2011 came and went so quickly for us. Jeremy and I are always saying that things are going to slow down for us, but we seem to stay so busy! I guess that is the way we like it. Here is a brief review of our 2011:
January 2011 brought with it lots of snow and we enjoyed Jeremy being home from work for a few days to have some extra family time!
Caleb also started his first day of Mother's Morning Out at our church on January 5, 2011. It was a struggle for both of us at first, but it has turned out to be great for both Mommy and Caleb to have that time away.
February 2011 was a quiet month for us. We went to Guntersville to visit and enjoyed playing golf with Daddy.
There were also a few warmer days and we were able to go the park with Caleb for the first time!
Caleb also enjoyed his first visit to the Early Works Children's Museum here in Huntsville. The Kirkland's joined us for a morning of fun!!
March 2011 was a little busier for The Gilmore's. Mommy went to Birmingham with the girls to shop while Caleb stayed home with Daddy. They invited cousin Addison and Uncle Josh over for the weekend and they attended their first Circus together.
March was also busy with lots of Consignment sales for Mommy to attend, so Caleb and Daddy got lots of afternoon play times together :)
During Spring Break week, we got together with Kacie and Finlee for Caleb's first trip to the Zoo! It was so much fun.
Caleb and Mommy went on a trip to Tunica, MS with GranGran (Mommy's Mom) to visit grandparents who live in Arkansas. Tunica is the halfway meeting point, so it is easier to meet for a visit. While there, Caleb got to go to the Zoo again when we went to Memphis one afternoon.
April 2011 continued to keep us busy! We enjoyed visiting with Pops and Nanna one afternoon.
And Mommy celebrated her 25th Birthday with a stomach virus- yuck!
April 15, 2011 was a very special day for the family. Jeremy's Aunt and Uncle had their second child, Andrew Johnson. I traveled to Tuscaloosa to take care of big sister, Ella while her parents were in the hospital.
GranGran was diagnosed with Breast Cancer on April 20, 2011, which would prove to be our biggest challenge for the remainder of 2011. Thankfully she is cancer free and doing fabulous!!!
We also celebrated Easter in Guntersville with Grandmama and Grandaddy...and of course Caleb was spoiled with lots of treats.
On April 27, 2011 the state of Alabama was devastated by a day full of tornadoes. Thankfully our families and homes were safe. Uncle Blake's (Mommy's Brother)apartment is about a block away from the most severe damage in Tuscaloosa, but it remained untouched- such a blessing! And Grandmama and Grandad's (Daddy's parents) house got hit in the back corner (their master bedroom), but they were all okay and the house got repaired. We were without power for several days, so instead of sticking it out and camping at home, we decided to take a trip with GranGran to Atlanta. We visited the Atlanta Zoo and the Atlanta Aquarium- both of which Caleb thought were fantastic!
The Atlanta Zoo:
The Atlanta Aquarium:
May 2011 continued to be crazy busy for our family! We started off the month with a big get together at our house for Mother's Day and Grandad's Birthday. Caleb was especially excited to take Addison to visit his classroom at church that morning.
Caleb had his first round of Swimming Lessons at our local YMCA!
Daddy graduated from the University of Alabama with his Master's Degree in Operations Management!! We are so proud of him.
Pops and Nana treated us to an extra long weekend in Orange Beach, AL. We all love going to the beach!
Here is Caleb on his last day of Mother's Morning Out for the 2010-2011 school year.
May was also our first trip to the River for the summer!! Always a much needed break.
By June 2011, the summer season was into full swing! We spent lots of time in Guntersville taking care of GranGran. Grandmama and Grandad helped us out so much by keeping Caleb entertained during this time.
Cousin Addison turned TWO on June 17th.
We also enjoyed afternoons on the Guntersville Lake and at the Pool:
And on June 24th, we found out that we were pregnant with Baby #2!!!!!!!!!!!
July is always a full month with lots of celebration for our family and 2011 was no different! On the first of the month, Jeremy and I celebrate how long we have been together- 2011 marked 10 years!! Then the next week we celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary.
We started off our Independence Day festivities on Lake Guntersville.
Then headed to the River for a week of relaxation. Also known by Mommy as when the morning/all day nausea set in!
Then Caleb's pal Finlee turned 4, so we headed to Arab to celebrate.
We got to see the Kirkland's again soon when we met up at Southern Adventures Water Park for a morning of swimming and fun.
Daddy celebrated his 27th Birthday by grilling out in the backyard and enjoying family time!
We wrapped up the month of July with a trip to Guntersville and stopped by the lake to feed the ducks. Another first for Caleb!
August 2011 seemed to be a little slower month for us, at least the beginning of it anyways. Uncle Josh and Aunt Jessica moved into their new house, Caleb started back to Mother's Morning Out for the 2011-2012 school year, and we started planning Caleb's 2nd Birthday.
We of course had another trip to the River:
Caleb visited Chuck E Cheese for the first time:
Caleb had his 2nd Birthday party at the YMCA indoor pool. So much fun!!
A few days later, our little boy turned TWO!!! We celebrated with dinner at Red Robin at Bridgestreet- yum :)
After we got our little 2 year old home and ready for bed, he requested "One more candle" for his Birthday, so we got a Little Debbie cake and let him blow out one more before bed!
