Here we come 2020 –

As we enter into 2020 – First of all I am bummed that Barbara Walters didn’t say, “I am Barbara Walters and this is 2020 (lol)
I can’t help but think about 2019 and all that happened – We are so grateful for the doors that God opened and closed for us. So thankful for the family and friends that stood by us. So thankful for the keyboard warriors out there – This is a strange one, but I am … I am thankful for them and the fact that most of them are uneducated and thankful that they decide to comment and share our story even if for the wrong reasons – because they are helping even though they don’t even realize it – they are helping to shed a light on the story that isn’t just ours. We are so thankful for the all the places we were able to explore and experience in 2019. We are thankful for all the touches that we received from strangers and loved ones. We are thankful for it all –

2019 for us as a family was filled with adventures, big belly laughs, and tears of sadness and joy, extreme highs and extreme lows, most of all it was filled with Moments that are forever etched into our hearts~

Jacob-
For Jacob 2019 was filled with sports and more sports 🙂 He was able to play football at Notre Dame and physically meet multiple coaches and shake Coach Kelly’s hand. What an experience for him! OH and me – I cried like a baby dropping him off there for the 3 days that he was there ) 🙁
He worked hard on and off the field – He surprised himself at how strong he really is: emotionally and physically. He powered through some minor heart break and stood his ground. He stayed true to who he is and showed up for others in big ways! He suffered a concussion during football – This was both a curse and a blessing – A curse because let’s face it concussions are absolutely terrifying! His team of doctors and nurses were fabulous and we are so thankful for them! It forced us to educate ourselves and be more aware of prevention and treatment. We will continue to educate ourselves and continue to bring light to a topic that needs talked about. We are happy to announce that after working with CCHS – They will be giving the impact tests for student athletes beginning this 2020 school year 🙂 They are also changing protocols and will be checking helmets after a concussion to verify there isn’t any damage to the helmet. They will also be using the technology in the helmets on a more regular basis. Over all good things came from it!
Jacob is ready for 2020 – 🙂

Chandler –
For Chandler 2019 was filled with extreme highs and complete lows. Chandler handled each experience with such grace. He started Nature School, Science School, and continued with gymnastics. Through each one of these experiences there were kids that didn’t quite understand Chandler and name calling and accusations took place – Chan was broken hearted, but he stood his ground and educated! He explained more times than any child should have to that “colors are just colors and he just loves rainbows. We are all unique and able to like what we like.” He stayed patient and even made some new friends. The others remain close minded, but he is standing strong on his firm foundation embracing who he is.
Chandler excelled in school and started learning multiplication, continues to read like a champ, and loves learning about animals and places. He also did great at Gymnastics and is able to do his cart wheel, round off, front support, backward and forward rolls, and balance pretty great on the beam. Most importantly he is having a blast!

As for us-
As a couple 2019 continued to force us to focus more on communication and embracing one another. As a couple it felt like we fought a lot of battles for our kids. Whether it was with Jacob and educating ourselves on the concussion protocol and ensuring that he was receiving the best possible care or with Chandler and fighting battles because people choose to be close minded and tell us that we are ruining our children because we let our child wear clothes from the “girl” section at a store – You know because the retail industry is the save all in determining what is okay.
We lost some people dear to us – This was heartbreaking and humbling all at the same time.
2019 Josh stayed dedicated and helped me train to run a 10k – I ended up setting a PR. During 2019 he got on board with my crazy ideas once again and we redid our kitchen – A complete DIY project that tested us emotionally, mentally, and physically lol and we both smiled and sighed with absolute relief once that was done. We traveled like champs and stuck to our goal of taking at least one vacation a month 🙂 I love that he is always up for an adventure –

2020 – We are excited!! We are starring the new year in a new house, Jacob is at a new school, and Chan is starting new classes. Here we are embracing the newness of the a new year! This year like most others we are Choosing to Experience people and places! We are choosing to Embrace our children, Embrace each other, and Embrace Moments! Most of all Embrace people! We are choosing to Enjoy this beautiful gift of life that we are so blessed to live!
This doesn’t mean there won’t be any bad days or sad days, this just means that we’ll allow the bat shit crazy to happen, but only for a minute, then we will Stand! Stand up! Stand tall! Stand together~