Thankful Thursday: A Recap of 2011

This is my final “Thankful Thursday” post of 2011!

Wow, time really does fly when you are busy and having fun! 2011 has been full of fun, laughter, love and many things to be thankful for.

Time for a recap and a reminder as to why I should be thankful not only on Thursday’s but every day I wake up!

January 2011:

In January I turned 28 years old. It was a crazy month but so much to be thankful for as I started the year off. My brother was in the middle of his cancer treatments but doing well and was getting through them.

February 2011:

February started out COLD! Jude and I got to spend 3 full days inside together because of how cold it was. I enjoyed every minute of it! :O) We were so thankful for a great tax refund, hello Uncle Sam! For once we got a check in the mail! Jude got his first tooth this month! We were happy but super tired because it was really rough on Jude! Poor little man! My brother had a birthday (23 years old) still going through Chemo but was able to enjoy a birthday celebration! Doctor’s said he was doing great!

March 2011:

Jude turned 9 months in March! So big! He is crawling and on the move! Watch out! This month we celebrated my mom’s birthday! On March 31st my brother had his last Chemo treatment! YAY! He made it!!

April 2011:

Jude turned 10 months in April! He started pulling himself up with the help of couches and tables. On the move! We celebrated Jude’s first Easter too. He was adorable all dressed up! We celebrated Jarrin’s end of Chemo with a night out at Sing Sing. We got great news about the cancer too – NOT active anymore! So much to be thankful for! That night at Sing Sing Jarrin met a very important person too! 😉

May 2011:

Jeremy ended up in the hospital with an Ulcerative Colitis flair again. 🙁 Not fun. It was a fast stay though. It is when Jeremy is gone that I remember how lucky I am to have such a great husband and partner. The 1st birthday party planning was in action! We were busy getting ready for a Turtle birthday! We celebrated my first Mother’s Day by heading to breakfast and the Denver Zoo. What a great memory and tradition for us to start. Jude turned 11 months old in May. We celebrated my dad’s birthday too! We took a trip to Arizona to visit with Jeremy’s parents and ended up being surprised by Jeremy’s sister and her family too! Family reunion! May was busy!

June 2011:

I got my Motherhood tattoo! Love it! We celebrated Jeremy’s first Father’s Day this month. The biggest event was the celebration of Jude turning 1!! Wow! What a day to be thankful for!! Hard to believe that a year ago Jude entered the world! We had a great Turtle party just for him! We also did an Ulcerative Colitis Awareness Walk at the Denver Zoo in June. It was great to have our family and friends there walking with us. The support is great!

July 2011:

Posted on the blog his year photos and stats! Wow! He has grown! Celebrated 4th of July big this year! Headed to the Rapid’s soccer game a on the 3rd and had fun watching the players and then HUGE fireworks! Then on the 4th had a fun evening with the family eating and watching the fireworks. Summer time brings cabin time! We are so thankful for the family cabin that Jeremy has. We have such a good time there with Jude. We know he will have many memories to come!

August 2011:

August is always busy for us! August 3rd was Jeremy’s 30th birthday! We had a big party that weekend for him! Boston Red Sox was the theme!! It was also our anniversary on the 9th – we made it 8 years! Wow! So much to be thankful for!! Jude ended up at Children’s Hospital due to a really bad allergic reaction to Amoxicillin. It was scary but thankfully Children’s Hospital was there for Jude and us! Thankfully he got better really quickly and now we know – NO CILLIN for Jude! LOL Jude is already 14 months old!! Walking too!! He has it down! Go Jude! We had a family wedding in August too! My cousin had a beautiful wedding that we had a great time at. Congrats to them! In August we celebrated Jeremy’s dads birthday too! Busy!!!

September 2011:

 September was just plain crazy but fun! We took a family trip (Jeremy’s parents and sister’s family) to Barcelona Spain!! Jude is an international travel – talk about being thankful! We know how lucky we are. We had an amazing time! Right after we returned to the states I had to fly to New Orleans for business – first time I ever did that! I am so thankful that I do not have to do that all the time! Yikes! It was fun though!

October 2011:

October was the Denver Dinner – the biggest event for my agency. We had our first overnight with out Jude! Jude spent the night with Grandma and Grandpa and did fantastic! It was a great date night for us!! Thanks mom and dad!! Halloween came next! Jude was a WOOF for Halloween and played the part great! We did a lot of fall activities this month and enjoyed our family time. Jude is 16 months! Stop growing!!!

November 2011:

We bought a new car!! Mom car! YAY! We love it! Both Jarrin and Jeremy were awarded this month for their work. Jeremy was honored as the Caseworker of the year for his district and Jarrin was awarded for employee of the year! So proud! And so thankful for great men in our family! Because of Jeremy’s honor his parents came out for the weekend so they could attend the dinner with us. It was fun to have some time with them! Jeremy opened his business “the eccentric mind” on etsy with his paintings and drawings. He also joined a local art gallery so he will be able to hang his art! Fun! In November it was announced that my brother and his girlfriend Kayla (the special person he met that night at Sing Sing) were expecting – TWINS!! Great news for them!

December 2011:

My brother and Kayla found out that they are having 1 boy and 1 girl! Time to buy presents!! Thankful for a healthy pregnancy for Kayla thus far! Christmas was great. Jude is getting the hang of opening presents. We had a blessed time visiting with family and friends. The time off with our little family has been great.
Well here we are. December 2011! Thinking back I know how lucky we are for such a great year even though there were some ups and downs. I am thankful that right now everyone is healthy in our home and family. A great feeling. 2012 has a lot to bring and I cannot wait.

I am so thankful for an amazing, loving, caring husband.

I am so thankful for the perfect, fun, loving, silly little boy.

I am so thankful for supportive parents and parents-in-law.

 I am so thankful for my brother being cancer free and for the news of him and his girlfriend expecting twins. I am so thankful for my 3 nieces (1 on the way) and 1 nephew (on the way)!

Overall I am thankful for the life that we have been blessed with. Bring on 2012!!

What are you thankful for this year?