September 2011 began with a long beach trip with Grandmama and Grandad to Pensacola, FL. It was such a fun trip, especially for Caleb since he had cousin, Addison to play with! We even kicked off football season while at the beach- ROLL TIDE!!
Once we returned from the beach, consignment season was in full swing. Also, Caleb had his 2 year check up at the doctor: Weight 23lbs 10oz (5th Percentile), Height 33 1/4 inches (15th Percentile. Then on September 21st, we had the 16 week check up at the OB/GYN and found out that we are having a GIRL...Kailyn Lindsey Gilmore!
October 2011 brought cooler weather, lots of Alabama football, and tons of fun. We kicked off the fall season by visiting Tate Farms Pumpkin Patch and had a blast. Caleb liked the hay ride to the pumpkin patch and the corn jumper the best!
Then we headed to Tuscaloosa for Homecoming along with the rest of the Gilmore crew. Thankfully the Johnson's were very generous to host us for the weekend!
And Miss Kailyn got to attend an AL football game before her big brother! (18 weeks 5 days pregnant)
On October 20th, my best friend, Kacie, had her second little girl- Rylann Paige Kirkland. I am so in love with my new little neice, she is the sweetest thing ever!!
On Alabama vs Tennessee weekend, GranGran kept Caleb so that Mommy and Daddy could go back to Tuscaloosa for the game. Again, big thanks to the Johnson's for hosting us! ROLL TIDE!!! (20weeks 5days pregnant)
And of course, no October is complete without Halloween. Trick or Treat from our little elephant!!
I think November 2011 was our busiest month of the year. We began by Mommy going on a girl's trip to Birmingham, sending Daddy and Caleb to Guntersville for the weekend. They went on a hike with Grandad, played golf, and played with Addison!
Then came our annual trip to the Smokies with the Gilmore family. Always lots of fun, good food, and great fellowship with family members! We visited the aquarium and went on a hike in Gatlinburg.
25 weeks pregnant!
On our way to Tuscaloosa for Thanksgiving, we stopped by the Birmingham Zoo for a fun day with Caleb and Ella.
We had beautiful weather on Thanksgiving day, so the kids were able to go outside and play after lunch.
The day after Thanksgiving is always a shopping day for the girls! Mommy found a great Black Friday deal at Babies R Us for Kailyn's furniture and Santa found a great deal on a train table for Caleb. The following day was Iron Bowl day, so we spent the weekend in Guntersville with Grandmama and Grandad. We took the kids to the golf course to take pictures and let them run around before nap time.
December 2011 was full of Holiday activities! We started off the Christmas season by decorating Gingerbread Houses.
Then we had Supper with Santa where Caleb was able to meet Santa and see him, but we did not force him to sit in his lap or anything. He was most excited because Santa gave him a candy cane!
And of course, we decorated the Christmas tree...
And made Gingerbread Men (Mommy made them from scratch- go Mom!!)
Caleb had a Christmas program at school that was absolutely precious. His 2 year old class sang "Jingle Bells" and he was so proud of himself afterwards- he talked about it the rest of the day.
Next on our Christmas to-do list was to visit Santa's Village. Caleb was such a big boy and sat right beside Santa and told him that he wanted trains for Christmas. And yes, a visit with Santa would not be complete without a candy cane!
And then it was already time to start celebrating the Christmas season with family. First stop- GranGran's House!
We had a great time with the Kirkland's on Christmas Eve Eve. Aunt Kacie cooked a delicious lunch, Caleb and Finlee played, and the grown ups enjoyed visiting a little bit.
That night, we went to Daddy's Grandmother's house for our first official Christmas dinner.
Christmas Eve morning, we woke up and exchanged gifts with Grandmama and Grandad. There became a pattern everywhere we went...Caleb got so spoiled!!
Our last stop before leaving Guntersville was Papaw Gilmore's for lunch on Christmas Eve. The kids love playing with the train set at his house every year.
Once we returned home from the Christmas Eve service at church, Caleb sat out a snack for Santa and sprinkled Reindeer food in the yard. Then it was off to bed so that Santa could visit!
Christmas morning was lots of fun this year. It was the first year that Caleb was able to grasp the concept and get really excited- thus, Mommy and Daddy were really excited too! Santa was really good to Caleb this year...he must have been a good little boy. He racked up with: a train table, golf clubs, and a small table and chairs for his new big boy room. Then Daddy cooked us pancakes for breakfast and we played toys all morning long :)
On Christmas day, we traveled to Jackson, TN to Deedee and Pappy's house to wrap up our Christmas 2011. We met up with Pops and Nana there too!
And lastly, Caleb spent the night with Pops and Nana for the first time after Christmas!! He went for two nights so that Mommy and Daddy could take down the Christmas stuff, rest, and go out on two date nights. Caleb had a blast riding the golf cart and 4wheeler to look at the cows and horses, building a fire and roasting hot dogs, and getting spoiled. Yay for Pops and Nana- we are so glad to finally have yall on the baby sitter's roll call :)
Looks like you guys had a really exciting year! So happy you have another exciting year ahead of you with the addition of Kailyn! I hope we somehow get to see you guys soon! -Leah Salter
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