This was truly a year to remember. It was by far the best year of my life and I loved experiencing being a mama for the first time with Craw by my side. I am truly blessed. Here is our 2018 year in review.
January
- Craw started a new job on January 2nd and we anxiously awaited a phone call from our agency to see if we would be matched.
- Our world was turned upside down when we received the call that we had a baby. We rushed to Florida as fast as we could on January 17th to see our baby boy and we finally laid eyes on him on January 18th at 11:12 AM.
- The rest of the month was spent waiting to receive travel approval so that we could return home with Camden.
February
- We were welcomed home on February 2nd to a house full of baby items, a 'Welcome Home Camden Ivey' sign, and the happiest pup I've ever seen.
- We spent the whole month trying to figure out life with a baby and I enjoyed every second of staying home with my baby.
- We went on our first family hike.
March
- I returned back to work on March 15th and I tried to navigate life as a full time working mom. It was tough at first but I eventually got the hang of it.
- Camden stayed with his Aunt Rebekah while we waited for a spot to open up at daycare. Aunt Rebekah was a GODSEND.
- Camden smiled for the first time and it melted my heart.
- We took Camden to the beach for the first time. It was too cold to see the actual beach but we enjoyed our first little family getaway.
April
- We celebrated Craw's 27th birthday on the 4th.
- I had my first hospital stay as a mama. That was tough but Camden was well taken care of by both sets of grandparents. Craw was a trooper and stayed by my side the whole time.
- Due to my hospital stay, we had our first couple of nights away from Camden. He was perfect for his grandparents.
- Camden was dedicated this month and experienced his first Easter.
May
- Camden started daycare on May 7th.
- I experienced my first Mother's Day as a mama and it was so special.
- We took another trip to the beach and this time saw the ocean.
- Camden had his first belly laugh and rolled over for the first time.
- We sadly had to put our childhood family dog down. We miss you, Toby.
June
- We went to the beach for our first big family extended weekend. Unfortunately the stomach bug hit my dad, Craw, and I at the exact same time so the weekend was cut short.
- We celebrated Craw's first Father's Day as a daddy.
- We celebrated Camden's Forever Family day on June 28th when he officially became a Bolton. This marked the end of our adoption journey and it was bittersweet.
July
- We had Camden's six month pictures taken and they turned out amazing.
- We spent many days swimming and enjoying the summer with Camden.
- Camden enjoyed his first 4th of July but fell asleep before the fireworks.
- Camden started eating baby food and loved it.
- Camden also got his first 2 teeth and started sitting up on his own.
August
- We welcomed back football and Craw was in heaven watching football games with Camden.
- Camden went to a couple of friends' first birthday parties.
- Camden started officially crawling and is all over the place.
- We also experienced our first sickness scare with Camden and had to take him to the ER due to a 104.6 fever. It was extremely scary but they got the fever down and it ended up being an ear infection.
September
- Panthers Sunday returned and Craw got to watch his first Panthers game with Camden.
- Craw and I spent an evening in New Bern right on the water and had the best little getaway.
- Camden experienced his first hurricane. Thankfully, it didn't end up being as bad for our area as they predicted but it was definitely scary and devastating for parts of North Carolina.
- He got 2 bottom teeth this month for a total of 4 teeth.
- We welcomed our niece and Camden's first cousin, Avery Alice, to the family. It was special to be at the hospital when Avery was born. It was also crazy to see how much Camden and Avery favored as babies.
October
- We did all of the fall things: pumpkin patches, football, and Halloween.
- Camden had another sickness scare that landed us in the ER due to his breathing. He ended up having pneumonia but they sent us home on antibiotic shots and follow up doctor visits.
- Camden got 4 more teeth at the same time for a total of 8 teeth. We had a couple of rough nights due to teething.
- He started walking while pushing his walker. He is not walking unassisted yet but does great with the walker.
- Camden was a lion on his first Halloween and was the cutest lion I've ever seen.
- I had another hospital stay and it was tough being away from my baby. Thankfully, we have a treatment plan for my Crohns and I will be having surgery sometime in the new year.
November
- Craw and I celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary by getting out of town for a full weekend.
- Camden experienced his first Thanksgiving.
- He started standing on his own this month without hold on to anything. He isn't walking without holding on to something but he is so close.
- We took Camden to Williamsburg for the first time and he loved it. We also took him to Christmas Town as Busch Gardens and he met Santa for the first time.
December
- We celebrated Christmas all month long by doing all of the Christmas things.
- Camden saw Santa 4 times and he loved him every time.
- We celebrated my 29th birthday by having a couples date night.
- Camden took about 5 steps on his own but hasn't done it again. He is so close.
- We experienced our first Christmas with a baby and it was truly magical.
