Resolution Review...and Renew

It was recently brought to my attention that I need to "UPDATE YOUR BLOG". So I added a bit about Christmas and this is my year-end update...

Too many years I have set goals and then not followed up in any way and they just die by the wayside. This year, I have kept in the back of my mind that I promised to post how I had done this year and I am actually doing it. Following are my resolutions for 2009, along with how well I did on each of them.

My "OFFICIAL" 2009 New Year's Resolutions.
1. Lose weight. Can I just say "YAH!!" I finally accomplished this to some extent and don't have to feel like a failure at the end of the year. This year, I lost a total of 23 pounds. I still have more to go but I am quite proud of myself for hitting this mark.

Unfortunately, my face is the last place I lose weight so I guess I really don't look all that different. But I am in smaller pants! ;)

2. Learn something new. This one I did in little bits and pieces. I didn't get to take any classes like I wanted, but I did teach myself more about doing cakes and cupcakes this year. I learned how to crochet an edge around a blanket and sew super-hero capes. I started a job at Walmart and have learned how to measure and cut fabric quickly and relearned how to cashier-yuck. It doesn't seem like a whole lot but at least I did learn something, lol.

3. Have Family Home Evening at least twice a month this year. My goal for this one started out strong and fizzled the last half of the year. Having Family Home Evenings is one that I definitely still want to work on in 2010. We are going to have to figure out how to revamp it a bit, as I work most Monday nights now. It is really hard when I don't have the same day off more than 2 weeks in a row. But I really want to work on it and be able to report more success at the end of 2010.

4. Pray more and study my scriptures more. Let's just say this one is in the category that "weight loss" is usually in and leave it at that. Another one to carry over to next year.

5. Be a better mom. I feel like I have fallen short on this one in the past few months. For some reason my patience seems to be nil and my poor boys suffer for it. We did get out more this summer and played more, so that was good. This one is hard to answer for myself. I guess I will have to ask the boys and see what they say. I think I will do that for next year. I'll get my list of things I need to work on right from them--"How Mom can be a better Mom". As long as they know that donuts for breakfast everyday doesn't fit the criteria.

After going through all of these, I've decided that I am keeping the same resolutions for 2010. It is a good feeling to have accomplished some and know that I can definitely improve on the ones I didn't do so well on. Happy New Year to everyone and best of luck to you all in your own personal resolutions!

I love Scentsy!

Okay, so I am not even sure if that is how you spell it. It's a "flameless" candle company that sells scented wax with the little container to melt it. Just uses a little light bulb and makes the wax just warm enough to melt. I didn't realize how great it was to have with kids until earlier this month. I came home to find out that Cole had put his whole hand into the wax. NOTHING HAPPENED! He played with the wax, Matt and Connor played with him, and then they just peeled the wax off of his hand. And then Cole threw an absolute fit because he couldn't put his hand back in the wax again...LOL. Oh, and did I mention they smell great, too?

Missing my brother...

It seems hard to believe that it has been four years today since Spencer died. I've been thinking about him a lot lately. I didn't know he was gone on the 25th.

Peter and I were driving through Canada with the boys on our way home to visit. It was sort of odd, that trip. I REALLY wanted to go home. It had been almost two years since we had been stationed in Fort Wainwright, Alaska and we hadn't been home at all. I am very much a family person and to go more than a year without seeing my family is torture for me. But I was bound and determined to get home. All the planning was glitchy and for a while we thought it might not work. Then things fell into place and we were on our way.

We hit Dawson Creek in Canada the morning of the 26th. We stopped about 6am to call Mom and Dad and let them know where we were and how the trip was going and that we would be there in 1-2 days. Pete talked to my mom first. He was right by me when he handed me the phone. Mom told me Spence had been in an accident. Honestly, my first thought was "another one?" and asked her if he was alright, not expecting anything but a yes. And she told me no. He wouldn't be all right. It was crushing. We drove the rest of the way to Utah that day...56 hours of pretty much straight driving all told.

