2017 in Review

Wow, what a year it's been! Our cheesy Christmas cards said "Living the Dream in 2017", and it's true. A lot of big dreams came true this year. We got closer as a family, worked hard, and played hard. There were definitely some ups and downs, but overall it was a great year! 

January was full of snow, staying cozy, and announcing baby girl was in her way! It was a busy work month and looking ahead to what we would do in the year. 

In February we celebrated my birthday and Valentine's Day. Second trimester energy was awesome, so Rhett and I got in lots of fun outings and new adventures. 

In March we seriously started looking for houses. It was an up and down journey that took over our lives—checking listings all day long, rushing to see houses, deciding where we wanted to be. It definitely took over our lives for the month. 

In April we went under contract for our house! We celebrated Easter with lots of fun activities, and Rhett was in a preschool art show. 

In May we celebrated Andre's birthday and then closed on our house the next day. The young women threw me a darling baby shower. It was a busy month of family activities, finishing the school year, doctor visits, and moving. We ended the month with a Kaiser trip to Moab over Memorial Day that was sunny and great. 

June was all about getting settled while waiting for our routine to get disrupted again. My company got bought out and my entire department was let go. Not the best timing, but it ended up being a huge blessing. Rhett rocked swim lessons, we did lots of house projects, and savored our last days as a family of 3. The best day was when sweet Tessa was born in June 28. 

In July we adjusted to our new normal. Andre took the first week off, and it was literally like a slice of heaven to have us all home to soak in the new baby. Rhett turned 4 and started becoming the best big brother, and we celebrated our 6th anniversary. 

August was full-on summer mode. We played hard and kept finding our new routines. The Richardsons visited, we played, and we worked on lots of house projects. Tessa was growing way too fast, and we tried to soak up every minute. 

In September we were back in a routine. Rhett started Pre-K and soccer and loved both. Our Saturday mornings were spent with the best entertainment—preschool soccer. We blessed Tessa over Labor Day with lots of family in town. I got some new freelance clients that I loved. 

Fall in October was awesome. We started the month with a trip to see Nana and Poppy in Missouri and had a great time with them. We can do road trips! André got a promotion at work and officially started his cufflinks business with craft fairs and Etsy listings. We enjoyed all the fall activities and a super fun Halloween.

November was a blur. Rhett started gymnastics, Andre had craft fairs, I started my new calling in Cub Scouts. The kids and I went to Virginia for Thanksgiving and my phone died. We ended the month with Kaiser fun in Colorado.

December was busy but still left lots of relaxing family time. Cufflinks were in full swing. We tried to fit in every Christmas activity we could. Rhett hosted a gingerbread party. It was mainly just all Christmas festivities all the time. We ended with a perfect Christmas at our house--a fitting way to celebrate Christ's birth and all we've done this year.

We have big plans for the coming year and feel energized to have fun and be better. Thanks for the memories, 2017. Bring it on, 2018!

So long, 2015

2015 was a great year for the Kaisers. We settled in a new groove, tried some new things, had some adventures, worked hard, and played hard. Here are some highlights (aka our Christmas letter--repurposing for the win!)

2014 in review

what a year! here's a recap of some of our favorite moments.

January
We started the year with a bang in Washington and a polar bear plunge into freezing cold Pine Lake (we're still recovering). Back in Colorado, we were back in the swing of things but still squeezed in fun with some local adventures. Rhett started eating solids and he hasn't stopped since.

February
I hit a quarter-life crisis when I turned 25, but we celebrated with a week of birthday freebies to lessen the blow. Sleep training was rough, but we consoled ourselves by becoming obsessed with the Olympics and making heart-shaped pizzas.

March
I became a master cupcake decorator (and haven't used my skills since) and we celebrated the onset of spring by spending as much time outside as possible. And we realized the wonder that is spring break with a fabulous trip back to see our favorite people and eat our favorite foods (Ritas! Cafe Rio! Swig!) in Utah. We hit our peak when we got on the jumbotron at a Nuggets game for our 10 seconds of fame.

April
André was swamped with school and scholarship and job applications, Rhett started "teething" (or so we thought), and I started new work projects. And Rhett was super confused by the concept of Easter. A highlight? Getting hamburgers and a soda for 25 cents. Because that's just what kind of month it was.

May
André joined the 25 club, which meant another week of birthday freebies and a trip to see the Lego Movie because apparently we're 14-year-old boys at heart. We celebrated the end of 1L life and my first Mother's Day, went to American Ninja Warrior in the middle of the night, and got all the freebies at the Bolder Boulder (where, oh yeah, André ran a 10k).

June
André started his internship at the state Medicaid office and got really good at putting together business casual outfits. We ate our weight in cheesesteaks. We took a fabulous daytrip to Garden of the Gods, where we got in touch with our inner Olympians and realized cheap salad buffets are a lot better in your head than they are in real life. Rhett and I spent a fabulous week in Washington and he learned what green nature and water are.

July
Summer hit with BBQs, park days, baby dates, swim lessons, and lots of games of Kubb in the backyard. We got really good at curb-ball, but we may have scared a few neighbors in the process. We watched an amazing fireworks show on the field of Mile High Stadium and later "accidentally" scored 6 free meals to the new Cafe Rio. Rhett turned one (!!!), went to his first Rockies game, and ate that cake like it was his job.

