our 2021 year in review

January

We started the year as new parents, welcoming Lolo into the world. She has brought us so much joy this year! This month was filled with lots of leftover takeout, delirious parents full love, and not nearly enough sleep. It was quite a weird year prior, so entering back into our new normal was a challenge. We wanted to keep Lolo safe but also get back into the swing of life, so that’s what we did…very slowly. It was a month of slowing down, appreciating our family, and experiencing parenthood to the fullest.

February

We settled into our 3 hour cycle….eat, awake, sleep….eat, awake, sleep…eat, awake, sleep. Troy was able to take some leave from work to help with alllllll the adjusting. We welcomed Sofi to our family to help with Bear and the house a few days a week so I could focus on Lolo and the other things that made me feel like me: working out, cooking, working, etc. We got a little snow in Sammamish, and took Lolo outside just for the photo. We went to a restaurant for the first time in ages…the cutest little Mexican spot next to where we live. We didn’t co-sleep much, but I am so glad Troy snapped a photo of when we did, because I miss it!

March

The sun started peaking out again, so lots of walks along the lake with our little family. We made Lolo an Easter basket. We switched out sports on the TV for contrast videos. We got together with my side of the family and Lolo got to meet her cousin James. Troy and I did a relationship series on IGTV. We did an overnight trip to Portland, OR and tested our sanity and how much you really need to pack for a newborn. It was actually a super fun trip, and Lolo was already such a great sleeper. Funny story, we didn’t know the specific way you have to open up a pack-n-play so we thought the first one was broken. Then we thought the second one was broken. The poor workers, lol. So, for anyone new to pack-n-plays, you have to lock the sides first then, the the middle, not the other way around.

April

Oh you know, the best month ;) Troy started at his new company Tome. The world’s first digital devotion app! He began to travel to Texas a couple times a month. I celebrated my 34th birthday with girlfriends I have prayed for the last 5 years. Troy even brought Lolo to the party. I worked out for 30 days straight to feel like myself again. We turned our third car garage into quite the little gym, and it’s been such a great aspect of our life. We celebrated Easter at our church. I kept cooking delicious meals #fromaprilskitchen. I started to get more and more brand deals with Influencing, and started blogging again.

May

We took Lolo to her first Angels’s game. She lasted 4 innings, of course. Lolo started to really love tummy time because she could see Bear better and play with him. Oh, and this was a special month because we sleep trained Lolo. Once she started sleeping through the night, both Troy and I felt like humans again! We celebrated my first Mother’s Day, and I felt so special and emotional. When Troy travels, we call it #solowithlolo, so I started to created a little routine when I am taking care of the kids (Lolo and Bear) by myself. Luckily, my mom tries to come and help when Troy is gone. Such a blessing. Troy also watched Lolo while I went to our church’s women’s conference. My first time away for bedtime. Troy crushed as always, he’s the best daddy.

June

We took Lolo on her first plane ride down to SoCal to meet Daddy’s side of the family. We also showed Lolo where we got married (not like she will remember, but the picture was cute) and celebrated our third wedding anniversary. The cutest and grossest part of the month was Lolo starting solid foods! Troy continued traveling to Texas working on the Tome App, and I continued Influencing on Instagram. Troy celebrated his first father’s day, and Lolo crushed her six month checkup with her pediatrician! Since Lolo was born during a global pandemic, we had to start getting her some safe social interaction, so we started doing play dates with Ansley-Marie, our friends from church’s daughter who is about a year older than Lolo. They have become best friends, and my mama heart is so happy.

July

We celebrated Independence Day with our church community on a gorgeous lake house. We also traveled up to Bellingham to spend the weekend together as a family to celebrate the soft-launch of the Tome App! Summers in the PNW are simply gorgeous so we spent almost every free afternoon walking along Lake Sammamish. We grilled a lot because the dinner hour is the hardest hour with a little one - so grilling got food on the table stat! The world continued to open up slowly, and we went to the mall for the first time in over a year. We also got Lolo’s ears pierce, and surprisingly I didn’t cry - but Lolo did, poor thing!

