2014

I don't even know where to begin. What a year! I think the last time I was on here, I mentioned how we were pregnant. Well, the best news of the year was that we added another healthy baby boy to the mix! Caleb Wesley is now 5 months old and I'm still trying to grasp the fact that we have two boys here in our arms. It's pure joy, I tell you. Even though I'll always have 3 gaping holes in my heart and will forever long for Jacob, Jordan and Olivia -- missing Olivia an insane amount lately -- life is pretty awesome at this point. Seeing Samuel and Caleb together warms my heart more than you can imagine. We're finally at a place that I always dreamed of, but never thought would happen. It's truly indescribable...

So, in the last year, we added Caleb to the mix, we said goodbye to El Paso, TX and all the awesome things we miss from our time there, we moved to Ft. Irwin, CA and enjoyed travel throughout the surrounding areas, and the latest of all...James is in the process of resigning his commission, so we will soon be civilians. Crazy, right? I really never thought I'd see the day. In fact, when he came home and said he's done and will be putting in the packet, I was shocked. Actually, it's still sort of sinking in...With that said, I expect 2015 to be absolutely insane. Most of you know we got out of the Army once before, but this time is for real. I'm scared, nervous, full of anxiety...you name it, but also insanely excited about what's to come. We have about 4 1/2 months until the craziness begins...

I know there's more to be said, but I'm at a loss of where to begin...or continue. A month after Caleb was born, I ended up in the hospital for 5 days with a near fatal pancreatitis ordeal resulting in surgery. That was fun. As if I haven't had enough craziness in life to remind me to enjoy every minute and treat each day as if it's your last, that was yet another reminder. 2014 has been an eventful year to say the least...

So there you go...a very brief summary of our year so far. I hadn't planned on sharing that many pictures, but then the more I skimmed through, I realized I had almost a year's worth of pictures...here are a few...

Our little family right before the 1-6 IN Ball in March...

In April, we took a few maternity shots...

Then on May 19th at 2:30pm, at 36 weeks, Mr. Caleb Wesley Moore decided it was time to make his grand entrance...

Caleb came completely on his own, but wasn't quite ready and ended up staying in the NICU for 5 days due to immature lungs... 

  

  

Looking just like all his ultrasounds -- hand over the face...

The best night ever...we went in to visit and they finally let me hold him for the first time...

Then, finally, on the 5th day, he got to come home. Look at this tiny guy! And yet, he was the biggest of all our babies. 5 lb. 13 oz., 19 in...

Upon meeting his little brother, Samuel got the car seat out and told him to "get in!" Initially, he wasn't too fond of the idea of having a baby bro...

However, it didn't last long. Now, he adores him!

  

In fact, I'm always catching him sharing his toys with Caleb and holding his hand, ha. 

Here are a few of Caleb's newborn shots I took...

I hate that this was out of focus, but I can't bring myself to delete it. Love these two...

Gosh...looking at these again makes me so sad that he's already SO big! Time goes way too fast. Below are Caleb's first shots in the chair...

Not exactly thrilled...

2 weeks later, Samuel celebrated his 3rd Birthday...

Seriously, how is this kid 3 already?!

With Caleb just shy of a month old, I figured it was time to update our family portrait, so off to the park we went...

I'm so thankful for these two boys...

One month old in the chair...

And then two months old in the chair...

Then 3 months in the chair...

Right around this time, we were stuck in a hotel for 2 weeks waiting for a home on post at our new duty station. With that being said, we decided to skip town and visit a few places we love. Among the many stops, we went back to San Francisco, drove down the Pacific Coast Highway, and took the boys back to Disneyland a few times...

The boy LOVED seeing the seals...

While driving down south, we got the best surprise -- a pod of humpback whales! It was fascinating seeing them out there and best yet, hearing them so loudly!

The PCH is such a beautiful drive...

And, of course, Samuel's favorite place with his favorite character. I'll spare you on the other 100+ shots from our visits there...

That same month, Samuel started preschool. We still plan to homeschool the boys early on, but with his speech delay (and refusing to potty train), we enrolled him in preschool. He absolutely LOVES it! 2 months into it so far and his speech has significantly improved and potty training is almost complete, so yay! Sometimes peer pressure can be a good thing... ;)

 

Then on September 4th, we remembered our first son, Jacob Tyler, on what would've been his 11th Birthday. It just so happened that my dad was in town, so he was able to spend the day with us. It feels like an eternity ago that we said goodbye to Jake. Oh, to imagine how life should've been...

Here's my dad with our two boys on Jake's day...

To continue with the chair pictures, here are the boys on Caleb's 4th month...

It was soon after Caleb turned 4 months old that we drove up to Salt Lake City to visit family. Gosh, I love it up there! If James could find a job there, I'd be in Heaven. It's such a beautiful area!

With it being rather cold by our standards, Caleb stayed down with family while a few of us went to the top...

Sam with his cousins...

Another surprise of wildlife while we were out. They were probably only 20-30 feet away...

I'm thankful that while living here, we're relatively close to so much. It was great being able to see family and enjoy a beautiful city. I have to say, it's always hard coming back to this isolated base after being away. Hopefully we'll be able to get away a few more times before we leave in the spring.

Anyways, back to the chair pics...Caleb just turned 5 months old this past Sunday...

I really can't believe our last baby is 5 months old. I feel like babyhood is almost behind us! So, so sad. I've been trying to get better this month at getting the good camera out and grabbing some shots. After all, we don't have nearly as many of Caleb as we do Samuel. I know that's typically the case with younger siblings, but still. So, here are a couple taken this month...

If you followed me back when Sam was a baby, you might remember the basket and bat costume. I couldn't resist...

Of course, Samuel's at an age now where he has no interest in joining in. He refused to wear his costume and obviously looked thrilled about smiling for the camera, ha. Oh, how I love that goofy boy! Stubborn just like his momma... 

And there you have it. Almost a year's worth of shots. 

I'm only kidding myself if I think I'm going to get back on here on a normal basis. Even though I'd love to, my track record has proven otherwise. I love that this was my way of keeping up with Sam's first year and all the milestones, etc. I feel like I haven't really taken note on much for poor little Caleb. Life has just been so crazy this past year and I don't foresee that changing any time soon with the upcoming lifestyle changes. We shall see. I miss the blog. I miss having an outlet for my grief and yet also having a place to share the joys that have come with having these amazing little miracles in my arms. These upcoming holidays look to be exciting and challenging all at once. It'll be Caleb's first Christmas and yet, Olivia's 5th Birthday in Heaven. Oh, the emotions of it all. Perhaps I might just skip another night of sleep and sneak back on here in a few months.

Until then...