December flew by. It always does. I always start the beginning of the month with the resolve to slow down and enjoy the season with all of its goodness. And then January shows up too soon, leaving me wondering when the "slow down" was actually going to happen. I should know by now that there is no such thing. Demember and slow don't even belong in the same sentence! So for next year I think I will forgo the whole slow idea and just put my fast pants on.

It was a wonderful Christmas though.

With the help of one of Santa's elves (idea via here), we had some great fun together as a family. Each night he left us a note and instructions for an activity the following day. We could hardly wait to see what he had planned for us. We made snowflakes, drank hot chocolate, watched movies, gave gifts, took the Polar Express (and barely made it on the train with no minutes to spare), ate treats, wrote notes and made some good memories. Our little elf had to stay on his toes to keep up but it was so worth it. I hope he comes again next year…if he's not too tired out.

This year we stayed home and enjoyed Christmas day with just our family. I loved it. It was fun to snuggle on the couch with Jeff and watch a movie while our children played in the other room for hours–building legos, riding scooters around the house, and having conversations with dolls. That is the kind of thing I cherish…listening to them play and laugh with each other. It felt simple and relaxing. No plans, just being together.

We all took turns this month nursing some sort of cough and cold. Mine lasted for a good four weeks but luckily it didn't manage to take me down. Jeff took a few hours off work here and there to spend with us during the time off school. I always love when he comes home early, even if it's only a half an hour. We took pizza to the park, watched a few more movies, and had lots of friends over to play. I lost Dallin for about an hour too (that's a story for another day).

We celebrated New Year's Eve a little differently this year. Instead of partying at night, we partied in the afternoon…Jeff and I that is. Who am I kidding though, I can't remember the last time I stayed up until midnight! We got a babysitter while we went out for a movie and lunch date then came home and rang in the new year with the kids (at 7pm). We all got in our pajamas, drank some martinellis, and Jeff made balloon hats for everyone. His balloons never get old around here. I love that obscure talent of his!

That night, we all piled on the couch for our last family picture of the year. I set the timer and ran over and tried to squish my cheeks on the couch. I didn't fit though as you can see!

Looking back over the past year, I am so glad that I participated in this project. As I've sat down each month to document it, I have thought a lot about the kind of life I'm living. I've thought a lot about how the things I am doing or not doing have an impact on everyone in our family. I've thought a lot about how I want our home to feel and how I can make it happen.

I'm so glad I can look back and see where we've been throughout the year 2010.

We've been together.

This month's photo is the obvious last day of the month. No costumes for Jeff or me. I love dressing up for Halloween but in years past I've usually gotten the stink eye from my kids when I've put on a costume. Not sure why… Next year I think I'm going to boycott and do it anyway. 🙂

I've always loved October. I think it's safe to say it's my favorite month of the year. April comes in pretty close but there's just something about the feeling of October that I crave. It brings a welcome change. And this coming from a girl who despises change, I embrace all that October brings.

This month was everything I needed it to be. I was needing a little pick me up from the month previous and it was just that. It started off with General Conference and Dallin's baptism. I'm grateful that so many of our family and friends were able to come. It was icing on the cake.

Then fall break came along. We packed up the van and headed to our favorite getaway destination: D-land and to stay with our friends, the Thunells. It is just the right combination of fun for us. The kids get their fill of rides, Jeff gets to surf, and I get to spend time talking with Alexis. It's a win-win for everyone and we always come home happy and ready to take on the next set of adventures hurled our way.

And I do mean hurled. I wish I could slow life down but it seems like it's moving at warp speed and I'm hanging off the edge just trying to keep the bugs out of my teeth. Sometimes I don't know how I keep it all together. Actually I don't keep it all together. I forget things. I lose things. I'm late. I make messes and don't clean them up. I procrastinate. But enough about all that. I try not to dwell on it for too long and hope no one else does either. 

Amidst all the craziness, I've found peace in the important things. I'm trying to be more present for my children. I'm trying to listen better. I'm trying not to worry. I'm trying to hug them more throughout the day. I'm trying to get down to their level, look them in the eyes and tell them I love them. I'm trying to let things go more and become impatient less. I'm trying to hear what's not being said and see what is truly needed.

Little by little, I am trying.

I'm also trying to get rid of all the hidden Halloween candy stashes that keep surfacing around here. Good luck with that one! 