August

Summer continued with Lolo settling into a nice schedule with two, two hour naps (Jesus lives!). So I got into a great routine of stacking my workouts, work, and cooking all in during her naps. While she was awake, we played played played. Our favorite was laying in our backyard on a blanket while Lolo would do roll after roll after roll. Rolling was her favorite. I kept making delicious food per usual. We went to Team Church Conference, and Lolo lasted about 43 minutes of a session. We also got together with my side of the family and Lolo got to spend time with her cousin James. I got “mommy-wrist” which is basically tendonitis from holding an 18 lb baby 24/7, but goodness it was sooo painful! We headed down to Texas as a family to see Daddy’s office and studio down there and to celebrate a good friend’s birthday. Troy was able to sit on the board of Leadr (the company I was employee number three at), and gave a great presentation for their entire company on leadership. Troy also celebrated his 39th birthday!

September

Another season change…we welcomed fall. Lolo started to army crawl and scoot around - so stinking cute. Her personality really came to life this month. From scrunching her nose, to saying her first words —she just started to become a little kid more than a baby. She no longer wanted to be held while she drank her bottle, she had to lay by herself and hold it herself. Hello miss independent. I did a dri-tri at Orange Theory Fitness to challenge myself and of course Troy and Lolo came at the end to cheer me on. It was the biggest inspiration and I realized staying healthy is a must not only for myself but for my family. I continued to get Inflectra infusions every eight weeks to stay in remission from Ulcerative Colitis.

October

After dreaming, praying, planning, and googling - with Troy’s blessing, I started an online shop! Drumroll please…. it’s called —> aprilpollock.co - A Modern Lifestyle Shop. We launched the beginning of October and have been overwhelmed with the orders, shares, shout-outs, and support. All our family and friends can use code: FAMBAM on the site to save 25%. Lolo started to crawl which means her new favorite toy was…Bear (our 100 lb black lab). She also got to spend time with our goddaughter Kyla and meet her Uncle Kenan and Aunt Jana Mae who visited from London. Troy’s parents also came up for a quick weekend trip, which was so nice for them to spend time with their granddaughter. We also started doing date nights twice a month, where I can eat warm food, and it’s the greatest thing ever (spending quality time with Troy is also amazing, HA!).

November

I decided to run a half marathon, and thanks to my sister who trained me, I did it! It was miserable weather, but a fun run nonetheless. I wanted to build up my mental strength and ability to challenge myself and to compete. I knew that motherhood - heck this life, really, is a marathon, and what I would learn through my training would help me get stronger for my family. Then - WAMP WAMP - Troy and I got “the sickness”. We were blessed to not have to go to the hospital and to be able to recoup fairly quickly. The sad part is our Thanksgiving plans got messed up, and we were unable to be with any family for Lolo’s first Thanksgiving. Yes I cried. Yes it sucked. But we made the most of it! Then, we road-tripped down to SoCal with Lolo and Bear to spend time with Troy’s side of the family. Lolo did Disney for the first time, and although she won’t remember it, seeing her face during the Jungle Cruise when she saw the animals made it worth it. Road tripping 2000 miles with a baby and dog is not for the faint of heart - but thanks to Troy, we made it!

December

Here we are! The last month of the year. We celebrate Lolo’s first birthday on the 24th. It’s been a wild ride joining the parenthood club, but we absolutely adore our little family. Our entire year was a year of firsts, and (sorry not sorry) it mostly revolved around Lolo. No surprise there. We have experienced such joy amidst loss and stressful days. Starting multiple businesses is NO JOKE. We see God’s love, favor, and blessing on our lives and businesses. We are incredibly thankful for all our family and friends who are in our corner, encouraging us. And if you have read this far, we are giving you a standing ovation. We know you are extremely busy and the fact you are interested in our year means so much!

What we’ve learned as a family this year:

1) We enjoy being a mommy and daddy way more than we thought we would.
2) Family really is everything. It is the most important thing. Not just a cliché, it's true.
3) Take steps of faith and start things no matter how scared you are. The journey and the process is where is the beauty and joy is.

Our wish for you this next year is that you step into your unique purpose to make the world a better place, that you are able to deepen relationships with those that mean the most to you, and that you know in your knower that you matter, you are loved, and you are enough.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

Love,

Troy, April, Lolo, & Bear