The difference in a year...

[wishuwerehere]

This time last year I had no plan or no idea I would be falling pregnant in a couple of months time. Or that in a years time I would be in a living hell having lost her.

I hope that in a years time I will have my rainbow baby, either in my arms or nearly due.

sorry for your loss

 

[Buttercup84]

A year ago my first DD was 18 months old and I was desperate to start TTC #2 but OH wasn't quite on board, though we did actually start at the end of July! We were still in our 2 bedroom flat but preparing to house hunt shortly.
Currently i'm 28 weeks pregnant with our second DD and we got the keys to our 3 bedroom house at the end of May. We're renovating at the moment with plans to move in early July
In a year's time i'll have a 3.5 year old and a 9 month old (wow!) and i'll have just gone back to work after maternity leave. Hoping to start TTC our third and last baby at that point or in the following few months.

 

[kksy9b]

Fun thread!

Let's see...a year ago my DH and I were in our second month of TTC (and would get preggo the next month), I was pretty dissatisfied with work and was learning to let go of a very stressful and complicated situation with my brother.

Now, I have my beautiful 9 week old son in my arms, I'm a SAHM and I am the happiest I've ever been (also the most sleep deprived but its getting better lol).

This time next year, my DS will be a little over a year old. Hopefully we have our house sold and are living in a rental while out dream house is being built. My husband will be at the one year mark of having heart surgery to install a defibrillator to protect against sudden cardiac arrest (genetic heart condition that we just found out or son doesn't have!!). We will be around a year out from TTC #2, which will be our last. Hopefully life remains as wonderful as it is now, just in a bigger house lol

 

[WhiteKhocol8]

Oh my... last year we were living in a different house that for various reasons made me extremely unhappy. My salary was still at the lowest rung and I was barely able to meet my financial obligations. Car had just died and had to pay off the repairs... Dishwasher had died and had to replace it... Worked through every holiday going to workshops for my diploma... Children weren't even in the equation yet - too many other factors impacting on my ability to feel excited at the prospect.

This year: we moved into our 'forever' house (hooray for the 30 year mortgage!), car is behaving (touch wood). Dishwasher came with us and is paid off. I've moved up a notch on the pay scale and am working a second job which I LOVE. I have my holidays back (still writing assignments but the timing is flexible!). We have set a date to actively ttc, and our goals for what needs to be done first.

We are happy now... that is the main thing. A happy little family, looking forward to growing.

 

[Mooshoo]

Last year we were preparing for our holiday, music festival in spain. Enjoying being young then when we got back it hit us we want to do things properly

Now we are saving for a mortage, not saving all our money so we are still having a holiday and nights out but we have a plan

Next year i hope we are in out house and sorted and getting excited to start TTC

 

[loeylo]

This time last year I was not getting very good grades at uni, I was totally demotivated with my degree, we both lived with our parents and spent literally every penny we had on ourselves for short term satisfaction. I fell pregnant this time last year, and it totally made me get my finger out and improve my grades.
We now have our own flat and have managed to get all furniture and appliances within a month, we have more money than we did before, and last night he brought our ttc date by a whole year!

Here is my update. This time last year we had just moved into rented accommodation and I had just found out I had a job in my dream school, and I hoped I would be made permanent. Now, we have just bought a house, we got a dog, and we are totally skint! Plus, I still don't have a permanent job. Boo! Oh, and that year earlier ttc thing - probably not happening now!

 

[purplespecs]

Last year - We had just found out I was pregnant with our first! We were also getting excited about our holiday to Greece and Albania, and our first wedding anniversary.

Now - We have a beautiful 4 month old son We are struggling with sleep deprivation but loving having him in our lives. We are excited about our holidays to Hungary and Lanzarote. I'm at Slimming World trying to lose some of my baby weight so that I'm in good shape to TTC number 2 next year.

Next year - We will have just come back from China and Hong Kong, and we are hoping to be pregnant with number 2, or still TTC. Hopefully DH will have had a promotion which will mean I can be a SAHM for a few years.

Wow I can't believe its been a year since I wrote this!!

