Wow, it is hard to believe 2013 is done and gone. It was such a mixed year for us.
We suffered two miscarriages, immeasurable heartache and stress as we weren't certain our hopes to expand our family would come to fruition.
We settled into a new house, made it our home and fell in love with our little neighborhood where our neighbors are like our family.
We took our first cruise to Greece and Croatia, traveled to Venice, Italy three times, Florence, Pisa, Cinque Terra, Belgium twice, Netherlands, France, England, Portugal & Morocco. 10 countries in a year is pretty amazing!
Claire learned how to read fluently and is now reading at a 3rd grade level.
Mya has learned all of her letters, the sounds they make and can blend sounds to read words as well. She is officially a beginner reader.
Both girls are doing amazingly well at swimming. They love the water and can front crawl like no other.
Claire has developed a love for soccer and is now competing in U-7 district soccer which is pretty competitive.
I finished my Autism Certification, which will open doors for our future.
We learned our family is expecting a much prayed for, much hoped for baby boy.
An early retirement opportunity has presented itself for Chris. After much discussion, we've decided to apply. It may seem to some that this is a poor decision, but the fact is that Chris is rarely home with our family. We have or will have three small children who need their parents now. Now is the time that we have them to ourselves. Before we know it, they will be off with their friends, participating in crazy sports schedules and doing homework for the remainder of their free time. We are also looking at our future deployment/assignments. Truth be told that we will look at 1, possibly 2 deployments in the next 5 years. This would be combined with an insanely busy schedule (15 hour days). The money/benefit isn't that much different. We both have Master's degrees and will likely find employment should we leave Germany. Right now our risk is minimal. I have a great job that can more than sustain our family and it includes a housing allowance that will solely cover our rent and utilities on our current house. This minimal risk would not be the case in 5 years as I'd have already resigned from DODDS. This is a leap. It is not guaranteed. Chris could be denied and we'd ride out the remaining time with the military. That is fine too. This story is yet to unfold.
All in all, 2013 has been a pretty great year for our family. Our prayers have been answered with a year of good health and overflowing happiness.
We look forward to seeing what 2014 may hold.
We suffered two miscarriages, immeasurable heartache and stress as we weren't certain our hopes to expand our family would come to fruition.
We settled into a new house, made it our home and fell in love with our little neighborhood where our neighbors are like our family.
We took our first cruise to Greece and Croatia, traveled to Venice, Italy three times, Florence, Pisa, Cinque Terra, Belgium twice, Netherlands, France, England, Portugal & Morocco. 10 countries in a year is pretty amazing!
Claire learned how to read fluently and is now reading at a 3rd grade level.
Mya has learned all of her letters, the sounds they make and can blend sounds to read words as well. She is officially a beginner reader.
Both girls are doing amazingly well at swimming. They love the water and can front crawl like no other.
Claire has developed a love for soccer and is now competing in U-7 district soccer which is pretty competitive.
I finished my Autism Certification, which will open doors for our future.
We learned our family is expecting a much prayed for, much hoped for baby boy.
An early retirement opportunity has presented itself for Chris. After much discussion, we've decided to apply. It may seem to some that this is a poor decision, but the fact is that Chris is rarely home with our family. We have or will have three small children who need their parents now. Now is the time that we have them to ourselves. Before we know it, they will be off with their friends, participating in crazy sports schedules and doing homework for the remainder of their free time. We are also looking at our future deployment/assignments. Truth be told that we will look at 1, possibly 2 deployments in the next 5 years. This would be combined with an insanely busy schedule (15 hour days). The money/benefit isn't that much different. We both have Master's degrees and will likely find employment should we leave Germany. Right now our risk is minimal. I have a great job that can more than sustain our family and it includes a housing allowance that will solely cover our rent and utilities on our current house. This minimal risk would not be the case in 5 years as I'd have already resigned from DODDS. This is a leap. It is not guaranteed. Chris could be denied and we'd ride out the remaining time with the military. That is fine too. This story is yet to unfold.
All in all, 2013 has been a pretty great year for our family. Our prayers have been answered with a year of good health and overflowing happiness.
We look forward to seeing what 2014 may hold.
Comments
You guys do not have a lot of time together and I am sure he would love the extra time with the children.
I hope he can, but it is also good to know that you are open for whatever the future may hold.
Love you guys,
Not sure how you do it all. I admire your ability to do it all. Those girls of yours are so lucky too have you. Pregnancy is hard and somehow you still manage to keep everything running smoothly. We love you and miss you. Wish we could see you all this Christmas but we will look forward to this summer!
Love ya, J