A Look Back At 2015.

What. A. Year. Each year when I look back on the year with my round-up posts I am astonished with how much happened in a year. I always have a hard to selecting which photos to include and constantly end up having to go back and cut photos because my posts end up being a mile long. 2014 was a year of challenges but 2015 was a year of celebrations.

In the early part of 2015 the health of my pregnancy finally took a turn for the better and Daddy Russ and I were able to get some much appreciated time together as well as with Luke as we traveled to Steamboat, Vail, Park City and Red River. It was incredibly special to get to visit such beautiful places during the final days as a family of three.

Then the spring rolled around and we welcomed Foster – our rainbow baby who can’t help but smile at every person he meets and has basically been dubbed, “Squishy,” for life. He is everything I dreamed he would be and there isn’t a day that I look back that I don’t think he was worth it all. My soul is warmed to the core as I watch my three boys together and see Luke interacting with his brother that he wanted so much.

2015 also brought many personal celebrations for me that I am incredibly grateful for. When I started this blog it began more as a diary for me to share my new life as a mother. But then gradually it began to grow as a dream began to form. I dreamed of turning this blog into not just a place to share my feelings but also a business doing what I love. There is not enough gratitude to express how thankful I am to everyone who reads this blog and continues to support The sTORIbook. You have helped me achieve this dream and YOU help me to dream even BIGGER DREAMS! And guess what… you can bet I’ve got some big dreams in store! Thank you for celebrating 2015 with me – let’s make 2016 even better!

BEST OF THE BEST:

Foster’s Birth Story (here)

Incredibly grateful to have been named San Antonio Fashion Blogger of the Year (here)!

One of the biggest honors of my life was being named one of Neiman Marcus’ Women Who Rock and speaking on their Project Beauty panel (here).

One of the hardest posts I’ve ever written – sharing my infertility story (here).

Foster’s Newborn Photoshoot (Part One Here | Part Two Here)

Hostessing the H&M North Star Mall Grand Opening (here)

FASHION:

How To Style A Tulle Skirt (here)

How To Wear The Poncho Trend (here)

Color Blocked Fur (here)

How To Wear A Tie Neck Blouse (here)

Rose Print Midi Skirt (here)

How To Wear A Leather Dress (here)

Dolce & Gabanna (here)

How To Wear A Jumpsuit (here)

Gladiator Sandals (here)

Off The Shoulder Dress (here)

Little Blue Dress (here)

How To Wear A Maxi Dress When Pregnant (here)

Cream Leather Jacket (here)

Comfortable, Floral Maternity Dresses (here)

Black + Gold (here)

Overalls + Bows (here)

My Feature in Nside Magazine (here)

Valentine’s Day With H&M (here)

Snow Wear (here)

BEAUTY:

DIY Marie Antoinette Halloween Costume With Lancome (here)

Strobing Highlighting Makeup Tutorial with Neiman Marcus (here)

Sparkly New Year’s Eve Makeup Tutorial with Urban Decay (here)

FAMILY:

Baby Bump Reveal (here): Capturing the arrival of The Bump when I finally felt like I could breathe a sigh of relief. I felt like I had reached the “glowing” stage of pregnancy where you have so much happiness going on inside you that it starts seeping out.

Luke’s Snowcone 4th Birthday Party (here)

It’s A Great Day To Have A Baby (here). Sharing my thoughts and prayers the night before having Foster + my first letter to him.

A Glamorous Christmas Photoshoot (here)

TRAVEL:

(Park City, UT) Luke’s first time seeing snow and skiing in Park City, Utah. His joy was palpable throughout the trip and we got lots of mommy and Lukie time since I was pregnant and couldn’t ski. Read more here.

(Steamboat, CO) – Music is something that ties our souls together. Daddy Russ has an inherited love and respect of country music from his grandfather and the back roads of South Texas. For me, music has always been something that strums my emotions down to the core. Read more about our trip to Steamboat MusicFest here.

(Red River, NM) – Daddy Russ, Luke and I were joined by our fellow friends the Santillano’s (Anthony, Courtney and their oldest daughter who is Luke’s age, Olivia) in Red River, NM at my family’s condo. You can see the happiness in the pictures. Read more here.