Well... our son is now 16 months old, we had fantastic holidays to Hungary and Lanzarote and I managed to lost 3 and a half stone at Slimming World. We never did make it to China as I fell pregnant much sooner than expected and I'm now 32w pregnant with another boy who is due on the 17th August We are going to call him Benjamin. DH never did get a promotion but we did figure out our finances enough so that I'm only working part time which fab.

In a years time... I should have a 2 and a half year old and an almost 1 year old so I imagine my hands will be very full! I will have just gone back to work from maternity leave and will hopefully be getting ready for a summer holiday somewhere warm and sunny I say we won't be trying for #3... but its a case of never say never!!!

 

[MelliPaige]

I kind if got this idea from something pnkpolkadots said in her blog
I hope you don't mind me turning it into a post!

It's almost my birthday so I can remember specifically where we were in life this time last year. We had just bought our house, had no money or even furniture except for an air mattress that served as a couch/bed/dinner table thinking about how 'stuck' we were. I didn't think we would ever have kids because of how bad we were struggling, choosing between food and bills every week and we don't qualify for assistance. I thought getting this house was a mistake because while our income was too high for assistance, I couldn't figure out why it wasn't enough for bills and other important things (gas, food, etc) I was looking at all my pre-baby goals and thinking "we are never gonna get caught up on bills, much less save money or get married!"

Then i learned to make a budget (something i'll teach my children about very early on) i honestly didn't know how to make one before we had big money bills, nobody I knew had ever used one.
Then he got a small raise (a few cents an hour makes a huge difference). Then I got a job after looking for forever.. Now we have saved $800 In 2 weeks to pay off the car, and not one bill was overdue these last few months. Oh! And now we are happily married with plenty of furniture

This time next year I hope we have all of our debt, besides the mortgage, paid off. I hope we are putting all the money I'm making into a savings account and are living on his income alone...preparing us for when I can be a stay at home mommy,
i hope to be pregnant or TTC, maybe (if I'm super lucky) ill be a mommy!

Where were you early summer last year? Where do you hope to be next year?
It will be pretty cool to look back next June to see how far we've all come!

Going through old subscriptions and found this!
To add to last year my husband lost his job jun 5 and I found out I was pregnant June 6.

Since then he's had trouble holding down a steady job, but just got hired back at his job he got fired from last year so hopefully he can keep this one.
We did manage to pay off the car, so now we only have our mortgage and debt to family who has helped us. We're waiting on my inheritance from my grandfather so hopefully that'll come this year..he's been gone for 2 years now so I'm not hopeful (I hope that doesn't sound cold, I love and miss him very much)

The biggest thing that's different is that I'm a mommy he's so perfect. Now I'm thinking about having him a sibling.

This time next year I hope our house has been sold/rented and we're building another. We have plenty of furniture for a few bedrooms and a nursery. I don't want to be pregnant with #2 quite yet but we will see.

Can't wait to read everyone's updates!

I forgot about this around my birthday, but it's still 2015 so it counts!
My husband got a new job and it pays amazing and he loves it! I also got a job and paid down some debt..nothing much else has changed, except that I'm pregnant with Leo's sibling!!!! Leo is still as perfect as ever..he's up to some new toddler antics, and keeping momma on her toes. He's learning new things every day..his favorite is to ask for water atm. He's a pretty funny little guy, and other than regular toddler things that can't be held against him, he is the most well behaved child.
I no longer want to rent out or rebuild my home. I like the area I'm in and hope we can stay here for a while, but we will see.

I do, however, hope this time next year, I'm holding my new jellybean (which I predict to be a girl, but hoping for another boy) and I hope we have a room addition and pay off some more debt. I also really hope Leo is finished nursing and sleeping through the night, that would be great..

 

[kksy9b]

Congratulations Melli!!! How exciting too about new jobs and paying down debt. I hope this next year continues to be amazing for you! My DS weaned at 17 months and started STTN at the same time...he was a TERRIBLE sleeper before so I feel your pain... i hope it gets better soon

Let's see...I'll go grab my reply from last year:

Fun thread!

