Friday, December 30, 2011

2011 Recap

Happy Holidays!!!
We have had an amazing year at the Wochnick house. 2011 has been a great year, and I figured I could not finish the year without posting (for once in several months).
Brandon is doing wonderful. In July he decided that he needed a change of pace, so he left driving and took a position as a salesman with Coca-Cola. He loves it!!!!! It has been a good change for our family. The hours are better and Brandon gets to spend more time with the family. He also enjoys it because it is more suited to his personality. Other than the new job, Brandon is up to business as usual, continually working on some home improvement project. He did finish two rooms on the basement, so Kaitlyn and Ben could move to the basement.

I, Joanna, had a blast this year. On December 9, I finally graduated from Weber State University. After many years of work and stress, I can proudly say I have a Bachelors of Psychology. It is such a blessing to be finished with college and that I was able to get a degree. I am so thankful to have a wonderful husband who has encouraged me and pushed me to continue chugging along even when I ready to quit. I am also lucky that I am still able to stay home and take care of my kids.
Kaitlyn has had an eventful year. In August, she started Kindergarten. After a rough couple of weeks, she finally settled in and loves school. She has made some fun new friends. She is doing very well in school and impresses me daily with the new skills she is learning. She loves to spell things, she constantly asks me to spell things for her so she can write them down. too cute. Also. she has lost two baby teeth, with a few more that are loose. She continues to be a happy, optimistic, silly, and tons of fun. Kaitlyn is a great helper, she is my cute little side kick.
Ben is a handful. We sure love this crazy, energetic boy. In September, he started Joy School with three other rambunctious three year olds. He loves going to school like his big sister. I was surprised at how well he behaves during Joy School, especially when I am teaching. Ben is so cute singing the songs and telling me about the things he learned at school. He still has some speech problems, and continues to see a speech therapist weekly. We really like his speech therapist. Ben has been making great progress. Finally, Ben has been working on using the potty. He has earned many Cars toys and is almost ready to switch from pull-ups to underwear!!!!!
Paul is still as cute as ever. He is my little sunshine and brings such joy to my life. He is talking a lot more, but it still sounds like he is speaking Klingon most of the time. He loves to follow the other kids around and do whatever they are doing. Currently, he likes to yell "Watch this Mama" as he jumps from the arm of the couch onto the couch and then rolls onto the floor. (Thanks to Ben) When we moved Ben downstairs in August, Paul got his own room and his own twin bed. He transitioned to the big bed better than the other kids ever did, with only a few nights of him crawling into bed with us. I love watching my kids grow and develop. They each have such fun little personalities.
Finally, in September, Brandon and I became foster parents. We welcomed two amazing children into our home. Miss S. is ten and shares a room with Kaitlyn. They are pretty good together, with the occasional fight. Kaitlyn is glad to have a girl in the house who will play dolls with her. Mr. J. is seven and shares a room with Ben. He has a twin brother in another foster home, that he gets to see about once a week. He is an energetic and silly. He plays really well with the younger boys. We do not know how long we will have S. and J. in our care. Brandon and I love being foster parents, it can be hard some days, but we enjoy providing a safe and loving home for kids who really need it. This is just a brief recap of some of the happenings of 2011. Here's to another amazing year.