new car - a 2009 Versa. We were able to see our baby with my first ultrasound. We could even see the little heart beating. We bought our new dining room and kitchen table sets. We attended the Hamilton Family reunion where we slowly started to share our news. Chris' dad returned home from Iraq. Lisa, her hubby Chris, and Jermaine all came for Thanksgiving. It was a great weekend. We enjoyed surprising everyone with our news, going on a tour of Washington at night, and eating lots of good food.
Lunch with Chris and Lisa
December
I had my first back/pregnancy injury ever. I made a quick solo trip to Canada to share our news with my brother and my friends. We went completely public and shared the baby news with all of our family and friends. During my OB appointment we got to hear tha baby's heart beat. We celebrated Audrey's 3rd birthday. I started prenatal yoga. We had an amazing Christmas with our parents visiting. It was so special. I could feel the curve of my uterus/baby and started to show. My 8 year old niece was hospitalized with Kawasaki disease. We wrapped up 2008 quietly. Chris was getting over mild food poisoning and I'm pregnant so we had a peaceful evening, watched the ball drop, then headed to bed. We'll save the champagne to celebrate in 2009, it promises to be an exciting year!
2008 Christmas ornament celebrating our baby-to-be
