2012 Year in Review

What a year this has been! I couldn't let 2012 end without doing a little recap of where we've been this year and how our little sweet pea has grown.

In January, Addison had her first hip surgery, moved to her crib and celebrated her first half birthday. We also celebrated Michael's 36th birthday with some sushi & king cake.

Addison had her first taste of rice cereal in February and decided she was not a big fan. She also celebrated her first Mardi Gras, and I tried my hand at a few sewing projects.

I didn't post Addison's seven month updates until March, and she was quite the little ham in her pictures! She also took her first trip to the Lakefront and the grocery store. We spent a lot of time outdoors enjoying the weather, and I even got a "mommy's day out" with brunch with friends and a showing of The Lion King.

A day late in April, I posted Addison's eight month updates, and almost three weeks later, she got her first tooth.  She had her second hip surgery, which brought with it some rough nights, and news that the hip was still shifting out of the socket.  We also celebrated Addison's first Easter and first time going to church! I also learned about a feature on my car that made me think I was losing my mind!

At 9 months old, at the March for Babies walk in May, Addison was the ambassador baby for 2012, and we were blown away that our team raised over $2,000 for the March of Dimes. I also celebrated my first Mother's Day as we were counting down to the cast coming off.  But we found out that she would need another surgery to actually carve out the socket to try to keep the hip in place. The good news is that she also passed her sleep study and we cried tears of joy as the home health company came to take away the oxygen concentrator and apnea monitor for good!

June brought Michael's first Father's Day, and we celebrated four years of wedded bliss. Addie got her ears pierced, but we have since had to let them close up. And she wasn't a huge fan of her headband and bow during her eleven month pictures.

We spent a lot of the summer, including July working on Addie's gag reflex and torticollis with stretches from our OT & PT. Addie also got her cast removed! We canceled our u-verse television service (which lasted six months!), and we used the Ferber method of sleep training to get us back on track after the cast. Last but certainly not least, we threw a huge 1st birthday celebration for our little miracle!!

August brought a lot of firsts for our little sweet pea! Addison took her first trip to the aquarium, she came down with her first stomach virus, she lived through her first hurricane and evacuation, and went to the beach for the first time. I also made a list of 33 things I want to accomplish in my 33rd year, and helped launch New Orleans Moms Blog with Ashley.

We found out that Addison's hip surgery didn't work in September, and in an effort to get her using her hip muscles more, her PT was increased to once a week. We were finally able to have her baby dedication at church, and Addison also had her first snowball this month!

At fourteen months, Addison continued to amaze us learning at such a rapid pace in October. We received a good report from Addison's pediatric neurologist , and it was a bittersweet moment when we learned that she no longer qualified for occupational therapy through Early Steps. Our little Minnie Mouse sure had come a long way since her first Halloween in 2011.

In November, we continued to work on getting Addison walking with the craziest contraption for our treadmill. I worked on some more sewing projects during the month, and we enjoyed our second Thanksgiving with our little family!

And just like that, December arrived. I posted Addison's sixteen month update a couple of weeks late, and was excited that the only area she had not caught up with her actual age was because of her hip. We spent time with my grandparents and Addison got her first busted lip. We prepared for Christmas with our version of an advent calendar, and celebrated Addison's second Christmas.

Although 2012 was a pretty great year, I am certainly looking forward to 2013. We're spending a quiet New Years Eve at home, and you can bet I'll be cooking some black eyed peas and cabbage in the morning, even if I am the only one who will eat it.

I pray that our Lord bless each and every one of you in 2013!!