Let's see...a year ago my DH and I were in our second month of TTC (and would get preggo the next month), I was pretty dissatisfied with work and was learning to let go of a very stressful and complicated situation with my brother.

Now, I have my beautiful 9 week old son in my arms, I'm a SAHM and I am the happiest I've ever been (also the most sleep deprived but its getting better lol).

This time next year, my DS will be a little over a year old. Hopefully we have our house sold and are living in a rental while out dream house is being built. My husband will be at the one year mark of having heart surgery to install a defibrillator to protect against sudden cardiac arrest (genetic heart condition that we just found out or son doesn't have!!). We will be around a year out from TTC #2, which will be our last. Hopefully life remains as wonderful as it is now, just in a bigger house lol

Well, we wound up not building our dream house because we found the perfect one already made! We sold our old house and moved straight into this one, so no rental. Ridiculously happy with our home and plan on being here for a long long time (read: until we can't climb stairs anymore ) My husband is getting ready to change jobs in January so that is the next big thing happening. My DS is amazing and continues to impress me everyday with his curiosity, loving and sweet disposition, wit and patience. I have taken an unexpected journey in the last year and have lost 60 pounds! Still have about 10 to go but feeling great so far!

In a year from now, I want to be pregnant with the next baby!! We are going to start trying right after Charles' 2nd birthday in April and I'm hoping for another sweet baby boy (but would also be happy with a girl ). I would like to try and run a half marathon before getting preggo.

I want to be fully adjusted to my husbands new schedule (will be traveling a lot). Im hoping we will have our house paid off, or at least be on track to do so within the next few months. I would also like to have a few house projects done, the biggest being repainting the main level.

For Charles, I am hopeful that he will start talking finally- whether it be on his own or working with a speech therapist. I would like to transition him to a big bed and possibly begin potty training.

 

[jaspie]

What a great idea for a thread! Mellipaige i read your first post in this thread and so happy for you that you are now a mum! Just liked you hoped

This time last year I was living in London and working a fixed term contract in a job I really enjoyed. I also had no real idea when we would be able to ttc as there was no way in London and we wanted to move home but had to wait fir OH to progress in his job and then get a promotion that would lead us back home. A year on we have now moved home due to OH getting his promotion! And I am now job hunting. We are starting to ttc in December so the rest of this year will be spent enjoying time together and with our friends and going to festivals and holidays plus training for my first marathon in October.
This time next year I hope to be pregnant! If we are very lucky and are successful first time I will be almost 6 months! I will come back and update next year

So we actually started ttc in November last year and caught first try but unfortunately had a mmc discovered at the 12 week scan and then a d&c. OH then needed spinal surgery so we couldn't try for a while after which was really hard but then we fell pregnant with our rainbow baby boy in June and I'm now 25 weeks. Due date is 23rd Feb! So excited to meet him!

 

[KalonKiki]

At this time last year...

I was 23 weeks pregnant with DS.

SIL was living with us and driving me absolutely bonkers.

I was excited for our first anniversary coming up that Father's Day.

I was working towards my medical billing and coding certificate.

I felt like I was in pregnancy limbo and couldn't wait to meet my son. I was so done with being pregnant, it was a very uncomfortable pregnancy the whole way through.

Our finances were awful and we were really worried about them.

At this time this year...

We have a beautiful DS that is crawling around and starting to talk.

SIL is no longer living with us and it's nice to have our home to ourselves again.

I'm excited for our 2nd anniversary in 3 more days.

I'm procrastinating on my medical billing and coding certification.

I'm feeling broody for #2 and hopeful that we'll be able to start trying when I'd like to after we get married next year.

Our finances still aren't great but they're getting on the right track. All of our credit cards are paid off, we're down to one car payment, and we're moving to a more affordable place at the end of July/start of August.

This time next year...

DS will be nearly 2 years old, walking and talking, and I will probably be impatient to be able to start potty training him, lol.

I hope to be married. If all goes according to plan, we will be. Our wedding date is June 6, 2015 and our deposit for our wedding package is paid and my dress is completely paid for.

I'll be excited to celebrate our 3rd anniversary as a married couple instead of an engaged one.

I hope to have finished my medical billing and coding certificate and at least have a part time job, from home if necessary.

