Happy New Year!

Andy and Meg surprised us with a visit on New Year's Eve. It was so great to see them, and it was Meg's first time meeting Macy. We ordered take-out from their favorite Indian food restaurant, but before the food was picked up my mom had to take my grandma to the emergency room (she's now home and recovering well). That unfortunately changed the tone of the evening, but we ate and played a few games, and almost made it to midnight. Macy fell asleep about her normal time, but Kennedy was up until 10:00. Then she crashed on the couch until we bundled them both up to go home.

Highlights from 2009:

JANUARY - Kennedy started school at Montessori. Jake's birthday.

FEBRUARY - I think I had a cold the entire month, made even more miserable by being pregnant. I finally read The Count of Monte Cristo, now one of my favorite books.

MARCH - Kennedy's 2nd birthday - she gets a tea set and some play fruit and vegetables. It's the beginning of her favorite new activity, "Let's play with the kitchen!" We decorated the living room and dining room with crepe paper and hosted two festive family parties.

APRIL - A very exciting month! Kennedy has surgery to get tubes in her ears. Our 10th anniversary. Easter with egg dying and dinner at the Club. Waiting, waiting, and then finally Macy was born, five days after her due date, on the 23rd! It was the most amazing experience and completes our family. Kennedy gets a baby sister and her new kitchen.

MAY - Mother's Day just keeps getting better and better. Shared my birthday with Eliza and made family tie-die shirts. Jake and I go on our first date since having Macy - to dinner and a comedy show. Kennedy gets her first haircut and goes to her first birthday party.

JUNE - The school year ends and we take a family trip to Moab. We spent a long weekend hiking in Arches, playing games and swimming at the condo with Jake's family. Jake loves celebrating Father's Day with his two girls.

JULY - Fun night out at a Bees baseball game. I get a precious gift from Jake, a custom designed mother's ring with the girls' birthstones. We spend the 4th in Torrey at the ranch of some family friends, where we take the girls along in packs on a great six mile hike in Sulfur Creek Canyon. We learn that Kennedy has kidney reflux again, and choose to treat it with medicine rather than surgery. The girls and I go to the Oregon coast to visit my grandparents. Macy rolls over for the first time. And, we have our annual family trip to Sun Valley. Busy month!

AUGUST - Uncle Andy comes to visit. Annual Spruces camp out in a huge rainstorm. Jake works the night shift supervising a sewer lining project. Kennedy goes back to school. We take our first visit to the Children's Museum.

SEPTEMBER - My maternity leave comes to an end, and even though I'd been working reduced hours, it is so hard to leave the girls. We start our living room/dining room/kitchen improvement project (which is still not completely done - more to paint, and saving for counters and backsplash to complete the rest of the kitchen upgrade.) Another date night, this time at the zoo fundraiser. Bad luck for both of our dads, followed by visits to the hospital and rehab center to see them for us.

OCTOBER - Macy's first experience with food, and her first trip to the emergency room. The girls loved carving pumpkins, but weren't very cooperative for my favorite pumpkin patch photo op. For Halloween Kennedy was a kangaroo and Macy was a bear, and we had lots of fun at the school carnival.

NOVEMBER - Macy is tested for kidney reflux, and we learn that she doesn't have it! A delicious Thanksgiving meal for the animals at the zoo and for us at Beth and Ira's new house.

DECEMBER - Macy gets three teeth. Kennedy's debut stage performance. Christmas preparations and celebrations, including a trip to see Santa. And best of all, the girls got everything they wanted and more (and so did I - a happy family, a steam mop and a new back door) for Christmas!

What a great year. I hope 2010 will be just as exciting for our family.