Twenty Twelve.

2012 was a good year.  On the surface...not a heck of a lot happened, especially when you compare it to 2011, but I'm okay with that.  2011 was a ridiculously absurd year, where 2012 was more steady and all about getting our feet under us.  Not only did we figure out how to be parents, but also how to be bosses & book keepers & bakers and every thing else that comes with being the owners of a bakery.  (I swear I didn't search for "b" words for that on purpose - it just happened!)

So here you go, a look at 2012.

January

 In January we see Group Love live at the Gov.  The show is amazing, and truly a dream come true!  This band is so special to me, and I will always remember listening to their first album on repeat for the entire 3hours I was in labor with Trip in the hospital.  And that it was their song, "Naked Kids" that was playing at the exact moment he was born.)

In January we continue to fall in love with this little guy as he learns to roll over:

And we thought we were busy at the bakery...until this January, when every day is 2 - 3 times busier!

February

Kiki and I turn 26!  And what's even better, is that we got to celebrate together, on the same continent and same time zone!  

We celebrate with friends and family at our house, and play beer pong.

Kiki, Toff, Trip & I also take a trip up to Barossa Valley (a nearby wine region) where we get a well-deserved rest from the bakery: 

...and were all dazzled by the good looks of this guy:

March

March saw the end of Aunt Kiki's 7-month stay with us in South Aus.  

We had an awesome time, and can't wait until she can come back again!!!

April

One last trip to the beach for the season!  

May

On one of his many trips in and out of the country, waiting for his permanent visa to come through, Devin helps Toff demolish some buildings behind the bakery.  The back yard of the bakery has been in constant renovation since we got the building a year and a half ago.  (Also:  Devin and Rosie now have their Australian Visas, woohoo! And can stay as long as they like.) 

June

We buy a Kombi Van (or VW bus, as I grew up calling them).  

....Our goal is to paint it purple and put the bakeries logo on the side, but we still haven't done it!

We also take a mini-vacation up to the city.  

We spend two days wandering the rain-soaked streets of Adelaide, drinking coffee, 

taking pictures of the baby, and trying not to think about work.  

July

Our 2-year anniversary!  

Here is our anniversary cake that Nan made us (it was carrot cake, just like the one we had at our wedding).

August

Memay and Granpa come to town!

My dad meets Trip for the first time, and the 5 of us fly up to Cairns where the weather is warm.

September

Trip turns 1!  And Toff & I get all dressed up to go to the Messenger's Local Business Awards Gala, where Home Grain Bakery has been nominated to win the award for Best Local Business (...we didn't win, but we'll try again next year!)

We hopped on the plane to Melbourne with our baker, Mat, & his wife, Laima, to visit The Great Aussie Pie Competition.

We entered six pies and all of them got recognized by winning a "medal."

October

We announce that yes, we are just as crazy as previously suspected - we've decided to have another baby!

November

Almost one year later and HGB is beginning to take shape as we first envisioned it.  

Our new, custom-colored coffee machine gets installed, and all of our counters are replaced.

December

Happy Birthday, HGB!!!

We celebrate being open for one whole year by throwing a party!  

We hire a musician and a face painter and cake and balloons!

Imagining how busy HGB is going to be when all the summer tourists come down from the city, we hire an Au Pair to play with Trip for the summer.  Here is Trip with the sign we made on our way to pick her up from the airport.  (Also:  having Carly down was a great decision!  We really enjoy having someone else around to help, and if she didn't have a job to go back to Idaho for, we would try to convince her to stay forever!)

And finally, our warm Christmas lunch as Karen & Stu's. 

 I definitely enjoy having Chrsitmas on the beach with fresh fruit and seafood - even if it still just doesn't feel quite like Christmas to me.

So there it is.  2012 in a nut-shell.  While it wasn't as crazy as last year was, we still managed to cover a lot of ground.  2013 is shaping up to be a big year too.  Already we have a trip to the States planned in August, Toff is going to Italy for a bread course in May, and Mom is coming over in April to help us welcome and care for our second baby.  Whew.  

xox

Cara