I hope to have enough space for a second baby. Renting a 3 bedroom house would be nice.

I hope to have our debt mostly paid off if not all the way.

I hope to be full on TTC baby #2.

I completely forgot to update this back in June. It was a really busy month for me and it just completely slipped my mind. There's still a little bit of 2015 left though so I'm going to go ahead and update now!

This time this year...

My DS is now a little over 2 years old and is doing extremely well. He is the sweetest little boy ever and he is too smart for his own good. He is nowhere near ready to potty train yet but I'm a lot more okay with that than I thought I would be for the time being. Our pediatrician confirmed at his 2 year wellness check-up that he is cognitively gifted. I'm extremely proud of him and I can't wait to witness another year of his growth.

We did get married on June 6, 2015. The wedding was beautiful and was definitely one of the best days of my life. We had a great honeymoon in St. Charles, Missouri and DS stayed with my dad while we were on our honeymoon so it was nice to get that time together alone.

Our 3rd dating anniversary went well too. It was nice to actually be married when we reached it.

I have given up on Medical Billing & Coding. It's just not for me. I did however decide that I would like to be on the same schedule as DH with a career when the kids are in school and I don't need to be at home anymore. I've decided that I'm going to get my degree in Education to become a high school foreign language teacher.

We have been renting a 3 bedroom house since August 2014 and we really like it here. There is plenty of room for another baby and we'll probably be here for a while.

We still have some debt but our finances are doing considerably better and we are getting closer to our goal of being debt free.

After we got married we waited for my next period since I knew that I was already past my fertile time for that cycle when our wedding day arrived and then we decided to start full on TTC baby #2. My LMP was June 13, 2015 and I'm happy to report that we got pregnant on the very 1st cycle TTC! I am currently 22 weeks and 1 day pregnant with our much desired baby girl. Thea Denise is due to arrive March 19, 2016 so whether I go early or late I'm pretty much guaranteed to give birth in March either way. If I go into labor at the exact same gestation I did with DS then she will be here March 5th but I'm sure that won't actually happen, haha. We're very excited to meet her though and are trying to be as patient as we can for March to arrive while we get everything ready for her arrival.

This time next year...

I hope to have a healthy 3 year old DS and a healthy 7 or 8 month old DD. I hope to at least be getting started on potty training with DS and to be still breastfeeding DD.

I hope to be still happily married and have celebrated our 1st anniversary as a married couple on June 6, 2016.

I hope to possibly be attending my first semester of college but that will really all depend on DS and DD's needs at the time. I hope to be starting no later than Fall 2017.

I hope to have an even better handle on our finances than we already do. It would be nice to have our car completely paid off with 2016's tax returns that we'll receive in early 2017.

 

[Buttercup84]

A year ago my first DD was 18 months old and I was desperate to start TTC #2 but OH wasn't quite on board, though we did actually start at the end of July! We were still in our 2 bedroom flat but preparing to house hunt shortly.
Currently i'm 28 weeks pregnant with our second DD and we got the keys to our 3 bedroom house at the end of May. We're renovating at the moment with plans to move in early July
In a year's time i'll have a 3.5 year old and a 9 month old (wow!) and i'll have just gone back to work after maternity leave. Hoping to start TTC our third and last baby at that point or in the following few months.

Just saw this pop back up in my subscriptions
My youngest is 14 months now and oldest is 4 next month... I didn't end up returning to my old job after maternity leave as my youngest was diagnosed with hip dysplasia at 3 months old and my ex employer wouldn't allow me to reduce my hours to care for her. She's had 2 operations and 6 months in a spica cast so far: Comes out of it mid December and we find out if it's worked or not or if she'll need another operation/stint in a cast, fingers crossed it has!! We still decided to start TTC #3 as planned and ended up falling pregnant first cycle, baby is due on leap day I've been working for my dad's business 2 days a week doing admin and helping renovate 2 flats he owns and intends to rent out in the new year.
In another year i'll have an almost 5 year old, a 2 year old and an 8-9 month old and will be coming to the end of my maternity pay with baby #3 so I imagine i'll be jobhunting if DD2 doesn't need any further surgery at that point or anytime soon. I want to do around 16 hours a week like I do now with a view to increasing my hours as the children get older (we don't plan on having any more children) I'm really interested in caring for those who are elderly or have special needs so i'll likely be looking to gain experience in one or both of these areas in the hope of taking steps towards a future career for me

