It's the end of the year and time for me to attempt to remember the things that happened to me throughout 2013. It was a big year, but also quite a blur!
January: Got into a car accident while driving the Honda Civic Hybrid that we had bought 5 months earlier. The man who ran into me was driving a Chevy Silverado and turned left into my car as I was going through a green light. It worked out in my favor, though, because the Civic was totaled and worth $3000 more than what we had paid for it. Since we had only made 5 payments on it, we basically just kept the same loan and used the extra money as a down payment for a Prius (my dream car!) At 6 months pregnant, I somehow escaped that crash with just a teeny-tiny bruise on my elbow and no pain the next day. They ran tests on me at the hospital and Elisha was also perfectly fine. Andrew and I also went to a lovely Bed & Breakfast in Staunton, VA, as a babymoon. It was beautiful up there and a fun memory to make before the baby was born.
February: I think we went to some ODU games and I worked a lot. We went to the Broken Egg (our favorite restaurant) for a really nice dinner on Valentine's Day.
March: Spring began and the weather became ultra-beautiful. Andrew and I got to take some lovely hikes during my 8th month of pregnancy because of that gorgeous weather. I was a single woman for 2 weeks because Andrew was a chaperone for the senior trip to Europe. It was nice to have the house to myself for about 2 days, but then I missed him and time seemed to stand still for the next 12 days.
April: I gave birth to Elisha Gideon Garrett on April 26th. He had to go to the NICU the next day because they were afraid that there was something wrong with his small intestine. He ended up being healthy, but he had to stay in the NICU for 5 days because they put him on antibiotics for a possible infection.
May: Mama, Emmy, and Eiley came to live with us and help out with Elisha when he was first born. It was so nice to have them in town and get to see them loving spending time with my little boy.
June: I got to spend most of this month with Elisha and established somewhat of a routine with him. I went back to work at the end of the month.
July: Went on my first road trip with Elisha and discovered that he's quite a good traveler. We reunited with my friends in Kentucky and it was so great to be able to introduce him to all of his surrogate aunts and uncles at once.
August: My dad came to visit because he couldn't handle the fact that he would have to wait another 3 months to meet Elisha. I loved that he took the time to visit and that he got quality time with his only grandson.
September: Andrew went on a 3 day retreat with everyone at Stonebridge, so I experienced being a single mom for the first time. Mad props to the single moms out there because it's hard to do the parenting thing without extra help.
October: I was in a ton of pain because of a bulging disc in my back that was pinching a nerve in my right leg. It was absolutely miserable and I spent most of the month in bed and/or crying. Thankfully, Andrew has a wonderful parent at his school who has a chain of physical therapy facilities here and he was able to take care of me. Physical therapy helped me a ton in getting to be able to walk, sit, and stand again without being in misery.
November: Spent my birthday evening watching the Stonebridge Girls' Volleyball team win their quarterfinal match and then everyone went out for Mexican food after it was over. We went to California for Thanksmas and, of course, had a blast with family. It was so fun to introduce Elisha to everyone and to see how excited they all were to meet him. I was also very proud of him on all of our flights. He didn't sleep much, but he was a happy camper!
December: Went to Christmas Town at Busch Gardens and saw lots of pretty lights. Spent time with Andrew's side of the family as they came into town. Had Elisha dedicated at Andrew's old church.
