2016 ReCap

Hi all!

So...yeah. I just didn't do the Blog thing in 2015, I guess. There was no 2015 recap for anyone and I hope you weren't too broke up about it. That Recap would have been this:

1. Moved into a new house

2. Went to Alaska on a cruise ship

3. Almost died of morning sickness and every other pregnancy related symptom

4. Had a baby girl. 

Ta-Da!

And the first part of 2016 was pretty rough because of two kids and postpartum depression, but we survived and we made it to 2017 (The ENTIRE world is breathing a sigh of relief that they made it too. BOO on 2016!). Overall, the past year was pretty important to our little family. It wasn't as bad as the rest of the Universe seemed to be having it, but it also wasn't just daffodils and rainbows for 365 days. Here's a little rundown of the important moments and happenings in our 2016 story. 

 1. Disneyland: Mr. Chase and I headed to Disneyland for 3 days in December and had a remarkably wonderful time. The weather was perfection, the holidays were in full swing and it was awesome to have a break just the two of us. LOVED IT!

2. Orlando: In September, I got to fly away to Florida to see one of my besties. We spent half a week together chatting it up and seeing a few of the Disney World highlights while there. I love her! And miss her. All the time. 

3. ASD: In August our little Bug got officially diagnosed with Austim Spectrum Disorder. We were in no way shocked to get the word, but its still not easy to accept the fact that this is real and its not going away. All the same--we love him just the same! 

4. ABA Therapy: As a result of #3, we jumped right into the world of ABA Therapy. We absolutely love the people we work with and it has already done wonders for our little guy. He's improved so so so much over the last four months and I know he'll continue to make strides this year. 

5. Potty Training: Our therapists helped us set the groundwork for getting The Bug on to the potty, but I took the bull by the horns the week before Thanksgiving and we DID IT. The kid is smart and once he caught on--he HAD it. So we're doing great! Only one kid in diapers! WOOHOO!

6. Christmas: Our 2016 Christmas was very nearly perfect. The kids were not spoiled, but still got wonderful gifts. The Bug was thrilled about everything Santa Claus. We saw family around the holiday season, but spent the actual holiday holed up in our happy house all alone. And it was AWESOME. Merry Christmas! I cannot wait for next year's holiday season!

7. Book Club: My Social Studies book club got canceled rather unceremoniously for the 2015-2016 school year. I persevered, however, and found us new funding and sponsorship so we're back at it in 2016-2017! And its been fantastic. In November we discussed an incredible book called Nothing to Envy about North Korea. Have you read it? You should. 

8. Manager: In the spring, Mr. Chase was offered a management position at his company. WHAT?! And he took it. Its been more responsibility and definitely a bit more work, but its been good. I did have to laugh when I met one of the guys he manages at the Christmas party--because the guy was easily 15 years older than Mr. Chase. WEIRD.

9. Therapy: When my postpartum depression got too obvious, too scary, and clearly too much I started visiting with a therapist. It. Was. AMAZING. And exactly what I needed. In fact, I don't know one person who wouldn't benefit from seeing a therapist. Yes...I mean YOU, too. 

10. Jackson Hole: In July we embarked on our very first family trip. We road-tripped to Jackson Hole, Wyoming and stayed with Mr. Chase's great aunt and uncle. It was definitely a learning experience to travel that far in the car with two kids. But the weekend really was great. We look forward to planning future family trips! Because...trips are good memory makers. 

11. Team Body Project: I jumped into losing the baby weight as soon as I hit the 2 month partpartum mark, but I didn't make any truly significant progress until July when I joined up with Team Body Project. I 100% love it. Its based entirely online with loads of great workouts that you can do at home with no expensive or crazy equipment. And I think the trainers---Daniel and Alex--are really awesome. I get absolutely NOTHING for recommending these people (this is no MLM that I sell, or anything) but you should look into it. Seriously. LOVE. And yes--I lost the baby weight!

12. Baby Girl: We had our little baby girl at the end of November 2015 so this year has been all about benchmarks and watching our girl grow up. And she's awesome!! Always smiling, loves to crawl FAST wherever she goes, and she's slowly turning into a good sleeper and eater. We love her soooo much and I really do feel lucky to be her mom. 

Honorable Mentions:

• We bit the bullet and bought Broadway season tickets to Utah's new Eccles Theater. Its been awesome so far!
• I discovered and fell in love with Potbelly Subs. YUM.
• {Almost} every Wednesday, a new West Wing Weekly podcast drops and I look forward to it! Its my favorite podcast and one of the favorite hours of my week. 
• The Bug has really gotten into movies this year. We go through phases and the most notable this year was probably High School Musical. We watched it EVERY DAY for months. Then he moved on to Dumbo. And Peter Pan. And Toy Story. At least its all Disney!!