My 100th Post!

I thought I would recap the past 2 years of blogging and the 100 posts that have formed!  Here are some of the highlights:


From my very first post Every Blog has a First Post here: http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2011/04/every-blog-has-first-post.html
I do laugh now how I wrote "  I am sure I will look back on these first few posts in several months and laugh."  Girl if only you knew what was to come!  April 12, 2011 two years ago today seems so distant.  How naïve I was at 22 years old on the peak of graduating, getting my teaching license, getting married, buying our first home, and how life felt like it was flying a million miles per hour in all great directions.  I remember feeling so in control of my life....oh how I laugh now and know how little control I truly ever had!  My sister-in-law was nearing the end of her pregnancy with my first nephew and I remember thinking how we hoped to quickly follow with a 2nd grandchild....2 years later and still dueling with infertility, that is only something we can bitterly laugh about!  I didn't end up pursuing a career in the mainstream work world like I had anticipated in this posting, but humbly took the position of homemaker after much discussion and money crunching to know we were blessed enough to be able to do it.  Re-reading it Brian had not even had a job lined up quiet yet, man were our lives in limbo yet I knew then it would all work out and it truly has with a lot of prayer and hard work.  Meeko and Tucker had not graced our lives yet but we had our guinea pigs, Levi our dog, and Jaxon our tree frog (whom is still kicking and just so happens to be our first pet Brian and I ever got together!).  I would tell that girl back then to buckle up the next 2 years for sure is going to be a ride, but a ride totally worth riding along with her amazing husband :)

Picking our wedding colors out and our Save-the-Date picture April 4, 2011
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2011/04/day-3-photos-from-your-wedding.html

My excited April 13, 2011 post for our upcoming surprise weekend trip to Hogwarts (Universal Studios)
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2011/04/to-hogwarts-i-shall-go-but-not-alone-11.html
It still ranks as my number one viewed post.  A whopping 339 views for that one post!  It blows all other posts I've ever written away by ummmm hundreds!  Thank you in part to search engines for bringing people to my blog via the postings keywords.

My theme song by Jessica Andrews "Who I Am" I shared April 18, 2011
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2011/04/day-5-song-that-means-lot-to-you.html
I shared how it was "my song" since high school and played as we drove into the gates of my college.  Also the song that brought me to tears the day I became engaged.  We went to Texas Roadhouse (our first place we went to on an official date) to celebrate our engagement and it came on.  Little to say the tears flowed and I knew this was my sign that this was the best decision ever to commit to marry this man!  What I would tell this girl back then is how that song would creep up again and again throughout her life in moments she needed it.  We requested the song to be played at our wedding and I fought back the tears.  When working on making our house our home and remodeling the song came on the radio and I could do nothing but smile knowing it was meant to be.  When we found out we were expecting after infertility treatments and I told Brian we went out that night to celebrate at no other than Texas Roadhouse and what song came on?  That's right "Who I Am".  When we found out I had miscarried and I felt like my whole world was crushing in it was that song that popped up on ITunes randomly that same night after my surgery as I lay on my couch soaking everything that happened within 24 hours in and I just let the tears flow holding on to the words that "Should my tender heart be broken, I will cry those teardrops knowing, I will be just fine because nothing changes who I am."  After a few months of not being able to do more rounds of infertility treatment then getting the news I would need another surgery that evening I was with my parents and younger sisters at no other than Texas Roadhouse (ok so maybe there is a pattern here) and felt so discouraged and "my song" came on resonating in my heart that all is fine and things will work out.  If those times were not enough, after our last pre-service class for fostering this song came on the radio on our drive home and my husband and I looked at each other, held hands, and just smiled knowing we were doing everything right.  I am sure this song will continue to follow me and every time it comes on I just know it is my sign that all will be ok and I'm doing what is right!