 

[loeylo]

This time last year I was not getting very good grades at uni, I was totally demotivated with my degree, we both lived with our parents and spent literally every penny we had on ourselves for short term satisfaction. I fell pregnant this time last year, and it totally made me get my finger out and improve my grades.
We now have our own flat and have managed to get all furniture and appliances within a month, we have more money than we did before, and last night he brought our ttc date by a whole year!

Here is my update. This time last year we had just moved into rented accommodation and I had just found out I had a job in my dream school, and I hoped I would be made permanent. Now, we have just bought a house, we got a dog, and we are totally skint! Plus, I still don't have a permanent job. Boo! Oh, and that year earlier ttc thing - probably not happening now!

Here's my update. Last year we had just bought and renovated our first house, I was working and I had just had our third loss (a very scary ectopic)

Now we are still in the same property, I have worked in a few schools and switched to part time in August as I was heavily pregnant. I now am on maternity leave with a four week old baby!
I will be going back to work three days per week after my leave, so we are having to be far more careful with money. I feel more content with my life than I ever have before.

This time next year I hope to have a permanent job, either part of full time, my baby will be just over a year, and I hope to at least have a date to TTC a sibling for her! I also want to have passed my driving test which is ridiculous as I am 26 and still not done so yet. I also hope my OH will have proposed but we will see ...

 

[squeaker1989]

Last year I was just starting my own business, I was so crazy busy that I hardly had time for my husband. The madness totally took babies off my mind for a while. It was a whirlwind of a year... also being debt free seemed like it would be a few years away...

This year, we are so stinkin close to having everything paid off (like in a couple months!), the business is growing in a great way and my husband and are working more and more as a team.

For next year I hope to have my business/personal life balanced, focus more on my husband and our relationship ( I want to be rock solid before baby!) Also I want to really start saving money so we will have less stress as new parents.

Every time I start getting baby crazy I just think about how useful this time is to be able to work on developing qualities to help me in becoming the mom that I want to be one day.

 

[tverb84]

At this time next year I hope to be accepted into the Early Childhood Education program and hopefully live on my own soon. I love my mom and living with her but I don't want to live with her forever.

Last year at this time I realized I wanted to work with children so I took a grade 12 english class last September. It's the only mark I need to get into the ECE program but my final mark wasn't high enough so this September I'm taking it again. I was hoping to do the ECE this fall but I guess it wasn't meant to be.

Hopefully in a few years when I have children I'll come along this post.

I never applied for the ECE program because I discovered another program called Educational Assistant.It's a program that you can take to become an educational assistant in schools.I did take the English class again this past January and after the holiday's I'm going to look into how I apply for the EA program.

This September I was in a pre-apprenticeship for cooking which I really liked and I'm glad I did it!! I gained experience working in a kitchen that I didn't have before.

I still live at home with my mom and not sure when I'll move out. I don't want to live with her forever.

I also have a niece who was born on July 15th that I love with all my heart!!! I never thought I would love someone this much!!!

 

[arturia]

At this time last year, I was just in the initial stages of planning our wedding. I kind of knew what color I wanted the dresses to be. I had my own dress. (all the ladies wanted to go early) I was in my previous job, but was pretty depressed because I could see what would happen at the end of the year: layoff. My company was doing terribly.

This year, I am with a new company that's doing much better. I don't think I will be laid off. I am married, and we've just put the down payment on our house. And we're ready to look at starting to try for children soon.

If I wanted to go back further... Even 4 years ago, right before my husband and I started going out, I had no concept of any of this even being possible, I had dropped out of college. I was stuck in a job that obviously wasn't going to go anywhere. I was trying to get into management with my retail company, but it just wasn't working. I felt I was going to be stuck working part time and struggling just to get enough to eat forever.

