2011 in pictures

I took my first trip away from my baby Grace when she was about 7 months old.  Sophie and I went to Los Angeles to visit my cousin Jenny.

packing and missing Grace already

Sophie meets her doppelganger, Snow White

We had great a great time together, just Sophie and me.

In retrospect, there were a lot of ballet classes this year.

My two girls began to get to an age where they could play with each other.

In the first half of 2011, I had a lot of quality time with Grace on Fridays, my days off from work.

Valentine's Day.

I started my own stationery business on Etsy.  I recently put it on hiatus because I found that I wasn't enjoying it as much as I should.  Hopefully, 2012 will bring forth new inspiration and energy.

She just got cuter and more fun every day.  She was the best baby I could ever imagine.  So fun to take pictures of.

Sophie was "Black Swan" at her ballet performance.

We went to Clemyjontri quite a few times this year.

And we took our annual trip to the National Zoo.

This was the best Easter ever.  My cousin threw a great party at her house, complete with egg dyeing, an egg roll, and an egg hunt!

Oh, and who gets to go to the White House Easter Egg Roll?  We do, that's who!  Thanks to my cousin :)

My parents really love their grandkids.  They are really really great grandparents.

My sister and I had a yard sale.  It was a lot of hard work.  My sister made $80.  I made $10.  That was not fair.

Grace went through a bout of multiple ear infections this Spring.  It was a trying, exhausting time.

But Spring ended on a high note!  We went to our family's usual Memorial Day reunion at my aunt's home in New Jersey.  It was the best one yet!

Sophie is becoming quite a character.

We took the greatest vacation ever to Atlantis in The Bahamas.  This is now my favorite vacation destination.

Sophie was already so excited on the cab ride from the airport to the hotel.

One of my favorite memories is this particular morning when Sophie and I went down to the beach on our own.

Sophie and her loving dad at the aquarium at Atlantis.

I took Sophie and Grace to my company picnic.  What a hot, tiring day.

Grace turned 1!

It was a very hot summer.

Grace is really developing into a girl who loves necklaces and high heels.

We took a quick trip down to Virginia Beach and it was so much better than I remembered it to be.

The Cox Farms Fall Festival was another annual event we couldn't miss.

Sophie wishes that her hair was long and blond!

And our last trip of 2011.  We went to Los Angeles again to visit my cousin Jenny.  And we happened to celebrate Sophie's 4th birthday at Disneyland with her favorite people.  No, not us--the Disney princesses.

I'll never forget to the gorgeous drive to Malibu.

Eating at Neptune's Nest.  A biker joint! :)

We also went to the Shenandoah Hot Air Balloon and Wine Festival.  Alas, no hot air balloons that day.  I don't think we'll be going back.

Sophie also had a small birthday celebration back at home with my parents.

A little shy from the attention at Guapo's, our favorite Mexican restaurant.

It was the first year that Sophie was really excited about Halloween.

The Thanksgiving-Christmas season was so hectic this year...not as enjoyable as it could've been.  I loved seeing my family so much, but I had so much work stuff going on that I never got a chance to send out Christmas cards, or bake all the cookies I had planned to, or make homemade ornaments.  Maybe next year...

A Christmas photo for a card that was never sent out.

And that was it!  The end :)