2012 in Review

Today is January 1, 2013. 

I decided to put together a photo collage of the highlights of 2012.  

January: My Grandma Lucille Evenhouse passed away.  We had a small celebration of life service at which we displayed all the beautiful cross stitch creations she had made over the years.

February: We took down wallpaper and repainted the nursery for the baby.  We also had family come visit for the day and met Melanie's boyfriend Nate.  Scott celebrated his birthday on Valentine's Day.

March: we don't have a lot of pictures from March because I was very, very pregnant, so we didn't do much!  I worked  at our Junior Regional Volleyball tournaments the last two weekend in March, which was challenging at 39 weeks pregnant...which is where I was in these photos.

April: Laurel Elaine Platt was born on April 7.  I celebrated my birthday on April 27.

May: We took an Evenhouse family photo on Mother's Day, and also visited Scott's Mom in Western Iowa so they could meet the new baby.  Laurel refused to take a bottle.

June: Laurel attended her first volleyball camp when she helped me work the Iowa HP Camp.  Scott had a work trip to Kansas City, and Laurel and I went along to see the sites.  At the end of June our good friends Jesse & Lindsay spent a couple days at our house with their kids.  Amie is about 6 weeks older than Laurel, but Laurel is definitely bigger and heavier!  Four adults and four kids in our small, one-bedroom house was...cozy.

July: Laurel and I spent a week in Des Moines working at the USA Volleyball High Performance Championships.  Melanie came out to visit at the end of the month.  Laurel is a happy baby and loves to smile!

August: two of my nieces spent the night at our house and we had a crafting party. We went to our annual church picnic at Lake Keomah.

September: Scott had a business trip in Council Bluffs, so Laurel and I went along as well.  We went to the zoo, went hiking, and did some work in the hotel while Scott went to meetings.  We also squeezed in a trip to see Scott's Mom and Jim in Hancock, and visited Scott's Grandma in Creston on the way home.  Melanie and her boyfriend Nate got engaged.  At the end of the month, I went to a baby shower for my sister, and due to home construction, they set up a living room in the yard!  

October: We attended our church's fall festival and Laurel had her first hayride.  The weather was unseasonably warm, and we enjoyed being able to be outside a lot.  Laurel can sit on her own, is eating baby food, and loves to play.  At the end of the month Scott's entire family converged in Creston to visit his Grandmother, who was ailing.

November: My nephew, Oren Timothy Klinge, was born on Nov. 8...my sister had been on bedrest for 6 weeks, so was glad when the day finally came!  Scott's Grandma Lavetta Burkhalter passed away, so we attended another funeral, but got to spend quality time with family.

December: We had our annual "A Christmas Story" party at our house .  We spent the night at my sister's house to babysit so they could attend a work party--and decided that taking care of a 2 yr old, an 8 month old, and a 1 month old is a lot of work!  We celebrated Christmas with the Evenhouse side of the family, and opened present on Christmas Day at home.  Laurel figured out how to crawl on Christmas Eve.