Looking Back on 2008

Looking back on 2008....

February 2008: I passed the CT board exam. We also attended our first OSU Dental School Tooth Ball...By the way, it is now named the Mandiball. How cute, huh? Although we aren't sure we are going this year because a.) we have Lexie now, and b.) it costs $50.00 ...so we'll see if we end up going this year.

I'm excited to see what cake they have this year!

March 2008: We "officially" found out that we were having a baby girl. We were sooo excited since we both were hoping for a girl. Spring break was also in March, and we went to Cincinatti and Hawking Hills with Jason and Sarah. We also got hooked on Lost during this month...which by the way, the next season of Lost starts back up this week. Yay!








April 2008: I don't remember much from April, besides I was starting to look pretty pregnant! I am sure glad that I don't look like that anymore!

May 2008: We celebrated James' birthday and counted down the days to a much needed break from school. I also had a baby shower with some girls from church and some of the dental wives.
June 2008: James finally got some time off from school and we went to Utah where I had a baby shower with my mom's side of the family. It was fun to see everyone, especially my sister Megan who was due a month ahead of me with a baby girl. At the end of the month, we had a baby shower with the people I worked with at Riverside.
July 2008: James, Chase, and Shayne did an amazing job remodeling a bathroom for some extra money.

...and Alexis Paige finally arrived...even a few days early! This was definitely the highlight of our year. August 2008: This was probably one of the hardest months of the year. My mom stayed with us for 10 days after Lexie was born, and I cried the whole way home after I had to drop her off at the airport. We had a lot of long, sleepless nights this month and we spent countless hours walking outside trying to get Lexie to sleep. Needless to say, we were both exhausted.

This is Lexie asleep in the baby bjorn...it was definitely our saving grace those first few months because it was the only way to get her to fall asleep during the day. We had to be outside and walking and bouncing at the same time for it to work, but it was worth it to have a break from crying. Unfortunately, there was no way to get her out of the carrier without waking her up so we had to keep moving as long as we wanted her to stay asleep.


Look at that sweet face...it's hard to believe all of our crying and sleeping stories, isn't it?? She's getting too big to sleep like this, but she still tries every once in a while....

The hightlight of the month for me was going to see the Broadway production of Lion King with some of the girls. I had a great time...it was the longest I had ever been away from Lexie, and I really needed the break. However, this was also the night that James came to realize that I probably wouldn't be able to go back to work...Before I left, I gave him a tutorial on how to use the Baby Bjorn. (I'm going to get in trouble when he finds out I posted this picture)...but it was a good thing I showed him how to use it, because I came home to find him pacing the streets with Lexie in it. It was the only time she wasn't crying the whole time he had her that night. The highlight of the month for Jimmy was going to see Utah beat Michigan in the Big House. This was a great way to start off the football season.
September 2008: Lexie made her first big trip across the country to visit family in Utah and Idaho. We got to go to Sandy's baby blessing and we even got a 5 generation picture with Lexie's great great grandma, great grandpa, and grandma. Unfortunately this is the only 5 generation any of our kids will have since Grandma June passed away in November 2008.

This is my mom holding Sandy. It's hard to see her blessing dress in this picture, but my mom did a fantastic job making it. She also made Lexie's dress (pictured below).

Cousins...

5 Generations...

Our sweet little baby...This was my favorite dress on her.

October 2008: James and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary. Lexie was blessed and she had some more family come visit for it. We also dressed up for Halloween for the first time together and went to an awesome party (thanks to Shayne and Sherri).



November 2008: We celebrated another Ohio Thanksgiving , and had a great dinner with a bunch of other Utah kids.



December 2008: We made a last minute trip to Utah. We spent Christmas with James' family and then went to Island Park with my family. We had a great time, but didn't enjoy having the flu while we were in Idaho.