2010 in review, well review in pictures anyway....

UPDATE: this post is sooooo freaking old...I have tried to edit and publish it a thousand times, but lets just say that I got overwhelmed, but im just going to finish where I'm at and start fresh....going forward...the rest of 2010 was awesome!...nough said LOL


Well I figured since it's a New year and one of my New years "resolutions" was to start blogging more and since I really didnt update much on the happenings of 2010, I figure "new year, new BLOG!" so i will post about 2010 in a review of month to month pictures and then MOVE ON and eventually on my next post, we will get into how awesome and magical Christmas was for us this year.....anywho here we go:........

January brought blessings for Caitlyn and Chase FINALLY! it was beautiful, just super close friends and family at the church, Nate did such a great job and the spirit was much felt there

It was actually a triple blessing with my niece Zoie's blessing as well, given by my father-in-law who also did a fantastic job.

a Daddy and his princess

Mommy and her Princess Caity-girl..I just loved her blessing dress that i picked up at a consignment shop that was brand-new and was only $10 buckaroos!

February: not too much happened just 3 kiddos in matchin shirts for Grandma Brillharts favorite Nascar guy LOL!

We celebrated Chases 2nd birthday, we hit the mall for dinner and the play area and came back and had a cars themed day! he was in heaven

we also joined Coby at his school for a Valentines day party, fun times, even though he doesnt look it in this picture, he had a great time passing out his goodies to his classmates

fun play group/card making party

we joined friends at backyard adventures to avoid the bitter cold

and this little Princess turned 6 months old and started crawling EVERYWHERE!

March: Coby's 5th birthday, poor kid was so tired after a fun day that by the time we got home, he fell asleep just as we were getting his candles lit, but no worries he enjoyed a piece the next day LOL!

we also enjoyed many trips to the skywalks with cousins (side note: if you live in Iowa and havent been to the skywalks yet, I HIGHLY recommend it, a great escape and place for kids to run especially on the weekend *free parking*)

many walks on the shywalks

April: finally warm enough to make our first trip to the park, which was wonderful

this big boy surely enjoyed the park and outdoors

as did this little guy!
my favorite spring outfit on this little Princess
Easter, can you believe I have no pictures on my camera of us wearing our easter finery, but my mother-in-law has them on her camera
coby enjoying what the easter bunny left him
Princess Caitlyn checking out her loot...i cannot believe how bald she was LOL!
Chase loved his Dora coloring book and Leap Frog letter factory video
just a little picture of a daddy and his boy
at the end of April Nate graduated with his associates in Nursing
again, i truly cannot express how proud I'am of my man. he worked super hard and continues to work hard towards his BSN
the day was extremely emotional for our family, the relief that the hard part was over and just how we made it through school as a family. I was and am still so proud of Nate and proud of our family as a whole and I think this picture just says it all
May and June: brought a trip to vegas, which for some reason i cant seem to find the pics of that trip ANYWHERE :( Nate and I also celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary and many other fun adventures...onto JULY: which brought 4th of july which i too cant find those pictures. Also brought this Princess's first birthday party
I was EXTREMELY emotional all week leading up to her first birthday and the day of, because i was just sooo sad how fast her first year just flew by us, she is my princess and I have wanted a princess my whole life, dont get me wrong i get this way at all of my kids birthdays, but the first one usually hits me the hardest and hers hit me the worst, because were not really sure if we will have more kiddos and that thought in general KILLED ME!....anywho on a lighter note: her birthday was special, sweet and all things GIRL and PINK
ok, so I suck!~ and didnt get many pictures of summer, I did, but I think there on my old camera and I cant find it anywhere....we enjoyed summer 2010, by beginning with a trip to vegas, which I got a few pics of, but again there on my other camera. The trip to vegas was fun and we enjoyed shopping, family, food and fun.....we enjoyed our summer with trips to the pool, wading pools and parks......I know I wish I had taken more pictures....moving on, september brought a trip from my littlest sis sophia (who now lives with us!!!) we went shopping, to dinner at p.f. changs and a fun trip to the omaha zoo! we had a blast and we missed her so, when she went back home we were sad, but she came back to stay!
dinner at pf. changs mmmmmmm

the day auntie sophia left

at the omaha zoo

October: brought a move for us to a new house! which we love, it has a great back yard, lots of storage, a HUGE kitchen and basement and the layout is like my dream layout, when we build our dream house someday, I would like this exact same layout....moving on we soooo enjoyed October, between pumpkin patches/apple orchards, halloween and the beautiful Fall, october did not disappoint.