Then I decided to bite the bullet and finish my college education. This took a tremendous amount of courage: I suffer from anxiety, and I struggle a lot to face the situations that I failed at in the past. But I had to do it. And I did. And that last year of college was probably one of the most enjoyable years of my life, so I'm super glad I did.

I've come so far, be it from 4 years ago or just 1.

 

[RoseArcana]

This time last year (Nov 2014): I was living with DD at my mum's house. She was 2 and I was finishing my nursing degree. Me and OH (FOB too) were talking about getting married and planning when DD & I would move in with him. We booked our wedding for April 2017 and planned to move in March 2015 when I finished my degree. I was also applying for my first nursing job and going for interviews! Very scary!

Now (Nov 2015): DD & I moved in with OH in March as planned. I finished my nursing degree at the same time. I started my first nursing job then also - which was scary but my team are amazing and have really helped me gain confidence. Our wedding plans are still going ahead for April 2017. We are also currently attending couples counselling regarding TTC #2. He doesn't think he wants another child whereas I do. He believes it's due to how he felt when we TTC, when I got pregnant and when she was born. He really wasn't prepared so he had some form of PND. I'm also charting my irregular cycles and attempting to regulate them.

Next year (Nov 2016): I'm hoping that the wedding will be almost paid for and everything organised. I hope to be doing some post-graduation work for my nursing. I'm hoping we have reached a decision on TTC#2 whatever that it. I hope to be well versed in my cycles and have regulated to a normal pattern (even if not TTC as the pill makes me wacky so would like to be able to do FAM). TTC will be after the wedding regardless.

 

[MelliPaige]

I kind if got this idea from something pnkpolkadots said in her blog
I hope you don't mind me turning it into a post!

It's almost my birthday so I can remember specifically where we were in life this time last year. We had just bought our house, had no money or even furniture except for an air mattress that served as a couch/bed/dinner table thinking about how 'stuck' we were. I didn't think we would ever have kids because of how bad we were struggling, choosing between food and bills every week and we don't qualify for assistance. I thought getting this house was a mistake because while our income was too high for assistance, I couldn't figure out why it wasn't enough for bills and other important things (gas, food, etc) I was looking at all my pre-baby goals and thinking "we are never gonna get caught up on bills, much less save money or get married!"

Then i learned to make a budget (something i'll teach my children about very early on) i honestly didn't know how to make one before we had big money bills, nobody I knew had ever used one.
Then he got a small raise (a few cents an hour makes a huge difference). Then I got a job after looking for forever.. Now we have saved $800 In 2 weeks to pay off the car, and not one bill was overdue these last few months. Oh! And now we are happily married with plenty of furniture

This time next year I hope we have all of our debt, besides the mortgage, paid off. I hope we are putting all the money I'm making into a savings account and are living on his income alone...preparing us for when I can be a stay at home mommy,
i hope to be pregnant or TTC, maybe (if I'm super lucky) ill be a mommy!

Where were you early summer last year? Where do you hope to be next year?
It will be pretty cool to look back next June to see how far we've all come!

Going through old subscriptions and found this!
To add to last year my husband lost his job jun 5 and I found out I was pregnant June 6.

Since then he's had trouble holding down a steady job, but just got hired back at his job he got fired from last year so hopefully he can keep this one.
We did manage to pay off the car, so now we only have our mortgage and debt to family who has helped us. We're waiting on my inheritance from my grandfather so hopefully that'll come this year..he's been gone for 2 years now so I'm not hopeful (I hope that doesn't sound cold, I love and miss him very much)

The biggest thing that's different is that I'm a mommy he's so perfect. Now I'm thinking about having him a sibling.

This time next year I hope our house has been sold/rented and we're building another. We have plenty of furniture for a few bedrooms and a nursery. I don't want to be pregnant with #2 quite yet but we will see.

Can't wait to read everyone's updates!

