2013

(My quick display I threw together after I felt my house was naked but that is was too soon to put up Valentines day stuff)

I'm a couple weeks late but Happy 2013 anyway! I've done my recap of the previous year for the past 5 years but I'm going to skip it this year. I've spent a lot of time thinking about 2012 and how I would answer all of the questions that I normally do at the end of each year and honestly I feel like I'm still PROCESSING all that happened in 2012. I just can't bring myself to organize my thoughts and feelings enough to verbalize  how I feel about the year. It was a doozy in so many ways.

I'm a big believer in setting resolutions or goals at the beginning of each year. We always set resolutions growing up and it has carried over into my adult life. Last week we spent our FHE time reviewing our 2012 goals and setting new goals for 2013. Looking back we had a pretty good year. I broke up my goals into different categories and it worked well for me. Here are my goals and how well I did (or didn't) do accomplishing them.

Health

• Lose remaining baby weight - I did this BUT I ended up gaining some of my weight back. Blech. 
• Floss daily - DONE (I can't floss when I'm pregnant so I had gotten out of the habit)
• Run a 5K - Did not do

Spirituality

• Read the BOM twice- DONE - I timed it so I would finish the 2nd time on December 31 which was an awesome way to finish the year
• Attend the temple every month - I got 10/12 months so I feel really good about this one (moving/single parenting for 3 months account for the 2 months I didn't make it)
• Read Thomas S. Monson's biography - DONE I loved it so much that I also read another book by him "Faith Endures"

Education

• Take a photography course - Did not do

Habit 

• Stop swearing - DONE - yep I'm putting it out there for the whole internet world to see. I've had a bit of a problem swearing over the years- not a ton but enough that I know it's a BAD habit that I knew was so un-classy. So... I told my kids I would drink a shot of Tabasco sauce if I said a bad word. Well, that was the motivation I needed and I completely broke my bad habit. The only reason I'm sharing this is because I never thought I could break this habit but I put my mind to it and found a good motivator and got it done. Turning weaknesses into strengths one bad habit at a time :)

So I guess 2012 had mixed results with my goals. I had a couple more that I will keep private that I did accomplish. I've thought long and hard about what I wanted to accomplish in 2013. Here's a few:

Health

• Lose that extra weight AGAIN. 
• Run a 5K (this is a family goal too)

Spirituality

• Read the D&C and the BOM
• Attend the temple 6 times this year (I had to set a realistic goal due to Allen's crazy work hours and YM responsibilities)

Education

• Do Project 365/Project Life again. I did not do it last year (after having done it the previous 3 years) and I totally regret it. I even have my 365 blog back up and running (click the link on the right side of the page to get there)
• Get my younger girls baby books done
• Take an adult dance class

Habit

• Drink 100 oz of water every day

Family/Household

• Better meal planning - try once a month cooking (I did this last week and I'll do a blog post about it soon but I am LOVING it so far)
• Spend 15 minutes of quality alone time with each child every day

I feel like this is enough to keep me motivated without making me feel overwhelmed. I also decided to choose a word for the year. After a lot of thought I have chosen the word BRAVE.  My goal is to try lots of new things this year and not be afraid. I've already tried a few new classes at the gym this year and have signed up for a dance class that starts in a few weeks. I have other ways that I am planning to incorporate being BRAVE into my life this year! Stay tuned!!

Allen's Half Marathon

One of Allen's resolutions for 2012 was to run a half marathon. Of course when he set this goal he had no idea what a crazy year we would have - moving, new job requiring LOTS of hours (70-80 per week), being the YM president both in ABQ and in our new ward in WA. You get the idea! But he was determined and was able to find a race scheduled for a Saturday (most are on Sundays).

The only race that worked for our schedule was a trail half marathon. Allen diligently trained over a few months but he always ran on paved roads and trails. He really had no idea what to expect running a trail race. Afterwards he said he thought he would be running on a groomed trail but it ended up being a very "rustic" run with no grooming - rocks, roots, mud, etc. It also took him quite a bit longer than he was expecting because of the rough trail and because it was only 1 runner wide. But he completed the race AND his goal and we couldn't be more proud of him!

I waited (and waited and waited) with the kids while Allen ran. We went to breakfast and ran a few errands while he was running. As we were waiting for him to cross the finish line I started snapping pictures of my kids. I think these turned out so great and GUESS WHAT? -  No one is in a matchy, darling outfit. No one has a cute hair accessory and I didn't preplan the location. Sometimes I forget that the circumstances don't have to be perfect to get great pictures. It is a good reminder for me to just take pictures and not worry so much about the details!

 In the end Allen said he will probably never run another trail race but he accomplished his goal and has gotten the running bug again! (I have more pictures coming from the race photographer but they won't be here until January)

1st Quarter Goals

This year I decided to set quarterly goals to keep things a bit more manageable. It is working! Looking at a 3 month completion time instead of a full year is keeping me motivated!

