I have a longstanding tradition of ending each year with a Highlights post, reflecting on the big moments of the year and highlighting a few favorites from the previous twelve months. I’m so thankful to past Kendra for establishing this practice of built-in recollection: I needed the familiarity of routine, spurred on by my stubborn faithfulness to tradition, to engage in some reflection at the end of this year that was a momentous one for our family—and worth recalling—but had largely been suppressed in my memory bank by pregnancy discomforts and newborn haze.

Once I got going, I enjoyed spending time looking back at the year’s photos and journals to compile this post, and I hope you’ll indulge me as I take a trip down memory lane, 2024 Edition.

MOST MEMORABLE MOMENTS

In January, Charleston and I flew out to California to visit my parents. It was my first time away from the twins, but they did great with the separation, and I loved this special time with just one kiddo. A highlight of our time in California was a day at Lego Land: Charleston continues to talk about that visit almost daily and can’t wait to return as a whole family.

The reason for our California trip was to attend my grandmother’s memorial service, on what would have been her 99th birthday. Her ashes were scattered at sea, and my parents planned a small but lovely service that Oma would have loved. She was an incredible woman whom we miss terribly. I’m glad we were able to honor her on that day.

We learned of our pregnancy a few days before Christmas last year (and shared the news with the kids and our parents Christmas day!), but we waited until mid-February to announce our surprise to the world.

We learned baby’s gender the first weekend of March. Though everyone else was hoping for a girl, I was right in my own prediction that I was carrying a boy. Of course now that he’s here I can’t imagine anything different.

I turned forty on March 2. The day itself was uneventful, and the segue into my forties has been mostly painless. I’m grateful for every one of my forty years and the blessings these years have brought me.

My parents were in Texas for a few days in April. The reason for their trip (the passing of my Dad’s cousin, who lived in Houston) was a sad one, but we loved getting to see them while they were in town.

We got swept up in the Eclipse Mania and I was forced to admit that it was totally worth the hype. What an amazing experience that was.

We traveled out to California around Memorial Day to spend time with my family and attend Family Camp with my parents, Austin, and Yessi. We look forward to this trip every year and I was so glad we could make it happen this year, even though I was seven months pregnant and the drive itself was a little tough.

In July, we attended the Great Homeschool Convention in Round Rock. The kids and Luke joined me this year and it felt like a mini stay-cation. It was a great time of learning and community with fellow homeschoolers, and the kids loved participating.

Luke bought a new truck—a replacement for the other new truck he bought last October, which was totaled in February when he and Charleston were rear-ended. It was a long year of insurance negotiations followed by lots of research; on a positive note, Luke is thrilled with his new vehicle that is the first brand-new car either of us have ever owned (the last truck was preowned).

THE highlight of the year was Nico’s arrival on August 18, at thirty-nine weeks on the dot. Those final weeks of pregnancy were pretty brutal, but his birth was more perfect than I could have imagined and my recovery after a drug-free VBAC was a breeze.

We got to bring Nico home when he was just 24 hours old and quickly settled into life as a family of six. Watching my three older kids with their baby brother has been the sweetest experience.

My parents came out for Nico’s birth and were a huge help with the big kids during our first week at home. They surprised us with the timing of their visit (unbeknownst to us they were already in Texas the day I went into labor!) and I love that they got to meet him when he was just an hour old; what a blessing.

In October we spent a week at a beach house in Galveston with Luke’s family for our annual family beach trip. It wasn’t easy with a newborn, but we still had a great time playing on the beach and visiting the NASA museum, which is pretty amazing.

We had lots of fun with our Noah-themed Halloween costumes this year. The theme was Charleston’s idea and it will be a hard one to beat!

Our friends Cara and Dan visited from South Dakota in December. We just had a day with them, but had so much fun and I am so happy that they were able to meet Nico!

My parents came for a final visit of the year, arriving the day after Christmas. They’ll be with us through New Year’s and we’ve loved getting to celebrate Christmas week with them.

KID MILESTONES AND MOMENTS

Charleston turned nine on a snowy day in January, and we’ve been savoring this final year of single digits. Bigger-kid life has its challenges, but I find that I am REALLY loving this age, with its deeper conversations and high levels of independence (and before adolescent hormones make an appearance).

Kali has been dancing since before she could walk, and in January she began dance classes at the Y. She’s a total natural and enjoyed participating in Princess Dance, Ballet, and Tap this year (with ballet being her favorite).

The twins crossed a number of big milestons this spring/summer, from learning to buckle their own carseats (in February) to transitioning away from naptime and into daily quiet time instead (in August).

Charleston’s favorite event of the summer was attending VBS at his grandparents’ church. He was exhausted but oh-so-happy by the end of the week.

In July we upgraded the twins’ room, a transition that involved adding a second toddler bed to their space so they would no longer need to share the crib/toddler bed they’ve been in since infancy. Now they each have their own sleeping space. . . and STILL choose to sleep together every night. 😉

We began our school year in August, with Charleston starting fourth grade and the twins starting Pre-K (their first “official” year of school beyond just sitting in on Charleston’s lessons). We’re now half way through our school year and it’s gone far better than I’d imagined, even with the challenges of adding a baby into our homeschooling mix.

Kali and Sully turned five in September! I swear that they grew up overnight and seem so much older and more mature since this milestone birthday.

Charleston has gotten to participate in a few new things this fall, including Friday Elective Days at Fortis (a local classical school where, among other events, he got to play an extra in the fall play as an extra and prop designer) and mid-week 4th/5th-grade Discipleship at church (where a highlight was winning Best Costume on Pirate night).

This year has been nothing BUT milestones and firsts for Nico. A big one was his first time at the beach; he wasn’t a fan.

Nico started smiling at the start of November and it has been the absolute best.

Kali’s been asking to have her ears pierced for as long as I can remember; we’d told her she needed to wait until she was five, and she and I made a mother/daughter date of the event a few weeks ago. She’s in love with her new bling!

QUOTIDIAN MEMORIES

The Big Events and Milestones may stand out, but it’s the day-to-day moments that make up a life and that I hope to remember most when I think back on this year for our family.

SO MUCH playtime at home. We were home more this year, and my kids adapted beautifully. Our backyard and playroom got tons of playtime.

Gymnastics classes (including a few sessions of Super Hero gymnastics) for Kali and Sully.

Reading through the Catholic Bible (along with Father Mike) each morning; I love that Luke joined me in this study rhythm this year.

Monday Night Trail Life meetings and monthly campouts for Charleston and Luke, and special times for the littles and me while they were away.

Biweekly evenings gathering for home Bible study with other families from church; this was short-lived, but a sweet time of community while it lasted. (Kali LOVED playing dress-up with our hosts’ daughter’s clothes.)

Tuesdays at The Rock Enrichment Academy for Charleston through spring, and Saints (Sports Day) on Thursdays throughout the school year.

Thursday mornings doing Bible Study at Hill Country Bible Church: a time of learning and fellowship for me and a Sunday School environment for the kids.

Saturday evenings at church; we are a little sad that our church has shifted back to Sunday-only services. Whatever day we attend, we continue to be so thankful that God brought us to this new church community.

Weekday mornings at the gym: playtime in the babysitting room with Miss Betsy and Miss Alyssa for the twins, independent homeschool time for Charleston, a workout for me (and treadmill walks with Nico once he was born).

Family game nights! It’s exciting that the twins are old enough for “real people games” now.

Attending weekly story time at the Cedar Park library, and playing at their play area afterwards (especially fun since the new library was built).

Participating in the Liberty Hill library’s reading program this summer.

Summer mornings at the pool: Charleston is a stronger swimmer now, and the twins are still wearing floaties, so I finally felt comfortable taking the kids to the pool without another adult this year.

Solo dates with each of the kids: donuts or McDonald’s with Kali or Sully, Menchie’s or Dairy Queen before Discipleship with Charleston, pedicures with Kali. These one-on-one moments are precious and one of the most important components of our family life.

Long lunches followed by afternoons at fast food places: a free indoor playground for the kids, and a break for Mom!

Date nights with Luke, which were few and far between this year but always welcome when we could make them happen.

Documenting each week of my pregnancy with Belly Pics (that seems so long ago!).

Documenting each month with Nico; the photo sessions are stressful, but I know I’ll be thankful to have recorded this first year with him.

Long nursing sessions in the glider, followed by “chats” and lullabies with my babe.

Evening blessing, prayer time, and Bible reading with the kids before bed.

Daily DEAR (Drop Everything And Read) time after lunch with the kids.

Celebrating holidays with all our usual traditions: dying eggs and visiting the Easter Bunny and hunting for eggs at Easter; decorating our tree and doing Advent and seeing Santa at Christmas; carving pumpkins and trick-or-treating at Halloween; seeing fireworks on 4th of July. We do the same things every year, but I wouldn’t trade these traditions for anything.

BEST OF THE KID-ISMS

My kids say the darndest things! I laughed remembering some of their best -isms from the year.