August
André and I celebrated our 3rd anniversary with a stay-cation complete with a temple trip, copious amounts of gravy fries (thanks Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives), and a trip to the amusement park to ride all of the rides. Rhett got his first tooth and André and I went on a fabulous paddle-boating date. We fell in love with Michigan and learned that sunburns are no laughing matter (I still have intense tan lines).

September
September was back to the grind with school starting again. I started a new job and spent a few days in DC eating my way through the city, getting nostalgic, and visiting family (oh, and training for work, too). We enjoyed the gorgeous fall weather with as many hikes and outside exploring as we could. Rhett entered a clown contest, because why not?

October
In the Month of the Park, Rhett and I checked out nearly every park within a 10-mile radius of our house. We loved it. School was crazy for André and work was crazy for me, but we slipped in a few trips to the pumpkin patch. Rhett was the cutest monkey (he even makes "ahahah" monkey sounds, but got a little shy doing it around strangers) and totally got the hang of trick or treating, while André and I won "best couples costume" and deservedly so (I sewed a dress, people!)

November
André got in touch with his Indian heritage with a weekend on the Res for school. Frigid weather kept us inside and we got an early onset case of cabin fever. Chelsea came home from her mission and Rhett scored a roommate. Toby and Sharon came to town for Thanksgiving and we painted the town red (at a relaxed, leisurely pace).

December
This month started with Rhett's surgery and recovery, André studying all day and all night for finals and crazy amounts of work and other activities for me. It ended with great Christmas celebrations, lots of time to spend just the three of us and with the entire family (a highlight was a trip to ZooLights where Rhett thought the gingerbread men were monkeys--we didn't correct him because it was too cute), and chances to reflect on how blessed we are. The best news came when my dad got a clean bill of health about a difficult year of cancer treatments. We are relieved/blessed/grateful/all of the emotions.

keep on digging, folks. Past years in review: 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010

in case we missed you...

here's a little update and dose of Christmas cheer from the Kaisers.

2013 in review

2013 was crazy. Like, super crazy. When I look back on where we were a year ago and where we are now, it's hard to believe everything that has happened. So let's review, shall we?

In January I dragged André to a married people ball on campus--oh the things we do for free food. We told the world we were pregnant and enjoyed life in our little frozen tundra. It was also the month of new things--new church callings, intermural sports, exercise classes, and all upper level stats classes for André. Oh boy.

In February we celebrated my birthday with a surprise dinner and decadent chocolate cake. We ate delicious Thai food for an early Valentines Day and avoided getting swallowed up by snowplows on our way home. We took a chilly trip to Colorado for some temple, family, and law school time.

March started with news of our baby boy. We went to my first MLS game and enjoyed the most perfect relaxing weekend in St. George where we ate our weight in frozen custard and frolicked through the red rocks. 

André graduated in April and we ate hamburgers for a week straight. We loved having family in town to celebrate. The month kicked off with the Great Ant Battle (we reclaimed the kitchen) and ended with our renewed attempts at getting good at tennis (we played in our socks).

May started off as a  crazy month—André took spring classes and work was busy for me. I went on a business trip to Texas and André went to Colorado for his birthday with family. We welcomed summer with opening day at Seven Peaks where I got a horrible sunburn and André stepped on a bee, so that was fun. We experienced Ensign Peak and Bruges Waffles and Fries for the first time and our lives became much better for it.

In June André finished his last college class and officially became a BYU grad. He celebrated by growing a beard. We loved summertime, festivals, nighttime walks, good food, and lots and lots of mini-golf.

July was baby month. We had a low-key 4^th of July, André started selling himself with plasma, and we rocked the freebies. Baby boy decided to take his time, so we tried just about everything to get him out. Rhett Toby Kaiser was finally born on July 25 with Pioneer Day fireworks in the distance. We celebrated our 2^nd anniversary early with some fabulous ethnic food. It's a good thing, too, because the actual day was our first full day home and we napped and napped.

August started with our big move to Colorado and leaving behind our first married apartment. We moved in with the Kaisers, adjusted to life in Colorado and with a newborn, André started law school, and I got used to being a stay-at-home mom. Note to self: doing every possible major life change within a few weeks on each other is not recommended for sanity.

In September we got more into a groove and took some time to explore Colorado. We blessed Rhett and showed some sights to my parents. It flooded and flooded so André got a few unexpected days off school and we didn’t complain. I started freelance writing and we both got two new church callings each.

October was a beautiful fall month. I felt like a real mom when I stayed up late sewing Rhett’s gnome Halloween costume, even if he was too chunky to wear it. We went to the pumpkin patch and enjoyed as much time together and outside as we could.

We stayed in Colorado for November and had a fun and low-key Thanksgiving. Rhett took his first trip to the zoo and was amazed by the sea anenomees.

December was cold. We tried to get into the Christmas spirit, but it was kind of squashed by two weeks of law school finals. We celebrated André’s eventual freedom and 1/6 of being a lawyer and flew to Washington for the Christmas of surprises with the entire Treasure clan.

Whew. What a year. 2013 was definitely interesting and pushed us in new ways. We are so blessed and can’t wait to see what 2014 has in store!

For posterity, here is a look back at 2012 and 2011.