2010 Year in Review

So after a really great, life-changing, 2009 it turned out 2010 was just as exciting. After all, once you have a child, everything becomes a little more exciting.   Maybe it's because it's not just what you do that you look forward to, it's what they do too.  Parts of 2009 may have been a little boring as a far as going places, and doing things, but 2010 was not lacking in this area at all!
In January, Ben started walking.  He was between 11-12 months.

We also cut his hair for the first time.  Just a trim, just a little.  He did really good.

We also got his first professional pictures taken for his 1 year photos.  He wasn't quite a year, but we needed them back to send out on his birthday invitations.

Most of January, and all of February up until his first birthday I was planning planning planning!  I wanted it to be a really memorable birthday for him(OK maybe not for him- for me:).  I chose a "farm" theme, b/c at Christmas, he had received a tractor toy w/ little farm animals on it that he really enjoyed.  His party was February 20th, on his actual birthday, and it turned out really great.  I remember being a little stressed out that day, but that's just me:)

My baby was 1 and growing up too fast already!! Here is another picture of him from February:

In March, Robert and I went on a weekend getaway to Mt Magazine for our 2nd anniversary.  We stayed in the Lodge, in a suite.  We hiked a few trails, and relaxed the rest of the time.

In April, Ben got to meet the Easter Bunny for the first time at the Hot Springs Country Club.  We went there for Easter brunch and an egg hunt.  Ben found (aka my mom put it in his basket) the GOLDEN egg!  

Ben, great granny, and I also took a road trip to Fort Worth for cousin Ian's 3rd birthday party.  Ben did great on the trip, and Granny kept me entertained with all of her crazy stories from her childhood and other times.  We tried to get a picture of Granny at the party with all of her great grandkids that were there.  This is the best we could do:

As it started warming up, we started playing outside a lot.  Especially in the water. So in May we bought Ben a little splash pool that he used throughout the summer.  

He also loved Nana and Papa's new pool and went swimming EVERY time he went to see them!

Wanda, Jessica, and her friend came to visit for memorial day.  I got to spend a little time with them, without Robert and Ben and we had a lot of fun.  We also laid out in the sun a little too long...

In June we made a lot of trips to Hot Springs, and went to the zoo a few times too.  The zoo is definitely one of Ben's favorite places.  We've purchased a membership each year now.

In July, Ben was invited to a neighborhood 4th of July parade and party.  It was one hot day, but really fun and something different.

At the end of July, we went on a family vacation with my parents to Sanibel Florida.  Mom bought us airplane tickets because it would have been too long of a drive with a 17 month old.  It was Ben's first time on an airplane, and he did surprisingly well flying there and back.  He slept a lot of it, and never really fussed at all!

In August, we tried to take Ben to a lot of playgrounds, parks, etc and let him run around.  We went to the Rivermarket's newer play area with a more "natural" playground and this fun water feature.  

In September, we hosted a Razorback game day party and had our friends over.  Ben had a lot fun giving high fives to everyone.  

October was probably the busiest month for us this year.  We went to Schaefer and Colins pumpkin patch with our good friends the O'dells.  Ben and Kirby loved the hayride out to the patch and loved running around the patch and picking their own pumpkins!

The we had a girls-only outing to Motley's Pumpkin Patch.  We watched pig races, and all of us bought some pumpkins and gourds to take home!  After the patch we went to dinner at Zaza's.  It was a super fun fall day.

Andrew and Suzanne flew in for my Dad's 60th birthday party. They stayed with us the first night in Little Rock, and went to dinner w/ Jen, Jessi, Jeff, and Faith so Andrew could hang with them a bit.  He doesn't get to see much of anyone from here anymore. 

 Dad and Dr. Baldwin had a joint 60th at Baldwin's farm.  Andrew and Suz loved seeing Ben and had more fun with him this time since he was older.  They day they left we went downtown HS to the promenade and walked around and let Ben see the Hot Springs.

October is also when the Hogs played Texas A&M in Arlington at the Cowboy's stadium.  We were lucky enough to get to go, and had a great time with our friends Alana and Travis.  We ate at a lot of great restaurants and did some shopping too!

Our friends Jason and Mandy's couples wedding shower was also in October! (See I told you it was a busy month!).  Brooke and Jeff hosted the shower, and it turned out lovely!  It was at Burns Park, North Little Rock.

At the end of October, Robert and I took Ben to the Memphis Zoo for the first time.  He loved seeing all the different animals that the Little Rock zoo doesn't have but he did throw an insane amount of tantrums while we were there.  Here is a picture of him looking at the giant bear through the glass.

In November, Jennifer and Travis drove down for Thanksgiving with the kids.  It was the first time for us to see Norah.  We took them to Garvan Woodland Gardens again to see the lights and let the kids play together as much as possible. Here's a picture of the boys playing in the sandbox.

December started off with Jason and Mandy's wedding! It was absolutely beautiful and Jason had this HUGE grin on his face the entire time!  

Robert and I also took Ben to see Santa at the Peabody.  I think the event was called "Storybook Holidays" or something like that.  Santa led the ducks off the elevator, and then they had free hot drinks, and the kids got their pictures taken w/ santa all for free.  Ben LOVED Santa, but when it came to actually sitting in his lap, he was a bit shy!

We also took Ben to see another Santa at "Christmas in the Wild" at the LR zoo.  This was our second year of doing this, and I think we are going to make it a tradition, as long as the event is held.  They had arts and crafts, breakfast, and different animals to see. Ben liked the opossum, and Laura the penguin the most.  He was shy at first w/ Santa, but by the end, he was giving him high fives!

and then we followed Santa as he delivered presents to some of the zoo animals.

On Dec 18th, Robert and I made a short trip to Mt. Ida for a little Christmas get-together w/ Travis and Alana.  We watched the Razorback basketball game, ate yummy snacks, and then Alana made us a yummy dinner.  We also watched The Polar Express - one of our favorite Christmas movies!  We have gotten really close to the Tarkinton's over the last year or so, and we absolutely love them!

Here is my parent's family Christmas card this year- (we took the photo in October when Andrew was down for Dad's birthday)

I am sure I will update this post later w/ a few pictures from today and tomorrow of Ben opening presents-

It was a super awesome year, and we can't wait to see what's in store for 2011!