2015

2015 was a rough year for our family.  There were some good things but it was a year that we were not sad to see go.  2015 brought lots of loss for our family. In January, we found out that after a year of trying, we were pregnant!  We were so excited.  When I was 6 weeks, I miscarried our baby.  It was a tough time but I tried to be optimistic because I knew that these thing happen.  I tried to take it in stride although I was heartbroken.  This marked the beginning of a lot of loss within our family.

In February, T.J. had some oral surgery done because his canine tooth hadn't broken through the gum and an infectious pocket had developed.  When they opened the gum and drained the pocket, they discovered that he actually had 2 canine teeth and they had fused together but some of the nerve was still exposed so they had to remove the gum and seal the nerve with a filling.  Poor little guy had to be put on anesthesia and everything, he was in surgery for about 2.5 hours.  Post surgery, he was groggy for the rest of the day.

 This year, T.J. was old enough to participate in the Murray Jr. Cheer Clinic.  It was so fun having him participate and my cheerleaders loved having him there and they may have given him some preferential treatment, but who can blame them?  He is a pretty cool kid.

 In March, my cheer team went to Nationals in Anaheim, California.  I was so proud of them!  The placed 8th in the Nation in Co-Ed Intermediate Division.  They did awesome!  Pom placed 9th in Novice division.  Not too bad for their first time at a National Competition.  

 It was a lot of fun because my family joined us for this trip.  Tyson, T.J., and my mom arrived earlier than we did and they went to the beach.  This was T.J.'s first time at the beach since he was 3 weeks old...he loved it!  I think he is going to be a beach bum like his momma!

 T.J. continued to channel his inner GQ model this year in his Easter photoshoot.  This boy is such a stud and can rock a suit like no other.

 A few days after returning from California, my cousin Arik Mack died in a car accident on March 24.  I hadn't seen Arik in years but had tracked his baseball success.  He was a talented baseball player who was taken far too soon.  Arik had been texting and driving when he moved into on coming traffic and collided with a semi head on.  It was a tragic event for our family and a sad one that brought us all together.  

For Father's Day this year, T.J. made Tyson a tie.  I thought it turned out great and Tyson was a good sport to wear it to church.

 Summer brought some good times.  My dad bought a cabin and we had a lot of fun going up there as a family and bringing the dogs.  They have a cute little pond where you can feed fish and fish for them.  Along with buying the cabin, my dad purchased an ATV.  We love taking the ATV out and driving around looking for wildlife.  We often see deer, elk, rabbits, and when we are lucky moose!  The cabin is one of T.J.'s favorite places to go.

 T.J. also began swimming lessons.  He is a natural like his daddy.  He loves to swim!  He progressed so quickly!  We are excited to see him progress in this area.

 In June, at 12 weeks, I experienced another miscarriage.  This one was a tough blow and much harder for me to accept.  I knew miscarriages happened but no one should experience two in a row.  I was beyond devastated!  Because of my first miscarriage I was under close observance with my doctor and had early ultrasounds.  Things were moving slow, my HCG levels were doubling every 48 hours but were just doubling, almost exactly, not more that doubling.  Doubling is what they look for which is good but we were still being cautious.  During our appointments, we were able to detect a heart beat so I was hopeful that this we were good.  Unfortunately, at my 12 week appointment, they could no longer detect the heartbeat that they had found two and four weeks prior.  My levels were still going up so I tried to remain hopeful but unfortunately we did lose another baby.  This was a hard blow for us.  We were all devastated and decided that we needed to take a trip.  Tyson told me that I could choose anywhere.  He wanted me to go somewhere that made me happy.  Naturally I chose my favorite place in the world...the beach!  Not just any beach but Newport.  3 weeks after the miscarriage, we loaded up and headed to the beach.  It was the perfect vacation!  We went to Disneyland on the first day and had a great time.  T.J. was so happy because finally on his 3rd time to Disneyland he got to meet Jake.  The rest of the week we spent shopping on Balboa Island, Whale Watching, riding bikes up and down Newport, hitting the Newport Flea Market, and of course having fun on the beach.  It was exactly what we needed.  Unfortunately, we didn't take many photos but we made some great memories.  I appreciated how supportive Tyson was during this time.  I was having a really hard time and his support really helped me through this time.  I am so grateful for Tyson and during this hard time we grew closer together and I feel even more in love with him which I didn't even know was possible.

When we came home from California, Tyson's family had a family reunion.  It was a lot of fun.  It was on an army base and we got to do some of the training exercised that the army does.  We also played a lot of fun games.  I enjoyed seeing Tyson's family and getting to know some of his extended family.

 For T.J.'s 3rd Birthday we did a "Wild Kratts" Party which is T.J.'s favorite show this year.  It is a show that talks about animals.  T.J. is a lot like his mom that way, loves animals.  We had a petting zoo come for his party and it was a blast!

This year, T.J. also started preschool.  He went to Preschool at Ms. Karen's Preschool which is an in-home preschool in our neighborhood.  T.J. was able to go with his friend Clark and he loved it!  He was the youngest in his class but he kept up and exceeded their expectations.  On the first day of preschool, they celebrated T.J.'s birthday and gave him a crown and made him a birthday cake of his very own.  He thought he hit the jackpot!

In the fall, T.J. started soccer.  He loved it even more than swimming.  It was a bit of a struggle because at 3 the kids don't really understand the game but they had fun and that's all that matters.  T.J. even made a goal this year!  He was very proud of it as were we.  We love this stud!

 In October, my mom had her annual Halloween extravaganza.  It was a hit as always.  T.J. chose his own Halloween costume this year.  He wanted to be a red dragon.  It was hard to find that costume but eventually we did and he was very proud of it.  He was one cute dragon!

 In November, our sweet Max began acting out of character and was having accidents in the house.  It got to the point where he wouldn't even come inside and we couldn't even get him to eat.  I was taking him to the vet weekly running different test and trying different things to get him to eat. The beginning of December we had to make the tough choice to put him to sleep.  He was so week he couldn't even walk and could barely stand up.  I took this photo the day before we took him to be put down.  It was a choice suggested by our vet and I knew it was the right one.  Max wasn't happy and we couldn't see him suffer any more.  I cried the whole way to the vet.  I miss Max so much.  He was such a good dog for our family and we loved him.  We know he is in a better place now and is no longer suffering. This was our last loss of 2015 but it still hurt and T.J. misses Max and still talks about how much he misses him over a year later.  Max may be gone but will never be forgotten.

 T.J. has always loved to dance and has awesome moves.  In the Fall, my friend Tabitha asked us if T.J. would be interested in taking a Hip Hop Tumbling class with Beau.  I signed him up and he enjoyed it.  He is so much like his mom I love it!  For their Winter recital they did a Hip Hop Dance to Heigh-Ho from Snow White.

Christmas brought on fun adventures.  My mom arranged for us all to go to the Homestead to visit Santa at the North Pole.  We took a Sleigh Ride to Santa's Workshop.  We had a lot of fun riding in a one horse open sleigh (literally) and singing Christmas songs.  It was cold and snowy but what do you expect at the North Pole?

Here are more fun photos from the year: