Short Recap of 2008

Okay here we go:
Since you last heard from me I've been very busy. Sprout turned one, and I've been chasing him all over the city. I'm of the "take the kid everywhere with you" school of parenting, so we go and go. I had a brief reprieve in May when I took a trip to New York with my mom and sister to celebrate Anne's birthday. We stayed just outside of Times Square, saw Jersey Boys on Broadway, went to the top of the Empire State Building, spent a day at the "Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy" exhibit at the Met and shopped in SoHo. It was Anne's first trip to NYC and I know she had a blast.
I spent most of June picking berries all over the St. Louis Area. There are a ton of berry farms, and this year was really good for blueberries in particular. We are still eating the ones we froze this summer. I saw Tom Waits live at the Fox Theatre and major rehab got underway on our second floor.
July was super busy. We worked on painting and stripping woodwork upstairs, and I had to hire a bunch of new assists at work. We still found time to go to all of ARRG's roller derby bouts this season.
In August we all went to Florida and stayed with Patti and Julie. Sprout learned to swim, Matt ate a ton of shellfish and I learned to harvest sand dollars and sea urchin tests. It was an amazing trip.
In September we spent a lot of time reconnecting with friends, including Rosemary, my father's former secretary. It was great for Sprout to meet someone who meant so much to me while I was growing up. I also spent most of September and October volunteering for the Campaign for Change.
On October 18th, Barack Obama came to St. Louis and for a rally under the arch. Approximately one million people came out to show their support for him. I was unable to be there, but many people I know were there and even just hearing about the event gave us hope and really helped the campaign. Sprout really enjoyed Halloween this year. He went trick-or-treating with his god-brothers. He was dressed as a cow and said "moo" at every door. Matt and I ate most of the candy ourselves, with Gretchen and Gabe during one of our Trivial Pursuit nights. He didn't need all that sugar anyway.
November came, and with it, history was made. We watched the election coverage together, and I was thrilled when Obama was elected president. I am optimistic about his plans for improving our country. I can't wait for the inauguration. Thanksgiving was especially nice, since Anne got to come home and spend it with the family.
December has been mostly a "focus on Christmas" and knit like a maniac month. I made three pairs of socks, two pairs of knucks, a scarf and some mittens in two weeks. We baked two gross of cookies, shopped and wrapped and went to a couple of parties. I'd say that's fairly impressive for someone who was chasing a toddler around as well.
As the year comes to a close I am anxiously awaiting the completion of refinishing of the floors upstairs, which will be happening sometime next week. We plan to move our bedroom upstairs as soon as the floors are done, and for the first time ever, Sprout will have a room of his own. This will be a major step for us, something we have been planning since we bought the house five and a half years ago. We're also going to try to have another baby this year, so we will really need the room.
Okay. That was 2008. On with 2009!