Good wife. Great mother. Decent Lady. BAD BLOGGER.

I miss it.

I miss the days that each Sunday I could sit down and review the week.  I initially started the blog for our parents so they could keep up with the grandkids.  After awhile, it became more than that to me...a journal of sorts that allowed me time to reflect on life as it happened.

And that is exactly why I miss it.  As more and more of life keeps happening, there is less time to reflect on the life's "happenings."

I will not try a superficial attempt at "catching" up, but as I look through the picture library of the year, there are some things to highlight.

So I present, my list of 2011 favorite things:

{FAVORITE PARTY}

Although we entertain a lot, my favorite gathering of friends from 2011 occurred during the first few moments of the year.  Nothing kicks off a year better than to be surrounded by those you love.  I remember looking around as my parents, dear friends, our children, and my sweet husband rang the start of 2011 in our new outdoor den.

{FAVORITE SURPRISE}

The weather surprised us many times in 2011.  Definitely one of our favorite times was gathering with our neighborhood pals for a huge sledding party.  This picture is with my childhood sled.  It didn't work great in the southern, light, fluffy snow, but it made for great pics!

{FAVORITE FAMILY PICTURE}

Although it was taken at Grandma Dee's funeral, I love this picture of my family.  It is the first one we have had taken in awhile and it is still the screen saver on my laptop.  It makes me not miss them all so much!

{BEST GIRL}

There is no other picture taken that could sum up the complexities of my Lily girl and this year her personality has just blossomed.  Although I can predict some difficult days ahead, I know I'm gonna dig being this girl's mom.  She's a special kinda thing and I can't get enough.

{BEST WRITING SPOT}

We have a friend with a cabin that overlooks this:

And who better to bring along for inspiration than these ladies:

After the death of my grandmother in January, I felt this screaming and yelling of my soul telling me that I needed to write.  Of course, I couldn't do it alone.  We gathered the troops and headed to a place where we could stay in PJs all day and take in some quality "girltime".  Definitely one of my favorite moments of the year.

{FAVORITE BIRTHDAY BOY}

He wanted to celebrate his Kentucky Wildcats so all we needed was a gym, some balls, and a bunch of great friends.  This pic was taken as he displayed his moves during the dance competition.

{BEST PLAYDATE}

This pic was taken outside the Children's Museum in Wilmington, NC.  The kids and I had a great visit with the Hurleys for Spring Break complete with a walk on the dock, catching crab, beach play, and lots of fun pics.  Of course I loved the pineapple salsa from Flaming Amy's and fish tacos from K38!

{FAVORITE SUNSET}

This pic was taken by my dear friend, Leslie, on JoJo's dock, which is one of my favorite places.  It makes me happy every time I look at it.

{BEST FRIENDS}

What better way to celebrate another year of life than with fish tacos from Taco Mamacita and a beautiful group of ladies and their wonderful husbands (not pictured)?

{BEST DRESSED}

We had a wonderful Easter weekend with Robbie's parents.  All year long, Papaw has been working on a treehouse for the kids.  This was the first weekend of construction.  Of course, we cleaned up and took time out to celebrate our risen savior.

{FAVORITE VACATION}

Robbie and I celebrated 10 years of marriage on the beaches of Mexico.  This was our first trip without friends or family.

This is a pic of a sedote (swimming hole).  I was a sad tourist because I didn't get to swim due to a rainstorm.

{BEST COUPLES GETAWAY}

Another great weekend on Dale Hollow Lake with Robbie's college buds and their wives.

{MOST VALUABLE PLAYERS}

Our first spring at the ballpark was a complete blast, especially with daddy as a coach and me as a scorekeeper.

{BEST TOURNAMENT}

I am not sure what goes on there, but Robbie, his brother, Adam and their buddies have a great time at K Day weekend in Paintsville every year.

{FAVORITE CELEBRATION}

What a great weekend in Gatlinburg celebrating 40 years of marriage with Papaw and Mamaw including a great dinner at the Dixie Stampede.

{FAVORITE PASTTIME}

This year Tate and Daddy kept working on their golf game while Lily acted as the best caddy and ate all the snacks.

{MOST MEMORABLE}

The first day of school was extra special this year as our baby went to Kindergarden.

{BEST LAUGH}

The annual girls' weekend is always jam-packed with laughs, but this particular weekend had an added twist.  10 girls and a double-decker pontoon boat on Dale Hollow Lake created a perfect scene for the greatest comedy of the year.

{MOST CHANGE}

To mom's dismay, Tate decided it was time to cut of his strawberry blonde locks.

{CUTEST}

Check out these cutie patooties, featuring both old and new friends, celebrating Lily's 6th birthday.

{BEST COSTUME}

The kids always try to keep their candy away from daddy on Halloween.  This year, they not only had to hide the candy, but they were competing for "Best Costume" too.  Although daddy looked cute as Derek Dooley, he was beaten by the Midnight Butterfly and Darth Vadar.

{FAVORITE TRADITION}

It's been several years since I have spent Thanksgiving in New York, but not a thing has changed.

There's still plenty of food, family and fun to go around.

{FAVORITE DAY EVER}

If you look smack in the middle of the picture, you will see my husband holding three very happy kids.  This year the annual Kentucky vs. Tennessee ended in sweet victory.  My husband and kids were celebrating for one reason, but I was happy for a completely different one.


As Eleanor Roosevelt says, "Happiness is not a goal, it is a by-product of a life well lived."  Indeed it is.


Stay tuned for a holiday update soon!
~ao