Daddy and Caity

Chase in the corn pool at the apple orchard/pumpkin patch

Mommy and Caity in the corn pool

our cute new house, this picture so does not do it justice. The yard (front and back) is beautiful, it has a fantastic layout and is the perfect size for us right now

lessons in parenting...

ok yes, yes i know I havent posted in forever and YES I know I have not been very good at keeping up with my blog period this year, but hey it is yet again one of my New Year's resolutions so whatev...anywho i have been having one of those days, you know the one where you want to pull your hair out and chops your ears off and anywho i decided to check some of my friends blogs to see if they too have had a day like mine and what do you know?? I stumble upon a friends blog that has offered up life lessons on parenting and i laughed so hard i was crying and snort-laughing at the same time so i just had to share, pics are all mine of course and most seems to follow the said lessons...anywho here we go with:

Lesson 1
1. Go to the grocery store.
2. Arrange to have your salary paid directly to their head office.
3. Go home.
4. Pick up the newspaper.
5. Read it for the last time

Lesson 2
Before you finally go ahead and have children, find a couple who already are parents and berate them about their...
1. Methods of discipline.
2. Lack of patience.
3. Appallingly low tolerance levels.
4. Allowing their children to run wild.
5. Suggest ways in which they might improve their child's breast feeding, sleep habits, toilet training, table manners, and overall behavior. Enjoy it because it will be the last time in your life you will have all the answers.

Lesson 3
A really good way to discover how the nights might feel...
1. Get home from work and immediately begin walking around the living room from 5PM to 10PM carrying a wet bag weighing approximately 8-12 pounds, with a radio turned to static (or some other obnoxious sound) playing loudly. (Eat cold food with one hand for dinner)
2. At 10PM, put the bag gently down, set the alarm for midnight, and go to sleep.
3. Get up at 12 and walk around the living room again, with the bag, until 1AM.
4. Set the alarm for 3AM.
5. As you can't get back to sleep, get up at 2AM and make a drink and watch an infomercial.
6. Go to bed at 2:45AM.
7. Get up at 3AM when the alarm goes off.
8. Sing songs quietly in the dark until 4AM.
9. Get up. Make breakfast. Get ready for work and go to work (work hard and be productive)Repeat steps 1-9 each night. Keep this up for 3-5 years. Look cheerful and together.

Lesson 4
Can you stand the mess children make? To find out...
1. Smear peanut butter onto the sofa and jam onto the curtains.
2. Hide a piece of raw chicken behind the stereo and leave it there all summer.
3. Stick your fingers in the flower bed.
4. Then rub them on the clean walls.
5. Take your favourite book, photo album, etc. Wreck it.
6. Spill milk on your new pillows. Cover the stains with crayons. How does that look?

Lesson 5
Dressing small children is not as easy as it seems.
1. Buy an octopus and a small bag made out of loose mesh.
2. Attempt to put the octopus into the bag so that none of the arms hang out.
Time allowed for this - all morning.

Lesson 6
Forget the BMW and buy a mini-van. And don't think that you can leave it out in the driveway spotless and shining. Family cars don't look like that.
1. Buy a chocolate ice cream cone and put it in the glove compartment. Leave it there.
2. Get a dime. Stick it in the CD player.
3. Take a family size package of chocolate cookies. Mash them into the back seat. Sprinkle cheerios all over the floor, then smash them with your foot.
4. Run a garden rake along both sides of the car.

Lesson 7

Go to the local grocery store. Take with you the closest thing you can find to a pre-school child. (A full-grown goat is an excellent choice). If you intend to have more than one child, then definitely take more than one goat. Buy your week's groceries without letting the goats out of your sight. Pay for everything the goat eats or destroys.

Until you can easily accomplish this, do not even contemplate having children.

Lesson 8

1. Hollow out a melon.

2. Make a small hole in the side.

3. Suspend it from the ceiling and swing it from side to side.

4. Now get a bowl of soggy Cheerios and attempt to spoon them into the swaying melon by pretending to be an airplane.

5. Continue until half the Cheerios are gone.

6. Tip half into your lap. The other half, just throw up in the air.You are now ready to feed a nine- month-old baby.

Lesson 9

Learn the names of every character from Sesame Street , Wonderpets, Disney, The Backyardigans, Dora the Explorer, Wow,Wow,Wubzy and Thomas the Train. Watch nothing else on TV but PBS, the Disney channel or Nick Jr. for at least five years. (I know, you're thinking What's 'Nick Jr.?) Exactly the point.

Lesson 10

Make a recording of Fran Drescher saying 'mommy' repeatedly. (Important: no more than a four second delay between each 'mommy'; occasional crescendo to the level of a supersonic jet is required). Play this tape in your car everywhere you go for the next four years. You are now ready to take a long trip with a toddler.

Lesson 11

Start talking to an adult of your choice. Have someone else continually tug on your skirt hem, shirt- sleeve, or elbow while playing the 'mommy' tape made from Lesson 10 above. You are now ready to have a conversation with an adult while there is a child in the room.

and there you have it...now dont you just want to laugh/smile/cry/snort-laugh!!! ah ha I feel better now! :-) LOL!!!!!!!!!!

(IMPORTANT): never share this with couples who dont have children yet, you will scare the living HELL out of them! and yes i just said that!