Kali-isms

+ Sully, listening to a CD of Bible verses set to music: “Are these songs in the Bible? I don’t like this part.” [He was referring to the instrumental part once the lyrics had finished.] “Let’s skip this part in the Bible.” Kali: “No, Sully, we can’t skip it! God wrote it and He loves us!” (January)

+ Looking through a coloring book of Barbie in various career costumes: “What?! Why is she a fire fighter and NOT a princess??” (February)

+ “Mom, do you remember when me and Sully were born?” Me: “Yes, it was on your birthday, September 27.” Kali: “Our birthday?! Why were were born on our birthday?!” (April)

+ Sully: “Who did you live with when you were growing up?” Me: “I lived with Oma and Opa and Uncle Austin.” Kali: “And Tía Yessi, right? You lived with her too!” Austin and Yessí got married two years ago…. (July)

+ “I really want to go to Heaven to see what it’s like!” Me: “Well one day you will.” Kali: “But then I’ll be too old!” (September)

+ Charleston to Kali, who was climbing over the seats in my van: “Kali, don’t break Mommy’s car. Because I don’t want you to be sad because Mommy will make you pay for the new car and then you won’t have any money to go to college and then you can’t be vice president and it will ruin the rest of your life.” Kali to Charleston: “But I could buy a PINK car!” (November)

+ At Chick-fil-A, when the playground was getting a little wild: “I like our home. There’s no crazy kids there.” (December)

Sully-isms

+ “What is that on the wall?” Me: “It’s a thermostat. It helps make sure the room is the right temperature.” Sully: “So a doctor comes out of it with a thermometer to take our temperature?” (January)

+ “Why do we hold hands when we cross the parking lot? If there’s a car coming, we’ll still die!” (March)

+ About my pregnant belly: “Don’t squish the baby or else he might get all hurt and he’ll have to grow all over again.” (April)

+ “I am older because I came out first. Probably because I wanted to come out more than Kali because I wanted Mama more.” (May)

+ “When you’re 13 are you really tall?” Me: “Yes, when you’re 13 you’ll be a lot taller than you are now.” Sully: “Oh. So when is Daddy going to be 13?” (June)

+ “Bad guys have to wash their hands so they don’t get sick. Because they have to go steal stuff from houses and they can’t steal stuff if they’re sick.” (August)

+ When Kali asked if she could join Sully in a game he was playing: “No, Kali, you’re not old enough.” (September)

+ “Why does Chuck E. Cheese not talk when he’s in his costume? Is it ’cause he’s shy or something?” (October)

+ “The oldest person I know is God. And the next oldest person I know is Opa.” Opa is my dad, who is 72. (October)

Charlie-isms

+ When I was telling him stories about my paternal grandmother, who passed away in 2009: “How long were people expected to live back then?” (February)

+ “I’m not sure I should read such good books anymore, because then I just want them to come true.” (April)

+ “I started wearing hats when my fear of bad guys started. Because the brim of a hat is pretty strong so it’s a good defense system. At the time it seemed like a good idea.” (May)

+ “Wasps really scare the sweat out of me. I can’t wait until I get to Heaven, when wasps and all of humanity live in peace.” (July)

+ “Why do I need to learn how to diagram a sentence? Nobody’s ever going to ask me to do it. On a game show maybe, but I’m never gonna go on one of those. Presidents don’t have time for that.” (October)

+ Me, after a close call on the road. “That man almost hit me!” Charleston: “He did hit you. He hit you with emotion.” (November)

+ “You’re a generous parent. You could be MORE generous, if you want any tips.” (December0

LIGHT IN 2024

There have been many years when my chosen Word has shaped my experiences and memories in profound ways. This was not one of those years. My pregnancy and Nico’s birth undoubtedly have something to do with this, but the biggest culprit was my own failure to establish practices that would keep my Word front of mind. (I’m making a note of this, and will be doing things differently with my Word in 2025.)

Even though I was not intentional about incorporating LIGHT into my year, I can look back and see many instances of God’s Light shining all around me. I love when God shows up for us when we ask Him to, even when we fail to remain vigilant as we await a response.

A FEW FAVORITES

Favorite Books

I shared eighteen of my favorite books (twelve fiction, six nonfiction) in my 2024 Reading Recap two weeks ago. My #1 favorite book of the year was Here One Moment, which stood out for its thought-provoking premise, creative structure, and memorable characters. The God of the Woods (literary mystery) was a very close second, followed by The Unmaking of June Farrow (time travel) and Crossing to Safety (literary fiction, and my favorite backlist title). Nonfiction favorites were Habits of the Household (most actionable) and Love Thy Body (best theological/cultural commentary).

Favorite Movies

A theme among my favorite movies this year is that they were all adaptations of books I read with the kids. (To be fair, this describes almost all of the new movies I watched this year, not just my favorites.) The first was Paddington, which has the sweetest family story and the most charming costumes and setting. I was not prepared to love The Wild Robot as much as I did; the book was cute, but the movie is spectacular—visually stunning, and the film makers captured the novel’s quirky sweetness and doubled down on the sentimentality in all the best ways. Rounding out the list is The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, which conveys the powerful Gospel message from the book and truly brings the characters and nostalgic 1970s setting to life.

