Better Late Than Never..

Last night, before bed, I came across all of the photos I had put together for my wedding slideshow and I decided to sit down and go through them as it has already been 4 months since I last looked at them. Every single photo made me smile and made me reflect on how far I have come over the years. Some photos urged me to scrapbook them and some photos caused me to remember the exact moment the shutter was hit to freeze that memory forever on film. I am so thankful for each and every one of those photos and for each and every photo I have ever come across, taken or dreamt of taking in the future. Photos are the link to your life for future generations and they are something to be highly valued.

With that thought, I realized that I never did create a "Highlights of 2011" photo stream on the blog and, while it is already March, I figured its better late than never!! You can view last years' post here, as well.

Lets take a peek on some of my highlights of twenty eleven, shall we?

January
This month was kind of a blur for me. I was working and getting excited for February as we had our big road trip planned! All I remember is LOTS of snow!!

Thats about an 8ft snow bank!

February:
On the 4th I celebrated my 27th Birthday with Adam & my family and on February 5th we left for our big California road trip! Adam had been to Anaheim before but I had never driven further than Northern Montana so it was a whole new ball game for me! Our first stop was beautiful San Francisco...*sigh*, I heart this city very much!

After San Fran, we made our way South thru Carmel-by-the-Sea (love!!) and made our way to Anaheim where we visited LA, Venice, San Diego and, of course, Disneyland!!

On Valentine's Day, while at Disneyland...Adam got down on one knee and asked me to marry him!! We always said we had a fairytale love, so, what better way to start your marriage off than in Disneyland??





 March
In March I rounded up my bridal party, my mom, my future mother-in-law and my aunt and headed out to find me a wedding dress..it took trying on about 30 different dresses, but I finally found the one..*sigh*

April

After the harsh winter that we had, had..it was inevitable that a wet Spring would be upon us..and boy, was it ever! Seeding was behind due to the weather, the sprayer would get stuck a few times a day..it was a reality check for me in the sometimes harsh environment of being a farmer!

Look at all that snow!

May

As my bestie is not a gardener and I am, I took this Spring as an opportunity to teach my niece the basics of growing flowers in her own backyard. As a little girl I used to plant zinnias with my dad and I really wanted it to be something I could pass on to my own nieces (and future kiddos)

I was so proud of my little girl! I bought her her very first gardening tools and she actually had a blast helping me plant the seeds! Isn't she adorable?

June

On June 7th, my best friend gave birth to her second daughter (my 2nd niece), Jaelyn...and I also came across another kind of baby, one with a little more "fur"..

I just love new babies!

My own little Bambi, this little furball sure broke my heart

July

For farmers, July is usually the month that we can relax a little around the farm and spend some quality time at our cabin at the lake and also visiting with friends and family, which we made sure to do both! And of course July marked  my good friends' ( & bridesmaids') wedding & the time for our Engagement Photo Session, and my gosh do I ever love the results!

Wasn't she stunning?

The most beautiful sunset on the lake

Adam & Makiya filling up pails of water to splash us!

She looks sweet & innocent but she was soaked here!

Went to the Rodeo & Stampede Grounds with Mom & Dad!!

One of my favorites from our Engagement Session

August

My oldest niece, Makiya, turned 3 on August 15th - so I made sure we had our own little party, complete with princess dresses and a Cinderella cake! On August 26th, I said goodbye to an office that I had been a part of for 4 years and on August 31st I made the move to the farm to be with Adam

Love her so much

My entire life, in one trailer

Even though its only 1 province over, it really is a life changer!

September

Although we did start harvesting in late August, September is where we did the bulk of our work..it seemed like the longest harvest EVER

Another full bin!

Shovelling out the old grain and in with the new!

October

October was the month before our wedding so I was very busy with last minute details, Bridal Shower, Stagette and, of course, Halloween!

Visiting at my bridal shower while the Flower Girl gets a cupcake

Trick or Treat!!

What can I say? We really love Fall :)

November

Of course November was our "biggie" month. On the 5th we said "I Do" on what was the coldest yet most fairytale-like day of my life! What an amazing wedding it was, I wouldn't have done a thing differently, even if I could! Following our wedding we took off on a whirlwind 3 week honeymoon to Paris and all through Italy...I'm still trying to figure out everything I saw to this day, it was unbelievable, to say the least!

Dreamy..

I still can't believe I've been to these places!!

Venice, Italy

December

Anyone who knows me knows that December is my favorite month of the year and that Christmas is by FAR my most favorite season! This year, however, it wasn't my personal favorite. Yes, we were newlyweds and that made it remarkably special. But, we spent most of the month in a construction zone, setting up the tree and lights way too late in the month and before I knew it, the Holidays were over :( But...there is always next year ;)

He lights up my life!



I at least managed to bake 3 types of cookies..

For the last 3 Christmases, Ki & I have had our own holiday photo..my how things have changed this year! Love it!

Whew! 2011 in photos...I feel amazing blessed just even writing this post!! Besides what I have shared in these photos, 2011 also brought me an amazing year for publications, 7 different magazines in total last year! Wow!! Can't imagine how 2012 will beat 2011..it has a pretty big challenge on its hands :) Thank you so much for looking back at 2011 with me, even if it is already March :) Happy Crafting Everyone!!

love,

 dawn