I forgot about this around my birthday, but it's still 2015 so it counts!
My husband got a new job and it pays amazing and he loves it! I also got a job and paid down some debt..nothing much else has changed, except that I'm pregnant with Leo's sibling!!!! Leo is still as perfect as ever..he's up to some new toddler antics, and keeping momma on her toes. He's learning new things every day..his favorite is to ask for water atm. He's a pretty funny little guy, and other than regular toddler things that can't be held against him, he is the most well behaved child.
I no longer want to rent out or rebuild my home. I like the area I'm in and hope we can stay here for a while, but we will see.

I do, however, hope this time next year, I'm holding my new jellybean (which I predict to be a girl, but hoping for another boy) and I hope we have a room addition and pay off some more debt. I also really hope Leo is finished nursing and sleeping through the night, that would be great..

This last was forgotten about again lol
This year has been crazy, I had little boy #2 and got just what I wanted again! He looks identical to me, I love it! We didn't get our room addition but done debt has been paid off. Leo is out of our room and in his own bed but he still wakes through the night. DH got a new job and I find a new pain and I'm going back to school to become an occupational therapist!

Hope everyone else had good years, too. I may update more later but right now the baby just woke and is hungry.

 

[KalonKiki]

At this time last year...

I was 23 weeks pregnant with DS.

SIL was living with us and driving me absolutely bonkers.

I was excited for our first anniversary coming up that Father's Day.

I was working towards my medical billing and coding certificate.

I felt like I was in pregnancy limbo and couldn't wait to meet my son. I was so done with being pregnant, it was a very uncomfortable pregnancy the whole way through.

Our finances were awful and we were really worried about them.

At this time this year...

We have a beautiful DS that is crawling around and starting to talk.

SIL is no longer living with us and it's nice to have our home to ourselves again.

I'm excited for our 2nd anniversary in 3 more days.

I'm procrastinating on my medical billing and coding certification.

I'm feeling broody for #2 and hopeful that we'll be able to start trying when I'd like to after we get married next year.

Our finances still aren't great but they're getting on the right track. All of our credit cards are paid off, we're down to one car payment, and we're moving to a more affordable place at the end of July/start of August.

This time next year...

DS will be nearly 2 years old, walking and talking, and I will probably be impatient to be able to start potty training him, lol.

I hope to be married. If all goes according to plan, we will be. Our wedding date is June 6, 2015 and our deposit for our wedding package is paid and my dress is completely paid for.

I'll be excited to celebrate our 3rd anniversary as a married couple instead of an engaged one.

I hope to have finished my medical billing and coding certificate and at least have a part time job, from home if necessary.

I hope to have enough space for a second baby. Renting a 3 bedroom house would be nice.

I hope to have our debt mostly paid off if not all the way.

I hope to be full on TTC baby #2.

I completely forgot to update this back in June. It was a really busy month for me and it just completely slipped my mind. There's still a little bit of 2015 left though so I'm going to go ahead and update now!

This time this year...

My DS is now a little over 2 years old and is doing extremely well. He is the sweetest little boy ever and he is too smart for his own good. He is nowhere near ready to potty train yet but I'm a lot more okay with that than I thought I would be for the time being. Our pediatrician confirmed at his 2 year wellness check-up that he is cognitively gifted. I'm extremely proud of him and I can't wait to witness another year of his growth.

We did get married on June 6, 2015. The wedding was beautiful and was definitely one of the best days of my life. We had a great honeymoon in St. Charles, Missouri and DS stayed with my dad while we were on our honeymoon so it was nice to get that time together alone.

Our 3rd dating anniversary went well too. It was nice to actually be married when we reached it.

I have given up on Medical Billing & Coding. It's just not for me. I did however decide that I would like to be on the same schedule as DH with a career when the kids are in school and I don't need to be at home anymore. I've decided that I'm going to get my degree in Education to become a high school foreign language teacher.

We have been renting a 3 bedroom house since August 2014 and we really like it here. There is plenty of room for another baby and we'll probably be here for a while.

We still have some debt but our finances are doing considerably better and we are getting closer to our goal of being debt free.

