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I'm Shay! I’m a cookbook author, lifestyle blogger, travel agency owner, wife and mama who loves making every day special for my family.

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Mix & Match Mama

Everyday Life ·

2018 in Review!


Every year that I’ve blogged (11.5 years!), I’ve always done a year in review post.  I do these posts more for me than for you.  I love looking back at the years and reminiscing in one post.  It’s always crazy to me how fast the time really does go by.  I love quotes by C.S. Lewis (seriously, the man has the BEST quotes), and this one is one of my faves…

Recapping my year is always a little bittersweet.  I’m so thankful for all of the family time we had.  I’m so very grateful for the adventures, the laughs, the friendships and love from each and every one of you…but I’m always very cognizant that life is short and things can change on a dime.  Who knows what 2019 holds?  I’m going to be praying for all of us as we enter into 2019.  Our pastor ends every Sunday morning with this prayer over us, and it will be my prayer over you today.  It’s Numbers 6:24-26: “The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.”

Happy New Year, friends!  I’ll be on vacation this week with the family (I’m sure you can find me on Instagram and/or FB), and will be returning back here January 7th. xo

If you want to see my years in review from the past, click the dates below:
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008

Here’s a recap of 2018…

JANUARY

We rang in 2018 in Colorado this year and then on the fourth, we celebrated Ashby’s 3rd Gotcha Day with our favorite people in Breckenridge…

…three wonderful years with Miss Ashby!!!

On the 18th, Smith turned EIGHT!  He celebrated with a snowboarding trip with his dad, Tab and Nixon.

Miss Madeley was so excited because in January, she got to start dance just like her big sisters!

FEBRUARY

We enjoyed everything Valentine’s Day in February like our elementary school’s Family Dance…

…and our annual family Valentine’s Day dinner at a cafe on our square.

On the 26th, we visited Manda’s graveside and remembered her on the first anniversary of her death.  Not a day goes by that I don’t think about my sweet friend and miss her dearly.

MARCH

We had a HUGE March because we went on a Disney Land & Sea Vacation with the Slaughter family!  First stop, Walt Disney World!

Second stop, a Disney Cruise!!

We were on board the ship on the 13th which was mine and Andrew’s 14th wedding anniversary!

We came home and enjoyed the many sunny spring days that followed!

APRIL

Then, spring arrived!

The Shull six at church celebrating Easter!

At the end of the month, I took my oldest and my youngest and we hit Boston to see the Red Sox play!  This was Madeley’s first trip to Fenway and she loved it!

MAY

In May, we like allllllllll the family time outside!

Madeley went to Mrs. Sally’s house for swim lessons!  Mrs. Sally has taught all of the Shull kiddos how to swim 🙂 .

I got to celebrate Mother’s Day outside with my kiddos and…

…my entire family too!  The very next week, we all celebrated BIG TIME with…

…the arrival of Isaiah Hendrix Lowe!  This sweet boy made his big arrival on the 18th!

And at the end of May, these two cuties graduated preschool.  Kindergarten, here they come!!!

JUNE

June started off with a BANG!  On the first, we hosted Ashby’s Frozen Swim Party in honor of her 6th birthday!

We quickly followed that with the three girls’ first dance recital all together!  They were all so cute!!!

On the 9th, Ashby turned SIX years old and we celebrated outside all day long!

Midway through the month, the Shull Six loaded up and flew to gorgeous Scotland for one of our best trips ever!!  After a week there, we flew over to enjoy…

…gorgeous Ireland too!

We even got to spend a few nights in a castle!

JULY

We LOVE July 4th in McKinney!  We always start our day off with the parade, followed by a little party in our backyard and finally, fireworks!

Andrew and I got away for a long weekend in Nantucket…

…we declared it probably our best getaway ever.  We had the best time!

When we got home from Nantucket, Erika and I loaded up the 8 kids for our first ever mom and kiddo road trip!  Eight kids, two moms and one giant van.  We had so much fun!!!

We came home to enjoy lots of lazy summer days together…

…July is always so nice!

AUGUST

August started off with the Yankee fans in our house making a trip up to NYC!

And then it was our annual framily trip to San Antonio for lots of swimming and even more laughing!

On the 20th, the three big kids headed back to school…

…and this sweet girl started kindergarten 🙂 .

SEPTEMBER

We kicked off September with Madeley heading off to preschool!

And on the 15th, we celebrated Kensington turning 10 with a trip to New York City with our favorite girls!!

OCTOBER

In October, we did EVERYTHING Fall.  Like not one, but two…

…Oktoberfests!

Andrew and I got away for a quick trip to NYC to see my Red Sox kill his Yankees up in the Bronx 😉 .

We came back home and enjoyed our annual trek to the State Fair of Texas!

On the 19th, this sweet girl turned FOUR!  We celebrated with Madeley’s Spooktacular Birthday Breakfast!

Dad and I checked a HUGE thing off of our bucket list, we went to Game One of the World Series!!!

And we wrapped up our month with a fantastic Halloween!

NOVEMBER

I kicked off November with a girls trip to NYC with my besties!!