This month's photo happened quickly as the sun was fading after dinner. Threw a blanket out, set the camera on the ground and everyone jumped on.

Every night at the dinner table we play a game of "sweet and sour." We each take turns telling our sweet thing that happened during the day as well as a sour. Sometimes there are lots of sweets, sometimes mostly sours. And that's okay. I love this little time we have to share and connect with each other. It has become a favorite part of my day.

So I figured I'd attempt to document our life in August the same way. Here goes…

Sweets: visiting family in Utah, 2 special baptisms, playing alligators and monkeys with Grandpa, swimming with cousins, good talks with sisters, an entire day of Lagoon, soaking in my family, rain storms, 3-year-old birthdays, father's blessings, school starting, potty training, long naps, quiet afternoons, balloons, Primary children singing, spiritual changes, getting up earlier (or at least trying to), making breakfasts, packing lunches, reading books, after school chats, a happy kindergartener, preschool, carpools, lost teeth, Guatemala photos, dinner time.

Sours: missing family, late night driving, A/C going out in van, school starting, potty training, thyroid issues, hurt feelings, temper tantrums, tired and hungry people, work stress, broken backpack, homework woes, broken lens, sweeping crumbs, car seat battles, misunderstandings, time outs, summer heat.

Looks like the sweets won this month. 🙂

Continue Reading

may.

where did it go? and why do i always find myself saying that at the end of another month. this much i do know…life passes by too quickly to not live it with purpose. no waxing philosophical here. just feeling like i am happier when i am making life happen not just letting it happen. if that makes any sense.

christian got his band off on cinco de mayo. that was something worth celebrating. it came off just in time for summer because it was starting to get smelly. babies are smelly enough at one end. having it at both ends was a little much. 🙂

we visited another doctor and learned more about Lincoln's eye condition. it's still amazing to me that he finally has a correct diagnosis. i scoured through every picture i have of him to see if i could tell that his eyes were off. i see it now. i see it so clearly. strangely enough, the answer has been staring back at me this whole time.

mother's day was sweet and funny. i always laugh at the fill-in-the-blank answers they say about me. my all time favorite had to be the question dallin answered like this "my mom and i are the same because…we have the same color eyes. we are different because…she sleeps in a bed and i sleep on the couch." i busted up with laughter. not because my child has no bed. he has one. in fact, technically he has two because it's a bunk bed. but he hasn't slept in it for a while now that lincoln is in the same room. lincoln isn't known for being a good sleeper so dallin took the couch so he could get a better night's sleep.
i'm still laughing about what he said. reminds me of that movie, the blind side. i can dallin hear saying when he's 17,
"never had one of those before."
"what? your own room?"
"no. a bed." 
yeah. we're stellar parents.

we were able to drive to the gila valley and take our family through the temple open house. once with our little family and again when my parents came down to visit. what a memorable experience. i love that our children our getting older and can start to understand the importance of the temple in our lives and theirs. i felt the spirit so strongly when our tour guides, a husband and wife, shared their feelings about eternal marriage while we were in one of the sealing rooms. i felt the power of sincere testimony and love. i want to be able to do that someday with jeff.

we loved having grandma and grandpa here with us again. one afternoon i found grandpa entertaining ella and lincoln by wrapping their arms up in paper towels and pretending they had casts on. he was even signing his name on them with marker. i loved watching them laugh and joke and play together. such fun memories.

jeff and my parents made it possible for me to take a weekend trip to minneapolis for a photography workshop. i felt like a fish out of water sitting on an airplane alone with no one in my lap. the workshop was so invigorating.

the end of the school year was full of graduations (that bob parr would call psychotic), recitals, parties, celebrations, and so forth and so on. it gets to be a lot to juggle but we managed to get it all done. even the recital that i almost forgot until about 5 minutes before it started. i'm sure someone took down the license plate number of a crazed woman driving a mini van that ran over a curb and almost took out a tree. but i made it. skid marks and all.

one weekend some friends invited us to their cabin for an overnighter. it was heaven. truly. the kids played. the parents talked. there was fishing, zip lining, swinging, eating, and puking. yeah, puking. dallin got the stomach flu and threw up all over. luckily it was outside on the porch and easy to hose down. otherwise i'm guessing we would not be on the guest list next time. 🙂

i'm sure there are many more details to may that have skipped my mind. but i think this month will be remembered fondly. even the puke.

