I always like the beginning of a new year. I love the holidays, but when they're over, I'm very ready for the routine to begin again.
A lady who lived down the street from my parents passed away at the end of December. I went to the viewing and my parents were a big part of the funeral. She was a staple in my childhood neighborhood. I will always remember her strong testimony, her continual diligence in life, and the kindness she showed me when Michael died.
More snow and sledding fun with Eric and the girls:
Miss Millie spent the first couple of weeks of the year with the flu:
My brother-in-law had his 40th birthday on January 2nd, so my sister threw him a surprise party at a yummy Chinese restaurant. Gabe was like a brother to me while growing up. Here are a few pictures from the party:
The excitement at my parents was they got a new fireplace. So fun seeing them enjoy some nice things in their older ages:
This is how Millie spent her 2nd birthday, on January 3rd. Sick in bed:
But very cute...
Here are Millie and Harry trying to keep busy during the nightly homework routine:
Millie's 2nd birthday:
More pics of my Harry:
Abbey up to her usual sisterly kindness:
Getting into mischief:
We invited the Lukes over to help celebrate Millie's birthday. Here are a few pictures from the evening. Her favorite part was opening presents. She put on a show for everyone!:
Enjoying her M & M birthday cake:
Abbey being cute:
Andi and I met her Aunt Bethany at a restaurant on the evening of Michael's birthday. It was a quiet evening to help celebrate his life. I appreciate Bethany being with us, and I loved sharing memories with Andi. We even ate some Ben & Jerry's ice cream, Michael's favorite:
She is my kitchen buddy while I make dinner and dishes:
This cute girl giving me cuddles:
Here's the newly-turned two year old at her two-year old check-up:
As usual, she measured as having a very small head, and being at about 40-50 percentile in weight and heighth.
This little guy has been a fun little part of our family, but he eventually became more than I felt we could take care of anymore. We found him a nice home and said our goodbyes.
Goodbye to our bunny, Harvey!
Enjoying one of her new birthday toys with Dad:
Andi is getting particularly interested in her looks these days. She has requested a lot of certain hairstyles and she's enjoying all the girly accessories she can. Here's a fancy hairdo we did one day for school:
And here's another fancy girl:
This is what we do during our weekly Relief Society meeting at our house. She likes to keep me multitasking:
Harry and I lamenting over another empty green room after the holidays:
Love seeing my people dressed up for church:
This girl has discovered selfies and takes them often with my phone :):
A card for our 5th anniversary from Eric. It's definitely a keeper:
CRAZY
Wearing hats is fun to do...
....and unfortunately, so is picking your nose...
Eric's brother James came one Friday night and brought his dogs with him. I was thrilled to have some cuddle time with his Dax. The best cuddler EVER.
I took the girls skiing one weekend in January to warm them up for their February lessons. They did great! It took a while to get our ski legs back on, but it was a lot of fun doing it together.
Grandma Zimmerman is so diligent about sending gifts our way on birthdays and holidays. Here is a fun puzzle Millie got from the Zimmermans for her birthday:
Abbey got this for Christmas--It's a great way to store and collect the state quarters. She's really enjoying it!
Here's Millie "playing the piano" with her cousin Spencer at my mom's house:
He has been so good to her.
My 35th birthday landed on a Sunday this year, and that made it kind of fun. We got to have Sunday dinner at my mom's:
I took Chloe and the girls skating at Classic Skating. Ava got to use her new rollerblades from Christmas and they all did great:
How Abbey spend her free time: Arts and crafts!
On this day, she painted a picture of the Delicate Arch.
Aunt Bethany and Grandma Cathi gave a special gift to the girls for Christmas and invited them to a "tea party" at the Grand America Hotel. On Saturday, January 28th, they all got dressed up and enjoyed "high tea" at the Grandma America in Salt Lake City. Here is the darling invitation that Bethany made:
Birthday cards, pictures, and flowers that I very much enjoyed:
Ava being silly as we played dress-up:
Dressed to kill:
Spending time with Grandma Luke:
Putting underwear on her head just to get a laugh:
Watching The Parent Trap on our bed:
Millie pushing Ava's buttons and trying to "cuddle" her:
A nice thought I thought was worth saving:
Posing in her crib with her favorite stuffed animals: Bear and seal
Doing laundry after we sent the girls off to school. Our usual.