Sweet Ashby had procedure number 15 in two years.  FIFTEEN.  In 2018, she had five procedures.  Her strength and courage is remarkable friends.  She is my hero.

We had the best Thanksgiving this year with our family!  Here are my four with my precious grandparents!!

The weekend after Thanksgiving, we kicked off #alltheChristmasfun!

DECEMBER

December started with a recital!  All three girls did an amazing job!!!

We entertained a lot in December!  Kensington hosted her first annual Ugly Sweater Party…

…and I hosted my 9th Annual Recipe Exchange!

We had SO MUCH FAMILY TIME in December!!  THAT was my favorite part of the month!!!

These cuties went to see Santa together 🙂 .

And we wrapped up the year by sending out our Christmas cards.

That was 2018.

Friends, if 2018 wasn’t your year, I am so sorry.  My prayer is that things change for you in 2019.  Sending you so much love and blessings this New Year!  God bless you all! xo

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Comments

  5. Erika Slaughter says

    What a year you Shull Six had! So thankful we got to be a part of so many fun memories. Praying 2019 is even better!! XO

  7. Bev says

    Such a beautiful family! Kudos to you for organizing so many fun things, month after month. You’re an amazing mom!

  9. Michelle Ryan says

    What a fun year traveling with family. I hope to travel some this year but the task seems a bit daunting with a new baby. We brought our son into the world in 2018! Our greatest adventure yet! Has traveling always been big in your family?

    • Mix and Match Mama says

      Congratulations!!!! Being a mom is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I’m so excited for you! Yes, I grew up where there was a huge emphasis placed on traveling, so it’s something we have always incorporated into our family as well.

  11. Colleen says

    This was so much fun to look through! I don’t have any kids yet (old maid status right here in my 30’s haha) but I hope to someday have a big ole family like yours! Beautiful memories, Shay!

  12. joyce says

    Thank you for starting my day reading your blog. Wishing you a great 2019. Our Rabbi ends our service with the same
    prayer…

  13. Jennifer says

    Such a wonderful year for your family.

    Just curious, my family loves to travel as well and you went on several vacations and quick getaways that involved flying. However, every time we price airfare it is too much, so we plan road trips which is limiting on options. Do you have tips on getting airfare at good rates?

    • Mix and Match Mama says

      Flights are pricey! I book most of our big vacation flights through my travel agency. Any smaller trips (where we’re just flying to maybe NYC for the weekend), I book directly through the airline. Since we live by DFW (American Airline’s main hub), we really use them a lot and have accumulated status with them. I think that helps too.

  14. Kelly Buffington says

    I always enjoy your year in review posts! So fun! Enjoy your vacation week and looking forward to seeing what God has in store for 2019!

  16. Melanie Smith says

    You amaze me Shay. My kids are grown now and as I read your posts, I wish my two was still little! 🙂
    Enjoy them, like you do, because time goes by so fast.
    May 2019 be even be better for your family. ❤️

  17. Elizabeth Bartlett says

    Loved this walk down memory lane. Thank you for sharing your family with us. Cheers to 2019!! XO

  19. Jaren says

    What a fun year!! Thanks for your constant inspiration and uplifting space in blogland! I look forward to following along another year! Hope you guys have a wonderful New Year and a happy soon to be Gotcha Day to Ashby!!

  21. Carly M says

    Shay, you have blessed my life more than you know this year. Thank you for sharing your life with us. Enjoy vacation! Happy New Year!

  25. McKenzie A says

    Oh it sounds like you had a wonderful 2018! The months seemed to get better and better as they went ♥ Recap posts are always so fun to do to look back on.

  26. Amanda Wilson says

    What a blessed year you had with good health and tons of fun trips!! I love following along with your adventures! I will continue praying for Ashby in the new year. Happy New Year Shull family!!

  27. Bridget Stickland says

    Happy new year. The Lord Bless you and Keep you is one of my favourite hymns. The rendition at Meaghan and Harry’s royal wedding this year was spectacular.
    Thank you for your blog.

  30. Liz Thorson says

    Loved your delightful year in review pictures and comments! What love and fun you share with your family and friends! Here’s to a wonderful 2019!❤️

  34. Angela Sharbono says

    I really enjoyed and received inspiration from your monthly goal lists. Might you consider doing that again in the coming year? I love following your blog and wish you a blessed new year!

  35. Jaime says

    Hi! I have tried several recipes for tacos from your blog and loved them all! Last week we tried out this recipe for dinner! ( https://whatsupmoms.com/eat/avocado-tacos/ ) It was Amazing! I thought maybe you would want to try it! Just sharing a amazing recipe! I know how much you love tacos! Thanks Jaime

  37. Nicole says

    Happy New Year, Shay!! I’m going on my first cruise, and I’ve been looking back to all your cruise posts. So helpful! On our cruise there are two formal nights, it seems like overall you wore heels and a dress to every dinner…did you ever get more “formal” for certain dinners? Thanks!

    • Mix and Match Mama says

      We did not! I find that most ships don’t require the “sequins and tux” formal nights that they used to.