I had a few goals for the first quarter of the year:

1. Finish the Book of Mormon (I finished on March 2)

2. Lose 15 pounds (I am beyond thrilled to say that I have lost 27 pounds since January 1!)

3. Complete 3 projects: Sew Valentine Pillows (January), Finish 2011 Photo book (February), Prepare for kids consignment sale (March)

I completed my January and February projects but had to skip March. The consignment sale I was going to do takes place on a weekend that Allen won't be in town and participants are required to work an 8 hour shift to sell at it. I'm super bummed. What I DID complete was going through every stitch of kids clothing that I have. It took me many, many hours over the course of a week but I now have everything separated by size and season stored in bins (meaning I have separate spring/summer and fall/winter bins for EVERY size). You know how it is, a 2T cardigan gets mixed in with the 3T stuff, etc. I knew I was missing some outfits for my little girls so I decided to tackle the entire thing. It was hideous but it is SO NICE to have it done. I will either find a consignment store or sale to sell out as soon as I get to WA. I have 10 boxes of outgrown kids clothes and maternity clothes to sell! Sheesh!

I also have a few longer-term goals I am working on for the year so I won't report on those yet but I am making good progress. My next quarter won't be quite as productive since our move falls during those months. I have a few things in mind though.

2nd Quarter goals:

1. Lose my last 10 pounds of weight (I know you're going to ask: cut carbs, lots of vegetables and lean protein, drink a gallon of a water every day)

2. Fun TOP SECRET project for Allen

3. Read Thomas S. Monson biography

4. Read the 1st 1/3 of Book of Mormon (to make sure I finish again by the end of the year)

5. Survive

Consistency

I found this quote the other day and am so inspired by it. The longer I live, the more I realize that success in life is not dependent on one grandiose act. Success comes by small, consistent, daily efforts. I've spent the last couple months trying to reinstill my simple daily habits that somehow got lost during 9 awful months of pregnancy. So this month my goal is simple CONSISTENCY.

For the next 30 days I will:

Drink 100 oz. of water every day

Move for 30 minutes a day

Take my vitamin

Floss

Do school work with Addison daily

Eat within my points

Have meaningful daily Scripture Study

Balance my checkbook weekly

I know it's not a lot and some of it I'm doing well at already, but it is enough to keep me challenged. I'm needing to up my game again with my weight loss so hopefully making it a public goal will keep me on track! Wish me luck!!

Goals - February & March

Ahem. I'm keeping myself accountable with my goals by posting here. Let's be honest right off the bat - having 4 kids is seriously kicking my rear. My February goal of NURTURE was an epic FAIL. I did not accomplish a single thing on my list.

What I DID accomplish:
- Gave birth to the most beautiful baby girl in the world
- Nursed said baby approximately 3 million times in the last month
- Pulled off a baptism, baptism party and baby blessing on the same weekend
- Started and finished a scrapbook for Carter's baptism (I will share pics at some point because it turned out GREAT!)
- Sort of stayed on top of laundry, house cleaning, running kids around, picture of the day project
- Bought fabric for a couple home decor projects (that my mom is very graciously sewing for me) and completed a couple of St. Pat's projects (pics to come)

That's about it. I even managed to forget to pay my electric bill and got a shut-off notice on my front door {mortifying}. I didn't crack a book the entire month either. I did download a book to my iphone to read while I nurse but usually fall asleep while I'm nursing. I've kept up on most my friends blogs on my phone but never manage to find time to go back and comment.

For March I feel like my word of the month should be SURVIVE or BALANCE. I'll get back to you on that. I'm just trying to survive and find some balance with having 4 kiddos!

Goals - January Update & February To-Do's

Can you believe January is already over? Me neither. I've had a great and productive month here. I've tackled almost everything on my To Do list that I posted here with the exception of a few things out of my control ( i.e. haven't done my taxes because we annoyingly don't have all of our paperwork yet; spring sports sign up isn't available yet; don't know if the kids' school is even doing Valentine parties, etc.) I have a project that I'm in the middle of for Carter's baptism but I'm planning on wrapping it up this week. Everything else is DONE! Additionally, I've done a bunch of crafting, dejunking/deep cleaning, read 5 books and stayed busy with a million other little things.

I'm calling January, my month of PREPARE, a success!

On to February. I've chosen the word NURTURE as my word of the month. So appropriate as it is the month of having a new baby AND Valentines day. I'm not making any huge promises about what I'm going to accomplish this month though. We will have out-of-town guests for much of the month which I am so happy about.

To Do in February:

• Read parenting book "Why Gender Matters"
• Read parenting book "The Heart of Parenting: Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child"
• Spend 15 minutes of QUALITY alone time with each of my kids every day
• Do something special for Allen
• Research the topics of Love, Nurturing and Parenting in the Ensign (I already have found a few great articles that I will post links to at the end of the month)

I am being induced one week from today and CANNOT wait to have this little girl here!