April was another amazing weather month. We spent almost every afternoon out in the backyard playing until Jeff came home. These photos were taken one of those lovely afternoons.
Here's the normal scenario: Jeff does his trademark horn honk pulling into the garage. The kids go running to greet him. He joins us outside. We swing and play for another half hour until dinner time. I LOVE this time of year.

At the beginning of April everyone had a clean bill of health except Christian. I was convinced he had whooping cough and spent an entire night obsessing that he would be gone by morning. All mothers do this don't they…worry themselves sick? I took him to the doctor early the next day and he had remnants of pneumonia. We came home with medications galore and he was better within days.

Easter was low key for us this year. We spent the weekend at home together. I love having General Conference on Easter Sunday. it allowed us to slow down and really focus on Christ and feel uplifted in every way.

One afternoon Dallin asked me for money for something. I told him he would need to find a way to earn it. He decided a lemonade stand would bring in some dough. I was skeptical that he would make very much, but he was all gung ho. Jeff, Ella and even Lincoln joined him at the entrance to our neighborhood. Jeff said they shouted their little hearts out to the cars passing by. When a car would stop, Ella would exclaim, "a customer!" They arrived back home with gigantic grins and pockets full of change. It was so great to watch Dallin set a goal, work towards it, and set aside his introvert qualities to achieve it. Awesome!

Ella has been into singing "All the Single Ladies" and choreographing her own dance to go with it. Jeff wasn't too thrilled that she had seen the music video. Me…I really wish I could still dance at all. 🙂

Christian is the master army crawler. He makes a beeline for the pantry whenever he has a chance. We should have had a camouflage design painted on his helmet. That would be the ultimate.

Lincoln's favorite food is a "horn" dog. 🙂 still laughing about that one.

I threw my insecurities to the wind and entered a photography contest. I really had no thought of winning and I was completely shocked and ecstatic to see my photo in first place. I also worked through some lame times trying to battle my weaknesses. The critical voice in my head can be paralyzing. I am so hard on myself. Controlling my thoughts is key.

Jeff got a new position at work that gives him a bit less stress. I am over the moon about this. Late nights and the end of the month took a huge toll on all of us. Hallelujah!

We ended the month with an anniversary trip to the Salt Lake Temple. We haven't been back inside since we were married there. It's amazing how important it is to keep the flame alive in our relationship. Jeff is so good at it. It has taken me almost ten years to get past my shyness/embarrassment when it comes to expressing affection. I've always felt so awkward. But I'm convinced that showing our love is a healthy thing. Not only for me but for our children. They need to see it and feel it expressed in the right ways. Jeff is obviously nodding his head right about now. I am lucky to have him…lucky is a understatement.

i've decided to do this. i've been hesitant to jump on board because i figured i could never manage to get us all in a photo without causing unnecessary stress. but no more. if i make it a priority, it will happen. and it's not going to be stressful. it's just going to be us. however we are. i'm a little late with march but here it is.

this is our six people project. 

march started with sickness and ended the same way. it has circled through each of us twice. only jeff was spared. lucky him.

after over a year and a half of going the rounds with doctors and evaluations of lincoln's torticollis, we may have found an answer. i cried the whole way home from the appointment. mostly in gratitude for receiving an answer. i'm still skeptical but i have hope.

ella turned 5 with a bang. her party was my pet project. with all of the combined celebrations, i think her birthday lasted for 3 weeks. lucky her.

spring break took us to california and utah. on a saturday at 5pm, i told jeff i wanted to get outta town. he obliged my spontaneity and we packed and left by 8pm. mental note: driving through the night is not fun. being spontaneous can sometimes equal being stupid.

we spent ella's birthday in cali and then headed utah to celebrate my mom's b-day with her. lots of driving. lots of great conversations with jeff. realized that we love the journey together…wherever we are going.

then we brought grandma and grandpa back to arizona with us. grandpa is an amazing handy man. he fixed all of our broken things and even planted a garden. i love my parents.

i also love arizona in march. the weather is heavenly. …but hell is around the corner. i need a serious attitude adjustment about the summer. it is unbecoming of me. i am promising from this time forward to be cheerful. complaining brings nothing but cankles.

we've had more family photos this month than in two years. thanks to a photo booth outside of Last Chance and grandma. she took our picture this month in our easter festives. we look pretty much the same as two years ago…plus one child. 🙂