2010

I just looked in my Archives and discovered I managed to forego a Year In Review post for 2009. How did THAT happen? The year that brought Colt's first birthday, my trip to Africa, The Great Ice Storm, Colt's first air travel, first haircut and first day of "real" daycare.

Yeah. Somehow that post never got written. Whoops. But if you're so inclined, feel free to feast your eyes on 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008. It is WAY weird to go back and read those posts. Pre-marriage, pre-kiddos, pre-real job. (Pre-shiny new blog with nice, neat formatting…)

And now! I present to you! The Hoods in 2010 —-

January. We started 2010 buried in snow. After having the first white Christmas in NWA in AGES, we enjoyed many, many "snow days" home from school at the beginning of January. It was the holiday break that would not end!

We ended January with the passing of my Grandma Martin, at the age of 87. I traveled to South Dakota to be with my family and honor the life of a very special lady.

February was cold. Really cold. And we spent more time hibernating inside with the Munchkin.

February was also the beginning of Techno Mama, a bi-monthly blog/column I write for NWA Motherlode that allows me to share my geekiness with the world.

March always tends to be a little wacky, right? Seems that way. March 2010 meant a new car, knee surgery for me, lots of playing outside in the spring-like weather, then one last (record breaking!) snow storm (on the first day of Spring Break!).

April. More spring. More warm days spent OUTSIDE. Colt loved to be outside whether it was playing with bubbles in the driveway, spying on the dogs next door, or helping his Paw pull weeds.

April also brought the unveiling of the blog makeover, the original penning of my Life List, Razorfest 2010, and Easter.

May brought Becky's graduation and – with it – a party! Grandma and Grandpa Martin were in town to help celebrate and Colt loved every second of the attention. We took a trip to the Drive-thru Safari at Gentry and did – you guessed it! – more playing outside. Have you noticed a pattern?

Ahh yes, and Jeff and I managed to get away for a day of rednecking on the Elk River over Memorial Day weekend.

June! Colt turned the big 2! And I took a bajillion pictures of him. I also sent a camera to school the day of his birthday so we could capture those memories, too.

We spent some time at the pool, mowed a lot of grass, and pretended that the playground at the elementary school down the street was our own personal property.

July was a wee bit busy. To say the least. We kicked it off with a trip to California to scale Mt. Whitney and visit Hollywood.

Next we welcomed my sister Laura back to the country after a two year stint in the Peace Corps with a Martin Family Vacation! And I went parasailing!

And we rounded out July with a quick trip to Cabot for my 10 year high school reunion.

We even managed to squeeze in a few days of relaxing and chores around the house.

 

August was a slight slowdown. Slight. We braved the Arkansas summer heat for Razorback Fan Day and I helped with both the 2nd Annual NWA Mini Grand Prix at work and the 1st VBS for The Harbor. We spent some time playing INSIDE because of the heat, but made it outside when it was reasonably nice. Colt also moved up to a new class at school.

September was FUN. We totally lucked out and WON a trip to NYC so we spent Labor Day weekend touring the city with our friends Ryan and Teresa. We saw a Yankees game, the Brooklyn Bridge, the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty — you name it. We also tortured poor Ryan and Teresa with an entire weekend of Seinfeld references…

September also brought the Washington County Fair, THE ALABAMA GAME, the introduction of Burger Life, and I was featured in NWA Peekaboo Magazine as one of the 9 NWA Blogs You Should Be Reading.  

October is always a big month with birthdays for both Jeff and me, and some Halloween action. This October I also discovered that I know how to run, which is a skill I'm still slowly nurturing. Colt went as Dennis the Menace for Halloween, but didn't much care about the candy — yah! We also visited Bikes, Blues, and BBQ and the pumpkin patch, and took Colt to his first pre-game festivities at the stadium. Go Hogs!

November was fairly quiet with a trip to see Merle Haggard and, of course, Thanksgiving.

And after yet another nail-biter, the Hogs pulled it out against LSU this year!

December. Christmas, of course, which meant Christmas lights on the square and lots of time with family.

My sister Laura also got married this December, and I don't have photos back yet of the Hoods with the bride and groom — but here are Mr. and Mrs. Rangira, courtesy of Bella Novella Photography.

And the weekend of Laura's wedding – in Dallas – we got to see the Lost Heroes Art Quilt in person for the first time.

2010 has been a busy and memorable year. And it has paved the way nicely for 2011, which I'm sure will bring adventures of its own. Maybe potty training? Maybe a big boy bed? Maybe I'll cross a handful of things off my Life List? We shall see.

Reminders for 2011:

• Get Musings of Mother Hood delivered to your email by subscribing HERE. No spam. No worries. Just a nice little email anytime I update.
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Welcome 2011! Come in and stay awhile.