After we got married we waited for my next period since I knew that I was already past my fertile time for that cycle when our wedding day arrived and then we decided to start full on TTC baby #2. My LMP was June 13, 2015 and I'm happy to report that we got pregnant on the very 1st cycle TTC! I am currently 22 weeks and 1 day pregnant with our much desired baby girl. Thea Denise is due to arrive March 19, 2016 so whether I go early or late I'm pretty much guaranteed to give birth in March either way. If I go into labor at the exact same gestation I did with DS then she will be here March 5th but I'm sure that won't actually happen, haha. We're very excited to meet her though and are trying to be as patient as we can for March to arrive while we get everything ready for her arrival.

This time next year...

I hope to have a healthy 3 year old DS and a healthy 7 or 8 month old DD. I hope to at least be getting started on potty training with DS and to be still breastfeeding DD.

I hope to be still happily married and have celebrated our 1st anniversary as a married couple on June 6, 2016.

I hope to possibly be attending my first semester of college but that will really all depend on DS and DD's needs at the time. I hope to be starting no later than Fall 2017.

I hope to have an even better handle on our finances than we already do. It would be nice to have our car completely paid off with 2016's tax returns that we'll receive in early 2017.

Is it this time of year again already?! It always goes by so quickly.

We do indeed have both a healthy 3 year old DS and almost 8 month DD. DD was born March 3, 2016 at 37+5 weeks, just 2 gestational days sooner than DS was born. She was 6 lbs 4 oz and perfect. She's crawling, saying da-da, and has 2 teeth. She's really enjoying solid food. DS is in Parents as Teachers now and loves it. He really likes to learn and be around other kids, he's a social butterfly. He also absolutely adores DD, not a hint of jealousy or sibling rivalry between them.

DH and I are still.happily married, I can't believe it's been over a year already!

I'm currently planning to start classes next Fall and want to substitute teach after I get the required 60 credit hours.

We still have some debt but not a staggering amount. We're planning to use most of our tax return next year to put into the car to help pay it off.

Next Year...

I hope to have a happy and healthy 4 year old DS and 1 year 8 month DD.

I hope to still be happily married.

I hope to be enrolled in classes to work on getting my degree and preparing for my career.

I hope to no longer have a car payment.

And last but not least I hope for my husband to decide for sure if he wants another baby or not. He's undecided and it's killing me, I either want to be WTT and getting excited about the idea of another baby or grieving the end of the baby stage of my parental life, getting over it, and moving on. I don't like being in limbo unsure of what to do and feel about my future.

 

[arturia]

At this time last year, I was just in the initial stages of planning our wedding. I kind of knew what color I wanted the dresses to be. I had my own dress. (all the ladies wanted to go early) I was in my previous job, but was pretty depressed because I could see what would happen at the end of the year: layoff. My company was doing terribly.

This year, I am with a new company that's doing much better. I don't think I will be laid off. I am married, and we've just put the down payment on our house. And we're ready to look at starting to try for children soon.

If I wanted to go back further... Even 4 years ago, right before my husband and I started going out, I had no concept of any of this even being possible, I had dropped out of college. I was stuck in a job that obviously wasn't going to go anywhere. I was trying to get into management with my retail company, but it just wasn't working. I felt I was going to be stuck working part time and struggling just to get enough to eat forever.

Then I decided to bite the bullet and finish my college education. This took a tremendous amount of courage: I suffer from anxiety, and I struggle a lot to face the situations that I failed at in the past. But I had to do it. And I did. And that last year of college was probably one of the most enjoyable years of my life, so I'm super glad I did.

I've come so far, be it from 4 years ago or just 1.

Well, this time last year.... I had no idea the BS I was about to go through concerning children with my husband. To start, he went off his anti-depressant he'd been on for 10 years, and has finally stabilized. Seems to enjoy life a lot more on average, but his temper is exactly the same now as it was before he went off. But then...

We almost broke up at least two times. Our first anniversary was a wash because we were discussing leaving each other because he decided he never wanted kids at all, after promising me before marriage that he saw them in the future.

And then I got pregnant anyways. That's a truly complicated story. He says he's accepted that his life isn't going the way he wanted it to but I dunno. Only way to find out is if we're still a couple a year after I give birth.

This year has sucked. I'm still at the aforementioned job, so I have escaped the cycle of 'hired for 8 months, then laid off' I was in for previous years. At least there's that.