2013 - New Years Eve

2013

I can't believe how fast this year went by! (Probably because last year seemed to go on forever being pregnant with baby #2). The days are getting shorter, that's for sure! I want to just take a minute to recap the good and bad, mostly the prominent memories I have of 2013.

David and I hosted a rad New Years party. I passed over 7 kidney stones in 2 months. I had 3 birthday parties for my 21st bday in February. A Rootbeer tasting/themed party with my family, a family dinner with my in-laws, and a date night with my husband on my actual birthday. In March we celebrated our 2 year anniversary. I can't believe we haven't been married longer! Most of the time, that's a terrible thing to say, but I just mean that I feel like I've known David for all my life and any time living before him seems so "bleh". We stayed at a gorgeous hotel and I was miserably 9 months pregnant. My due date came around on March 28th. The memory is still too painful to relive so I will just say that it was the worst day of my life with a cancelled induction. I spent the Easter weekend with mine and David's family, which was wonderful, but I still had no baby in my arms. April 2nd - Farrah Emery was born!! Thank goodness it wasn't April first with David as her father... A few weeks later I had emergency kidney surgery to remove 3 stones that were passing at the same time, resulting in a urinary tract infection, a swollen kidney and a trip to the ER. I was scheduled 2 weeks later to blast the clusters leftover in my kidneys but had a miracle. When I went in for an X-ray the day before my second surgery, they couldn't find them. I went in the following day for another X-ray and they still couldn't find them! And I haven't had an issue with them since! The summer months were the longest part of the year for me! My favorite part was going through the temple frequently with all the Sommers' for our missionaries first times. Each went through a different temple, which was neat for me! In September, a few of us married couples in the Sommers family went to Duck Creek for a retreat in a beautiful cabin! It was a BLAST to say the least. Four wheeling, great food and great company! We drove home on the 15th, which is our family's 1 year anniversary of being sealed in the Manti temple. We were able to stop and walk around the temple grounds that Sunday evening, just as the sun was setting. It was one of the most peaceful, beautiful experiences I've ever had. In October, David and I threw him a Halloween Costume birthday party! It was the best party we've hosted yet! We had so many friends, neighbors and family members attend. My sister, mom and I made David a killer octopus cake too! Pictures will definitely be posted soon. For Halloween, I was a butterfly, Lillian wad a firefly, Farrah was a caterpillar and David was a bug catcher! For Thanksgiving we traveled to Mesquite, Nevada for a Leavitt family reunion. It was my first Thanksgiving away from my family, but it was a great and greatly needed little vacation! This December was a first for a lot of things for David and I. It was the first time we got a real Christmas tree, the first time we did a secret santa plus donated gifts and money to a friend we care about, the first time I've been sick with 4 illnesses in a row lasting over a month, and it was Farrah's very first Christmas! Like always, we spent Christmas Eve and Christmas morning with David's family, then went to my dad's house for dinner. My dad actually played a card game with us afterward! WOW! And now as the new year is approaching, we are going to celebrate tonight with a few friends, a few games and a few treats. This year has been absolutely wonderful, as an understatement. I thank my Heavenly Father every single day for my "above average" husband, my sweet daughters, the amazing family I married into, the generosity of my family members, and the happiness of the true gospel that fills my life! I'm excited for 2014. If it's anything like this year has been, it'll be an adventure worth living!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!