A Look Back on 2020

 Well, 2020 was a year right! Obviously, like everyone else, it held challenges, surprises, disappointments, and struggles. Some of the biggest challenges for our family in 2020 was a complete change in our schedules, shifting to home school, cancellation after cancellation, the unexpected loss of my aunt being unable to comfort my family members at the funeral, and not being able to visit family (we only got to see my grandparents one time in all of 2020). However, I feel like we fared better than so many others- we never worried about the security of Matt's job, didn't have to juggle childcare/homeschool/work because I was already at home with the kids, and had no real fears of the virus causing serious harm to our immediate family. I'm grateful for that. There were also many good things that came out of 2020- we got to take two beach trips for practically the price of one, we've had a very positive experience homeschooling this year, our kids have closer, stronger relationships with each other, and we had the forced opportunity to slow down and spend more time together as a family. I would never ask to relive 2020, but it certainly wasn't all bad for our family. Here's a look back on our year.

January

- We continued moving out the baby stage with Katherine by saying goodbye to her crib and her pacifiers. 

February

- We celebrated Valentine's Day as a family

- Elisabeth and Matt went to the Daddy/Daughter dance

- The kids got to play in one of the first real snows in years

- Nathan participated in his first karate tournament

- I turned 35

March

- Samuel celebrated turning seven with a super fun Super Mario party with his friends

- I ate lunch with him at Liberty on his last day of school on March 13. Never in a million years, did we think that would be the last time we'd be in that building for at least a year. 

- Everything started shutting down and our Branson Spring Break plans were cancelled. Matt still took off for the week and we went to the movie theater for the last time in 2020. Matt did several house projects while he was off, and we tried to keep the kids entertained with science projects, puzzles, games, and crafts

- We eased into homeschooling at the end of March and found out that school was canceled for the rest of the year

April

- We were under stay at home orders for the month of April. We settled into a homeschooling routine and had lots of movie nights and game nights. We also spent lots of time on the trampoline and at our neighborhood pond. 

- We celebrated Easter at home with just the six of us. We watched church, made lunch, walked to the Pond and watched the Jesus play.

- We took a field trip to Natural Falls State Park for hiking and a picnic

May

- Nathan turned nine, and we were able to have a very small party for him with a few friends

- The kids had their last official day of school

- We surprised the kids with a beach trip to Gulf Shores, Alabama. There was drama in finding and booking a place with all the restrictions, but we were determined to get our toes in the sand, and I'm SO glad we did! We had an incredible week.

- Elisabeth had an outdoor dance recital

- Matt and I celebrated 14 years of marriage

- Matt turned 37

- Our pool opened for the season, yay!!

June

- I felt like so many of our traditional summer activities were cancelled- VBS, swim lessons, a special date with Elisabeth. We grieved those losses but were excited about the return of play dates and sleepovers

- We spent our days at the pool and playgrounds with friends and had a few sleepovers

- Samuel took a soccer class at Soccer City that had been canceled in the Spring

- Our church started back with in person services 

- I went on my annual girls' weekend with Mindy and Erica. 

July

- We hosted our annual Fourth of July celebration with friends

- We had more play dates and sleepovers including a sad goodbye to some of the boys' best friends who moved out of state

- Samuel and Elisabeth went to a summer dance camp for a week

- We got the chance to visit Weatherford and see my grandparents for a couple of days- the one and only time we saw them in 2020

- We met our friends at White Water for a super fun day

August

- Elisabeth turned six and we had  a girly princess tea party with a special visit from Belle

- We made the decision to homeschool for the 2020-2021 school year

- We went back to the beach with Matt's parents- our favorite, familiar one this time and had such a fun week

- Elisabeth and Katherine started a new year of dance

- Matt and I flew to Ohio to visit Cedar Point- a vacation that had been rescheduled from May. We had a great week riding amazing roller coasters and spending quality, uninterrupted time together

September

- We spent Labor Day with family and the Evetts and Millers. Nathan, Samuel, and Elisabeth rappelled for the first time

- We started our new school year with a fourth grader, second grader, and Kindergartener

- Nathan started Flag Football and had a great season

- Katherine turned three and had a fun Rapunzel birthday party

- Samuel and Elisabeth started gymnastics classes at a new gym

October

- We enjoyed some Fall activities including a trip to the pumpkin patch, the Gathering Place and the zoo

- We celebrated Abigail's first birthday in Edmond

- We took a quick vacation to Branson and went to Silver Dollar City and Fantastic Caverns

- We enjoyed several Halloween activities including hosting a homeschool party and our traditional trick or treating with the Shondelmyers

November

- Elisabeth got her ears pierced

- We celebrated Thanksgiving with my parents and decorated for Christmas

- Matt resumed traveling for work after over  year of not having to travel

December

- We visited Matt in Memphis for a few days and had fun at the Children's Museum and Zoo

- We had a small Christmas party with a few friends

- We celebrated Christmas with friends, family and presents

- We ended 2020 with a fun New Year's Eve celebration with the Shondelmyers