Welcome 2011!

Whew! It feels like forever since I posted on this blog. The week after Christmas we were busy playing, playing, playing and ended up having Allen home quite a bit during the week (hooray!). We also spent time getting Christmas down and the house deep cleaned (yay!). This week I've been knocking things off my LONG and much neglected TO DO list. It's going to be a busy few weeks as we get ready to have this baby!!

I have been thinking a lot about what kind of year I'd like 2011 to be. I am trying to be realistic about my expectations for what I can accomplish this year. I will be returning to the newborn/baby stage and adjusting to having FOUR children. Add to that the fact that we are approaching the 2 year mark here in ABQ, which seems to be the magic formula for a career/location change in our lives (no, nothing in the works at this point, I promise). As I reviewed my 2010 goals last week, I realized that I had accomplished almost nothing on my list. It was a bit (ok, a lot) disheartening but then I remembered that I wasn't planning on moving or getting pregnant in 2010 when I set those goals. I'm trying to cut myself some slack.

I've decided that for 2011 I'd like to focus on ONE word/goal per month. I think this is a more realistic approach for me this year. So for January, my word/goal is PREPARE. I have plenty of preparation to do to be ready for baby girl arriving the first week of February.

Included on my To Do list this month:

• Go to Optometrist/Get new contacts - DONE
• Go to Dermatologist
• Take Carter to Orthodontist consultation - DONE
• Finish preparing for all the kids' birthdays - DONE
• Prepare 2010 Taxes
• Finish Project 365 book/blog updates - DONE!!!!!!!
• Wash all newborn clothes - DONE
• Paint baby's dresser - DONE
• Check 3T bins to see what needs to be purchased for summer for Addie - DONE
• Make at least 10 more freezer meals - DONE
• Organize/File all 2010 paperwork - DONE
• Get kids signed up for spring sports
• Make big kids Valentines
• Get this blog updated
• Finish preparing for Carter's baptism - DONE

I'm basically trying to do anything that will simplify my life for the next couple months while I nurse round-the-clock and adjust to our new reality.

I've already chosen NURTURE as my word/goal for February. I have a couple of parenting books that I'm planning to read (lots of time to read while I nurse!) and I will make a few more goals as we get closer.

As crazy as I'm expecting 2011 to be, I'm really excited for the possibilities that are ahead for us this year!

And the word of 2007 is...

So, I subscribe to this email newsletter from the fabulous scrapbooker Ali Edwards. She passes along challenges and words of wisdom and inspirational ideas. In her first newsletter of the year, she asked her readers to choose a word to define 2007. I pondered long and hard about my word.

Prioritize.

Yep. Prioritize. I know it's kind of a weird word. But you have to understand that the last 3 years of our (my) life have been an exercise of survival. Surviving graduate school while working full time. Surviving the house remodel. Surviving various demading church callings. Surviving having a husband who was gone most of the time. Well, that time is finally over. We've had six months to relax, collect ourselves and start thinking about what we want to do with the rest of our lives.

So this year is about priorities. And really examining what it is that we feel passionately about. We want to spend this year getting better prepared. That is a huge priority for us. Our plan is to have our entire year supply by the end of the year. To have all of our legal documents in order. Another priority is to continue our path of better health. We have made excellent strides in this goal in the last year. Probably the biggest priority for me this year is my spiritual health. I do ok in a lot of areas, but this is the year where temple attendance and scripture STUDY (not scripture reading) are my biggest priorities.

I think about this word every single day. Every time I sit down to do something frivolous, I think about how it is fitting in to my priorities.

I'll let you know how it goes.

The first Five!

One of my big goals for this year is to SCRAPBOOK!! One hundred Layouts. Al started to laugh at me when I told him that goal but when I told him it was less than 2 per week, he thinks I can do it (which I will). I'm hoping that in those 100 layouts I complete my 2005 and 2006 albums. I decided I will post them in batches of 5. So here are the first five. A couple of them need journaling but I ran out of printer ink last night while I was printing.

Pumpkin Patch: This one will have journaling on the 2nd page over the top of those patterned papers.

Bad Guy Face: Also needs some journaling, which will go down the left side. Our Favorites (for now): I actually don't like how this LO turned out, at all. But the idea is really cool and I think I'll do it at least once a year. It will be fun to see how our preferences change, over time. Makenna at 3 Months. So yeah, I've already scrapped this pictures once. But these delish vintage papers are perfect so I thought I'd do another one (this one was super fast). The papers remind me of an apron from the 40s.

Another goal for this year is to become more tech savvy. I am so out of touch. I had Al buy me Photoshop software and book for Christmas. I have it loaded on to my computer but haven't done a thing with it yet. I'm planning to play around with it this weekend.

Oh yes, I have to add, that I've noticed how ALL of my pictures look blurry on the computer screen. I don't know if it's my screen or what, but when I print my pictures out, they are not blurry at all.