Bring on 2012!

The Herndons are ready for a new year. 2011 had its ups and downs for us, but anyone that knows me well would know I'm ready to bring this year to a close and move on. This year has been tough on us in just about any way possible, but we survived.

The way we started the New Year was just about how the rest of the year continued. Brandon had a stomach bug that had already hit Caroline, Summer, and me and we welcomed 2011 while Brandon hurled alone in our bedroom and I cared for our kids alone. Foreshadowing for a year with an MBA student? I think so.... On the bright side we had just learned that Brandon was accepted into one of the best MBA programs in the country at Duke University. I personally think my husband is brilliant, but he joked that he wanted to pay his tuition as soon as possible before Duke realized they made a mistake in his acceptance.

We tried to keep the kids busy. Caroline got to try out some new sports. She played T-ball and tennis for the first time, and she began violin lessons. Summer took a few classes at the Apex community center, and started her first year in preschool at Salem Baptist on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Bella keeps herself busy all on her own. This is the year she met all of her first year milestones. She learned to crawl, then walk, to feed herself, and say a few words. My easy baby has turned into quite a wild woman in the last 12 months.

I would say the highlight of the year was taking our kids to Disney World for a week. We rented a private home 2 miles from the park. My Dad was able to stay with us for the first 2 nights to get us settled in and help us learn how to maneuver 3 children through miles of attractions. Caroline rode every ride she was tall enough for (which only didn't include about 2). Summer fell in love with Mickey and Minnie, and Bella was just happy that if she wasn't being constantly pushed around in a stroller than someone was holding her. The girls had a ball and Brandon and I came home exhausted, but with memories that will stay with us forever.

The return from our trip was the start of the downhill spiral of 2011. Bella was running a very high fever so after a 10 hour car ride I got to make my first trip to the ER after 6 years of being a mom. After waiting for 2 hours with a sick baby they sent me home with a dose of motrin and a $800 bill. In retrospect the bill was not an issue since this was not our only visit to the hospital this year. Summer got very sick, Caroline had to have pencil lead removed from her face, and I had to have my gallbladder removed (among other things).

Two weeks later the real fun began. Brandon received his first fedex packet of books from the Duke MBA program. His pre-reading began and life hasn't been the same since. The 2nd half of 2011 has mostly involved Brandon's nose being in a book and me alone with 3 children. We have found a few moments here and there to spend together, but I do miss my husband. The program has taught us both a lot about ourselves. We have had to push ourselves so far beyond our comfort zones that we had no idea the things that we are capable of. I am way more than just a stay-at-home mom that cooks and cleans, and can multi-task like no body's business. Brandon has learned that he really does have every right to attend a top university and has surprised a lot of people (including himself) by how well he can hang and excel with the country's top professionals in school.

So here we are, hours away from 2011 being behind us. In just writing this blog I've realized the year hasn't been all bad. We've had some pretty good times, and learned some great lessons, but it's been tough and I'm ready to look ahead. Let's be honest, 2012 isn't going to be a piece of cake. Brandon still has another 12 months of school. I am going to begin work for the first time in almost 3 years. And the girls aren't exactly going to start raising themselves. I know that this next year will have its challenges as well, but 2012 is the light at the end of the tunnel, and I'm so ready!

An MBA Thanksgiving

This year we celebrated our first Thanksgiving with a true graduate student. We've had holidays before when Brandon was studying. He took about half a year to prepare for the Professional Engineers exam when Summer was a baby, and when Bella was a newborn he studied for a couple months right before he took the GMAT, but it was nothing like this.

Right before the holiday, Brandon finished classes for Term 2. All he needed to do to finish his current classes was to take the final exams. Three exams that he could begin taking the Sunday immediately following Thanksgiving. In the past we have gone to our hometown to celebrate with our families and maybe take a day trip to the mountains to cut down a tree. This year we knew our time was limited so we planned to stay in Apex and celebrate on our own.

