It is amazing the changes in 1 year. Also, what hasn’t changed. Sasha is still with us, though she is starting to show her age (like myself, I think haha). Brian still looks the same, maybe better plus a few gray hairs.

Jameson looks remarkably the same to me, aside from losing some of his cheeks. Coraline though: Wow. And for the record, it’s hard to get a baby to smile at a tripod, so we didn’t even try. Looking, but not looking unhappy, was good enough!

I have periodically gotten family photos in the spring or summer or fall. I usually try to get two of them a year, but if I get one then I am happy. I love this photo! And it came right after some very happy news last week: I had just accepted and started a job! After 6 weeks off work, I am so pleased to be able to say that I am back at work, doing a job related to my field (if anything, it’s more concentrated, an advantage to doing a job well that I am not focused too broad).

I had also just run my first race the day prior. It was a fun run and not timed, but I’m proud to see where I’ve come from this time last year, which was not running or even exercising at all, to my first 5K.

The 6 weeks off work were hard, I’m not going to lie. Not fresh-into-maternity-leave hard like. But plenty of ups and downs with how I felt about myself and what I wanted to do with my life (why do we feel we need to make big all encompassing goals or life statements? there is just “for now” and “for as long as we want” for everything in life except family which is “for always”).

There was a lot of guilt sending the kids to daycare everyday, and a lot of freedom I’ll probably never have again. And just like I thought I might, I wish I had taken better advantage of that time. I only went to see one daytime movie; I definitely should’ve done that at least twice!

So here we are again, back into routine, and happy for it.