Wicked is a very late addition to my year’s favorites: we saw it last Saturday, after I’d already written up most of this post, but I just had to include it among favorite films of the year because it was absolutely fantastic. I love the Broadway show and worried the film version wouldn’t compare, but it absolutely holds up. Perfect casting, gorgeous sets and costuming, and incredible music made this an absolute winner.

Favorite Podcasts

Podcasts continue to be my favorite sources of entertainment and information. I added a number of new podcasts to my regular listening queue this year. A few favorites from the list of new additions are The Recipe with Kenji and Deb (a cooking podcast cohosted by one of my favorite cooking bloggers), Sidetracked (a hilarious girltalk show cohosted by Heather from longtime favorite Don’t Mom Alone), Raising Parents (which tackles controversial parenting topics from a nonpartisan perspective), The Unspeakable with Meghan Daum (the interviews with heterodox thinkers are always thought-provoking), From the Front Porch (a book podcast from a Southern bookstore owner), and Keeping It Real with Jillian Michaels (I’ve been fascinated by her political transition this year and inspired by her open-mindedness ).

Other podcasts that I continued to love this year are The Megyn Kelly Show (political commentary), Morning Wire (news), Relatable with Allie Beth Stuckey (culture, politics, and faith), Sarah’s Bookshelves (books and reading), Unshaken Faith (apologetics), and That Sounds Fun with Annie F. Downs (faith-based interviews). (It’s taking great restraint to keep this list under twenty favorites!)

Favorite New Kitchen Tools

I tend to be pretty minimalist with my kitchen tools and have relied of my same tried-and-true items for years. But this year Luke gifted me with a few items I didn’t know I needed but now can’t imagine doing without. These wooden bell jar lids (for topping the jars that hold all of my snack items and baking ingredients) are so classy and easier to open than the traditional metal lids. This butter crock is such a cute and convenient way to store my butter outside of the fridge. And this pizza stone and cutter have been game-changing additions to our weekly pizza nights.

Favorite Kid Items

While my kids acquired a number of awesome toys this year, it’s their Legos that have had the most staying power. We combined all their sets and made their old train table a Lego Creation Center, which has done wonders for their creativity and also cooperation as they work together to build (while listening to Adventures in Odyssey, of course). Their bikes (including Charleston’s new one) were their most-used outdoor toys. Favorite game of the year goes to Taco vs Burrito, and favorite read-alouds were Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Charleston’s choice), The Wild Robot (the twins’ pick), and this picture Bible (my own favorite).

My Ergo baby carrier and our baby swing—both items we’ve had since Charleston was a baby—are our two must-haves with Nico. I also enjoyed documenting my pregnancy in this Belly Book, and am continuing the documentation with Nico’s baby book.

Miscellaneous New Favorites

I bought myself my first real suitcase this year! It’s HUGE (a necessity for this overpacker), sturdy, easy to carry, and the prettiest shade of pink. Not as pretty, but extremely cozy, is this super-soft robe that I’ve been wearing almost constantly since the weather turned cold this winter. Also quite comfy are these adorable Nikes that have been another welcome wardrobe staple. And, for the opposite end of the body, this thickening shampoo has done wonders for my thin hair.

I know I’m late to the party, but I discovered Substack this year. I’m still new to the platform and don’t spend too much time there, but I’ve been enjoying posts from a few favorite follows including Michelle Watson (Library Binding, where I was featured in May!) and Megan Daum (The Unspeakable). And in other entertainment, the New York Times Games App was a steady companion through my third trimester and postpartum period, in moments when I’ve needed a distraction and haven’t been able to focus on a book.

I’m a longtime fan of Diet Dr. Pepper; this year, I discovered Dr. Pepper Zero Sugar, and while I can’t explain how it’s different, my tastebuds tell me that that it is even BETTER than its predecessor. And this gluten free bread was another welcome discovery; I enjoy both the white bread and the cinnamon raisin, and both are better than any other gluten free bread I’ve tried.

Aaaaannnnddd that’s a wrap on the blog for 2024. Thanks so much for reading, and for being along for the rocky ride that has been my blog for the past twelve months. It wasn’t exactly a banner year of blogging for me (Nico is accepting full responsibility for that fact), but I’m still here and plan to be for the foreseeable future!

I’ll be taking the next couple of weeks off to recalibrate but will meet you back here on Monday, January 13, with plans for a Monday/Thursday posting schedule moving forward. Until then, Happy New Year’s my friends!