2016

Last night I asked Brian to wake me up before the kids got up so I could take a shower and start my day off bright eyed and bushy tailed. But in sticking with the current trend in our house it was another night of broken sleep. This is due to a very picky 2 year old who wakes unable to find one of her dozens of stuffed friends whose lost under a sea of blankets. Brian and I both have some OCD tendencies so our genes have meddled together to make the ultimate "everything must be just so" toddler. And it must be just so at 1 am, 2 am, 3 am. You get the gist ;)

I digress as sleeplessness continues to eat away at my brain. 

I was too lazy and tired to drag my butt into the shower. I rolled over and grabbed my phone off the charger and clicked open Facebook. A horrible habit but maybe something broke overnight that I absolutely must know about. But today right at the top of my newsfeed is my year in review. I watch it to see what Facebook deems the highlights. I'm assuming they are based on likes because the pictures aren't ones that mean a great deal to me. Then my mind drifts as to what defined this year for me. 

All in all, it was a good year. But it was one of those mixed years. I entered into it blissfully unaware of the challenges that would be faced. Though I will say, I also got to experience immeasurable joys and triumphs, too. I felt like it was a rather defining year. I learned a lot about myself, along with the other people in my life. I got to meet warriors through my volunteer work. I got to meet real life heroes through our journey with Hartley. 

I actually saw that TIME magazine came out with their person of the year for 2016. My person of the year for this year was a tie between a few people! 

Brian was one of them. This year we celebrated a decade since our very first date. An anniversary on a calendar that went celebrated at the Reston Holiday parade with our kids. But he didn't earn person of the year for some date on the calendar. He won person of the year because as we muddled through more uncharted life territory this year, we came out the other side stronger, with our bond strengthened. We had moments this year where we fell to pieces and picked each other up. He also wins because of how hard-working he is. He excelled this year as a first year Senior Manager. And even as work piled up, almost every single night this year (a few exceptions for work events or travel) he managed to come home and help with the kids' baths and bedtime routine. He gave me "nights off" where I heard laughter just pour out of my children and echo through the hallway. Spoiler alert, I anticipate him being my person of the year every year but this year was extra special. I saw him grow and flourish in his role of world's greatest dad, and he held my hand tighter than anybody when we got Hartley's ASD diagnosis. This year reaffirmed him as my life choice because I realized together we can handle whatever curveball life throws our way.

Secondly, another "person of the year" is Hartley's teachers, along with her speech therapist and the other various professionals who have been of immense support to us this year. Her school truly has made an incredible positive impact on our lives. As I brainstorm the words to use on her teachers holiday cards, there will never be words I can find to adequately describe my gratitude. They have given my daughter a voice. She speaks so much more clearly and purposefully and is so much more engaging. This holiday season I am getting to enjoy my daughter in a way I never could've imagined even a mere few months ago, and I know it is because of these incredible women who have truly found their calling in life. I thought sending Hartley to preschool would be hard but seeing her light up at drop and make phenomenal progress, I feel so lucky and blessed on what a great change it has been for us. Her speech therapist, who we used to see all the time, became such a source of comfort and support. I swear sometimes I felt like she was my therapist more than Hartley's!

I made some great new friends this year. I'm so thankful for these new friends and old friends. Thankful for the moments we've gotten to laugh together, high five eachother or just help keep one another afloat. I've also learned who is there when the chips are down, which is always a good and bad thing. 

ASD certainly didn't define our year but I entered into a world I knew very little about. I took it to my blog because a lot of days I didn't know where else to turn. And I feel very lucky at the kind reception and helpful words passed mine and my family's way. 

Then there were all those amazing milestones that happened in 2016. First foods. First words. First crawls. First holidays. First steps. Birthdays. Vacations. Field trips. I got to watch my childrens' sibling relationship blossom and grow. I got to hear my daughter tell me she loves me for the first time. I got to see pool splashing, ballerina twirling and crayon masterpiece creation. Even on they days where it was applying boo boo busters, breaking up fights, and picking up 57 thousand Cheerios, it truly has been a blessing. Because even through the tiredness fog and exhaustion, at the end of the day I know we are beyond blessed. We are happy, healthy and thriving, and we get to have eachother. 

I'm rolling into 2017, my mind flurried with resolutions I swear I'll keep this year ;) I've decided to forever give up on keeping my house cleaner or losing 20 pounds. But I have thoughts of how to bring more calm and peace into my life.

I'm getting away from myself! We still have several more weeks to 2016. I'll brag - we Cranes are kicking ass at celebrating Christmas. Eventually a photo diary entry perhaps. I'm LOVING Christmas will little ones. We're not even to the big day yet, and I'm already feeling like this is my favorite Christmas ever! 

But to my Facebook year in review, I'm not sure you hit the nail on the head in your little depiction of my 2016 so I decided to get all wordy with my own version ;) it's been a good year, a growing year and I'm pretty excited to see what 2017 has in store!