Enjoying my freshly painted blue dining room. A project I was finally able to get done and enjoy:
A school art project Andi did:
Ava had "Market Day" this month at school. Here she is with her partner Des. They made bookmarks and a poster and sold them for 25 cents a piece:
Hard to believe she's getting so old! She did a great job that day.
Abbey's 5th grade teacher threw a Harry Potter party and I got to help with it. Abbey was so excited for it...She waited for weeks in anticipation. After all, she LOVES Harry Potter.
Here is a picture of a great thought I saw displayed in Abbey's classroom:
And here's Abbey during the party dressed as Hermione with her classmate:
Millie getting tended by Grandma Luke:
The day of the GRAND tea party finally arrived. Here they are, all ready to go!:
Truly a "grand" experience at the Grand America!
Enjoying some fun shopping during a week of early-out school days:
Abbey and the girls have been collecting holiday barbies with their earning money. Here's Abbey with her collection:
Playing together on a Friday afternoon in Abbey's room:
Millie enjoying her "Bo Bo" on a Friday morning.
This January has seemed a little longer than past years. We have received record amounts of snow. I don't mind it...I am grateful for the beauty of each season and the mounds of snow we've received have created such beauty. But the cold and darkness does wear on me after a while. My will to keep enduring with enthusiasm was certainly tested this month, and I was reminded of the need to focus on good habits to help me endure. One good habit I've been thinking a lot about is the weekly habit of going to church. I haven't always been awesome at this throughout my life, but being a parent has certainly motivated me to be a faithful weekly attender. It can be a frustrating routine to keep up with, with school five days a week and church on Sunday. I often find myself quite flustered by the time I arrive at church--with diaper bags, church bags, coats, and babies in hand. That said, I have noticed how much happier I feel by the time I arrive home from our three-hour block. My spirit feels renewed and ready to keep going. I may falter in achieving all the different spiritual tasks in life, but going to church is one thing I can do, as hard as it is, and it is empowering. That I believe.
Along those same lines, there was one weekend this month that entailed a good measure of sacrifice for the sake of attending church meetings and fulfilling our callings. On this particular weekend, Eric and I went to our ward temple night (which we don't always do), I attended our stake Women's Conference, and we had Ward Conference that Sunday as well. It was a spiritually jam-packed weekend, and while busy and tiring, I walked away strengthened from it all. Here are a few messages I wanted to remember from that weekend:
--Keep the focus on family.
--Don't be afraid to reach out and call people if you need them. --An especially helpful message for women, I think.
--It is important to prepare for personal revelation and put yourself in circumstances to receive such help. I believe in personal revelation. For me, having alone, quiet time facilitates this process so much for me. Guidance comes so often when I'm quietly doing mindless work.
--Becoming better in life takes conscientious effort.
--Accept mortality and make it your friend.
--The spirit of meekness is something to remember. I prayed for guidance before the temple to help me know how to approach people close to me more about Gospel and how to be an example. (Because I know I need to work on it.) I read a scripture in D&C about missionary work and how meekness is key and felt that was very much an answer I was looking for.
--There was a presenter at our stake Women's Conference that gave such a good presentation on life skills that help you keep going. She talked about courage, patience, service, gratitude, filling your bucket, optimism, prayer (we can sometimes benefit from turning to and confiding in Him more than others, which I believe strongly in doing.) She also talked about how sometimes we need superhuman strength because life keeps going on no matter what. That superhuman strength can come from God. I very much feel that has been true in my life.
Eric and I celebrated our 5th anniversary this last month. In contemplating the last five years, it isn't hard to think about all the challenges. We have certainly had them. We are different from each other and we travel with baggage. But there is an underlying factor that I believe has gotten us through the difficulties. As base as it may sound, we have simply needed each other. And we can succor those needs in a way that many others cannot. That truth hasn't always been clear, but as we emerge from the haze of our first 4 or 5 years, I can see that more clearly now. I am grateful for that progress, even though it still doesn't negate the constant challenge we have of molding our pasts into the present. We often feel pulled in many different directions and that can be taxing on a relationship. But after all is said and done, I arrive at the same fact: We need each other. No matter the complications of it all, we need and have a place for each other.
A few more thoughts from this month:
As I watch the girls get older and become more social, I've been thinking a lot about my own social self and some of the things I've learned. I hope I can impart to them a few things I've learned along my path, because I have such a strong belief that people skills are foundational for succeeding in life. So when the following thought came to me I thought I should write it down. Simply put, socializing and connecting with others can be a lot easier if you make it more about them than you.
That's it for now.
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