October 19th, 2011 Meeko arrived.  OMG was he so little!!!!
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2011/10/meekster-has-arrived.html

December 11, 2011 We announced we are going back to Honduras and I poured my heart out about my love for that place!
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2011/12/its-officialhonduras-march-2012-warning.html

April 2012 I shared we had come back from our trip!
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2012/04/honduras-trip-2012.html

September 2012 was the month of remodels here and here
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2012/09/were-bringing-stencil-back.html
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2012/09/as-promised-here-are-befores-and-afters.html

September 26, 2012 My life was changed forever my learning you can cook corn-on-the-cob in your microwave just as is and 4 minutes later for each piece of corn and it is done ready to eat!
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2012/09/easy-peasy-corn-on-cob.html

October 9, 2012 An Ode to a Terrible Coupon Haircut...beware!
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2012/10/an-ode-to-terrible-coupon-haircut.html

November 2, 2012 I spilled the beans on my homemade laundry detergent and had such an outpouring of individuals try it and love it too!
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2012/11/homemade-laundry-detergent.html

November 8, 2012 St. Francis became my sign who now lives happily in our backyard under our tree!
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2012/11/my-sign.html

November 13, 2012 I decided to step out in faith and share about our miscarriage not wanting to keep it a hidden secret any more.  I breathed a sigh of relief knowing it was off my chest and something I was willing to share with others.  It was the hardest emotional struggle I have ever been through to date.  I hit an all time low after and honestly only recently have I truly felt like I have finally shaken off the depression that at the time I didn't know was intertwined throughout me.  May 30th, 2012 we lost our baby and in 10 days it will have already been a whole year since.  Amazing how time has flown and yet we have honestly gotten nowhere and only had 3 months in the entire past year to actually use infertility treatments.  It is still a very real and raw journey we are on but I know our time is coming.
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2012/11/out-of-these-ashes-beauty-will-rise.html

December 2012 Pre-Christmas and Christmas Celebrations
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/01/pre-christmas-festivities-wayyyy-overdue.html
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/01/christmas-evechristmas-overload.html

January 14, 2013 We dropped the fostering bomb on everyone in a questions and answers posts.  A personal friend knew we were planning to foster so asked and I decided to just divulge to everyone our intentions.  I even state there with timing we would be looking at opening our home to kids come May-ish.  Well I would have been exactly on the ball with that estimate however since the class we need has been cancelled we are now waiting for the next class which hasn't even been scheduled soooo we still wait. 
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/01/finally-some-answers.html

January 16, 2013 I started my hope to be yearly tradition of choosing a focus word.  Building is my word and I truly have been building so far this year in many arena's
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/01/my-2013-focus-word.html

January 20, 2013 Tucker joined the family!  Puppy pictures just makes me want another one...ok came to me senses, not happening!
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/01/tucker-joins-family.html

February 20, 2013 Our first home study visit
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/02/little-updates.html

February 27, 2013 The Things You Take for Granted, Someone Else is Praying For post hit a nerve with a lot of readers!  I had several people message me specifically about this posting that I just type away my current feelings at the time without knowing how it would impact so many others. 
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-things-you-take-for-granted-someone.html

March 10, 2013 I surprised Brian with our first glass blowing experience
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/03/surprise-date-2glass-blowing.html

March 22, 2013 Shared how we completed our 36 hours of fostering/adopting pre-service class hours!  Also in the same post highlighted our first (and only to this date) Follitism injectibles cycle that ended up being a bust. 
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/03/some-march-madness.html

March 26, 2013 My dogs wore ties and bowties...no big deal
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/03/what-your-dogs-dont-wear-ties-and-bow.html

April 3, 2013 Did a You Know You're Becoming a Foster Parent When posting that racked up a ton of views!
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/04/you-know-youre-becoming-foster-parent.html

April 9, 2013 Brian and I became prayer warriors for a 5 year old orphan boy in Ukraine with the alias Juri.  Oh has he just smittened our hearts!  He has yet to find his forever family and his grant fund it currently at $1976.50, mountains are being moved to defray his adoption costs won't someone step up and make him their son!
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/04/gear-up-we-need-more-prayer-warriors.html

April 15, 2013 Did our first bedroom and nursery remodels reveals
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/04/first-bedroom-and-nursery-reveal.html

May 7, 2013 Opened up about living on one income and how it is very possible and how we do it!
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/05/living-on-one-income.html

May 16, 2013 Bought and brought home a playground for our backyard
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/05/playground-pandemonium.html

May 19, 2013 Started our straw bale gardening and set up and did a few other projects around the house.
http://rebeccajeanneroutine.blogspot.com/2013/05/straw-bale-gardening-weekend-projects.html

 So there is the past 2 years in short review!  If you missed any posts feel free to browse back.  Amazing to see how far we have come and how things have quickly changed in some ways and not in others the past 2 years.  Here's to another 2 years and hopefully many more!