It is hard to believe 2010 is here, and 2009 flew by.  As I reflect on the year, as with every year, there were ups and downs.  The year started out tough, but mostly for us, this past year brought much joy and excitement and opened a whole new chapter (or maybe series) of our lives.  Here are a few memories that stand out presented through pictures:

January House Fire: We watched Ron's parents' home, where he grew up, burn through the night, but we cried tears of joy that his parents are with us today and stayed so strong through the entire process.

March - We welcomed Baby A., and the Tarheels won another National Championship!

April: Easter in Atlanta

May: First Mother's Day, Trip to Chapel Hill, First PGA Tournament @ Quail Hollow Championship in Charlotte

June: First Father's Day and a Family Trip to VA

July: Little A. experienced his first dip in Papa's pool, went to his first Brave game, traveled to Raleigh to spend 4th of July with the Piccs, and Ron and I celebrated our 3-year anniversary.

August: Baptism Day and the experience of a smooth transition back to work.

September: Labor Day trip to OIB

October: We enjoyed three NC weekend trips to Winston-Salem, Hendersonville/Sky Top, and to visit Jennie and Chris and see their new home.

November - December: We visited with our SS class, family and friends, took Little A. to his first Tiger football game and basketball game, watched Lauren graduate from GSU, traveled to Alpharetta, VA, and DC, enjoyed a weekend getaway to Opryland, and experienced the joy of the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons as a blessed family of three.

Little A. spent his first new year’s eve in Yorktown, VA, while Daddy was back in SC.  Of course, our little man fell asleep long before midnight anyway, so he wasn’t disappointed by the rather calm 2010 celebration.  Here he is with Nana watching the Hokies play and signaling touchdowns during the Chic-Fil-A Bowl:

Touchdown Hokies and Happy New Year!

We enjoyed visits with Aunt Linda, Uncle Jerry, Kevin, and Nanny in Chesapeake, a nice New Year’s Eve (with the exception of missing my new year’s kiss) with Aunt Sandy and Uncle Randy in Yorktown, a brief visit with the Brays in Williamsburg, and a great time catching up with aunts, uncles, and cousins to celebrate Nanny’s (aka GG) 75th birthday at Aunt Brenda’s house in Washington D.C.  I even got to have a short visit with college roommate and sorority sister, Amanda, and Little A. and I got to see her new place in Arlington.  All in all, our little trip was a great start to the new year.

Here’s to 2010 – wishing all of you many joys and blessings this year!