2011 Year in Review

January: Nothing like kicking off the new year with a positive pregnancy test! We confirmed the wonderful news with a blood test on January 25th. And just like that, 2011 became our best year yet. Also this month, we celebrated Grandma Martin’s 80th birthday (and had to hide our exciting news from family). Nick challenged me to a pears throw down, and we explored a flexitarian food philosophy.

February: We met Steven Raichlen, star of PBS’s Primal Grill, and we drove to Virginia to meet baby Aiden. Nick competed in Challenge Oranges, and I cheered an old friend onto a Super Bowl win.

March: We finally shared our big news with family and friends and all of you! I spent a girls weekend in New England, and Nick stayed home (and out of trouble) with his cousins.

April: Nick got serious about baking bread, and we spent a fun night with our nephews. My mother and I discovered the Italian secrets of western Pennsylvania, I spent an afternoon at McIntyre’s Candies, and our friends taught us how to make sushi. Oh, and my belly finally popped!

May: We headed north to Michigan to celebrate the graduation of Nick’s brother and the 60th birthdays of his parents. We also lived vicariously through my brother who got up close and personal with the Royal Wedding. The following weekend we drove to Boston for another important wedding. And, finally, we ended our month of travel with a trip to DC for Nick’s best bud’s 30th birthday.

June: The month of birthdays! We hosted our friends and our favorite little ladies and somehow managed to not get a cuddly pup. I learned to make my Grandma’s strawberry preserves and went to Maryland for hard shell crabs and time with my girls. And the belly continued to grow.

July: Road Trip! Virginia, North Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee, and back. I ate BBQ on my 29th birthday and reached the 29-week mark in our pregnancy. We hosted family for the big Wiley reunion, and I made everyone’s favorite: chocolate peanut butter ice cream.

August: We were totally spoiled this month with three baby showers: one in Pennsylvania, one in Virginia, and one hosted by my co-workers. I was honored to be a guest judge at a local chef’s competition, and we celebrated our second wedding anniversary with pampering at a local inn and spa!

September: With Peanut’s due date just a few weeks away, we asked my family to help with a few final touches to the nursery. We invited you to make your predictions: boy or girl? 39 weeks came and went. As did 40. And 41. We tried to keep busy and even baked lemon drop cupcakes with hopes that they would induce labor. And then at 10:47pm on September 25th, we welcomed our beautiful baby boy into this world.

October: Loving life as a family of three! And we were so fortunate to spend the entire month together before Nick returned to work in November. The first week was challenging, but we found our stride, and we even ventured out of town for a few days. We shared photos of Sammy’s nursery, and before we knew it, we were celebrating his one-month birthday and his first Halloween. With celebratory pumpkin ales, of course.

November: We got back into the cooking groove with sweet potato and apple soup, caramelized brussels sprouts, and pumpkin whoopie pies. We expressed many thanks for our little butterball and watched him turn two months old.

December: We took a trip to the tree farm to find Sam’s first Christmas tree, celebrated Sankt Nikolaus Tag, and introduced baby boy to Santa Clause. I baked carrot cake, and Nick made Santa bread, and we hosted friends and family for holiday visits. And we had the merriest of Christmases with our little joy!

We hope that your 2011 was as blessed as ours!