Caroline was tracked out of school and Brandon only had to work two days Thanksgiving week so things were suppose to be pretty low key. The day before Thanksgiving Brandon began his day of studying and I took the girls out to finish some last minute shopping at the Fresh Market so we could hurry home and begin some of the next day's meal. Half a mile from our house I crossed the intersection of Highway 55 towards our neighborhood. Immediately after I began to move I notice a lady in a big heavy duty red Chevy truck speeding through a red light taking off the front end of our minivan and spinning out of control through the intersection. Somehow she managed to miss all the other cars surrounding the scene. People all around the intersection ran to our van to make sure the girls and I were alright, handing me their business cards and waiting with us for the police to arrive. It was so sweet to see so many strangers willing to help when I'm sure they had their own holiday plans that day. Luckily, Brandon was at home studying and was able to get to the scene within minutes to help with the girls. We managed to get all our belongings in our small car and I walked home with the little ones in our giant stroller. I'm so glad that I am married to a level-headed man that was able to take care of everything for me at the scene and deal with all the insurance and car rental issues when he obviously had better things to do.


Thanksgiving day we forgot about all the mess from the day before, Brandon closed his books and we spent the entire day together as a family. In order to work off a little of our turkey in advance we signed the whole family up to race in the Crossroads Turkey Trot. Caroline did a similar race last year (and I ran with her 8 weeks post C-section Bella delivery), but could not complete the run without walking. This year all 5 of us together (Summer and Bella in the BOB) ran the race together. It was so fun encouraging her along the way and watching her pass a lot of kids (and some adults) as she ran the entire way and sprinted towards the finish line. I was so proud of her, and we will definitely be back next year.

The rest of the day was dedicated to cooking and eating. Since it was just our family and my Dad we were able to make a simple dinner and just enjoy our time together. Because I was behind on my cooking I recruited Caroline to do a lot of the work and she was a huge help. I think she has become a permanent addition to my Thanksgiving cooking crew. We managed to make the entire meal from scratch, except for the pumpkin pie, which was the biggest failure of the evening.

Friday morning Brandon helped me get all the decorations out of the attic so I could start hanging the lights and such while he went back to the books. Starting was slow, doing it alone tripping over 3 little ones. Surprisingly, I was actually able to get everything done including all the outside lights and the timers set just as he finished for the day. I was relieved that the entire family was able to go together to pick out our Christmas tree. I had visions of me coming home alone dragging in another Griswold tree, but with a huge hole in the front that I had majorly over-paid for.

Saturday, I decided to brave the crowds and took the girls out shopping for some of the deals I saw in the paper. Strangely, no one was out. I warned the girls about staying close and suggested that maybe they all should just ride in the buggy. They thought I was crazy when we were all alone in the stores and didn't know why I was making such a big deal.

Sunday was the big day. Brandon started his first exam. I kept the girls out of the house so he could concentrate. Luckily this one only took him until about naptime and gave us the evening to recover. Friday he planned to take the long 24 hour accounting exam, immediately followed by another 6 hour exam on Saturday. Rather than one or both of us losing our minds trying to keep 3 little ones quiet all day long I took the girls to Greensboro to visit with my mom and Brandon's family until Saturday afternoon. The girls had manicures and exchanged presents with my mom and spent the evening with the Herndons out at dinner and walking in downtown Greensboro for the Christmas tree lighting celebration. Bella and Summer were not feeling well so it was a long evening away from home, but I think it helped Brandon to have the house to himself, and the girls enjoyed visiting with their grandparents and aunt and uncle.

Sunday was ours. The exams were over and the girls and I were back (and healthy). We enjoyed the day together eating at Sarah Foster's restaurant in Durham and doing a little Christmas shopping brainstorming with the girls. It was actually a pretty productive day. It was so nice to all be together again.

Next Thanksgiving will also be an MBA one, but should be nothing like this. I'm really looking forward to getting a little bit back to normal, but honestly there are things we did this year out of necessity that I hope to continue in our Thanksgiving for years to come.