The thing is, this had happened before. When my little brother Matt was killed in a motorcylce accident (21 years ago in July) I was also away from most of the family. I still think the worst part of losing Spence is how angry I get sometimes that most everyone else in the family got to see him and talk to him and joke with him before he died. I missed him by 1 lousy measly day. I didn't get to give him a hug as he walked out the door, or joke with him about how beautiful he thought he was, or watch him play with Keenan. The last thing I had of Spence was his voice. That may be why, after 4 years, I still expect him to answer Mom and Dad's phone with "What do ya want?".

I miss my little brother so much. Some wonderful friends gave me a plant when I got back to Alaska. It's my "Spencer" plant. It has gotten quite lovely, even after having been frozen in the car in -20 weather when we were moving houses. It may sound corny but my plant reminds me of Spence...it's scrappy and can be so beautiful and it just keeps hanging in there. That's my little brother.

You are such strong spirit Spencer. You have made such a mark that we all miss you like you left us yesterday. I love you, bro.

Summertime fun...

Sword play in the evening before bed....lol

We have had such a lazy summer this year. Matt and Connor have been camped in front of the PS3 and Xbox. My fault that I don't make them "go outside and play". But they are really great about watching their brothers while I take care of the day to day junk and I love watching them "relax", hah. The little ones have been having fun playing outside in the backyard and at the "park"--we have a playground just beyond our fence. It is wonderful that Steel and Reilly are old enough to go play now and we can watch them right from our back window to make sure they are okay. They love it. The "bouncy toy", seriously that is what we call it, has been moved from downstairs to outside. It has been a great hit. It's nice 'cause we only have to bring in the motor when it rains. When it stops raining, we plug it back in, blow it up and let it dry out. I've been wanting to go camping but I think we may just end up putting up the tent in the back yard. I don't know where I went wrong but Matt and Connor aren't big camping buffs. Silly boys. Yesterday (21st) was the solstice, from now on we get a little more darkness every day. Yippeee! I am looking out the window at 2:30 in the morning and it looks like 4 or 5 in the afternoon--it's just not natural. LOL My husband comes home in just over two months. I can't begin to say how excited I am and how ready I am for this deployment to be over.

Water fun...it was much warmer than it looks in this picture.

Cole got ahold of the controller and was so cute when he thought he was playing too.


The "Bouncy Toy". Best hundred bucks I ever spent. Period.

Tantrums, table-tops, and T-ball

This past week or so has been all about getting into the groove of summer. Matt, Connor, and Steel are all out of school now. The older boys still have Scouts. Connor is going to Scout camp the end of June. Matt is looking for work and has a couple options. He really wants more money to play with. Connor wants to work too, but the options are more limited for 14-yr olds.

Steel riding the carousel at his pre-school "graduation" picnic.

Reilly is playing T-ball once a week and he loves it. He is kind of hilarious to watch. He is finally getting to where he can swing the bat to hit the ball, instead of golfing it. And he runs pretty well around the bases until he gets to 3rd base. Once he's on 3rd, instead of running home, he makes a beeline for 1st base again. I'm not sure why but he does it over and over. It's so funny when we're all welling "run home Reilly! THIS way Reilly!" and he is just oblivious. He is getting better at throwing as well, though catching is still not in the skill set. He is bigger than most of the kids so it is hard to remember that he is one of the youngest in the group. I mean, he only turned 3 two months ago. But we are having a fun time and that is Mommy & Reilly time. None of the other brothers are allowed to come. I love it for that.

Cool dude in his new shades

Steel is going to start outdoor soccer in July and that should be a blast. I think I am going to put them both in swimming lessons as well. Steel is a little fish but Reilly is more reserved in the water. When we were in Samoa, he really didn't like the fact that the water was moving without his help. lol. I'm hoping to get him more comfortable so he can hold his own. I need one more arm and I could take Cole too. He adores the water. . .during bathtime we really have to watch him 'cause he loves to lay down on his tummy and stick his whole head under water.

Cole's new things are temper-tantrums and climbing on the table. They have both shocked us. He is a little Houdini and can get out of almost any blockade to climb up on the table. And his temper tantrums are LOUD. I my goodness the kid goes from silent to shatter-the-window screeching in a flash. There is no wind-up to let you know he is working up to it. He just goes flat out as soon as he doesn't like something, or even if it looks like you're going to do something he doesn't like. I'm kind of at a loss. We've had tantrums before, it's just the speed and volume of Cole's that are a shock.

Mr. Adventure

This is mild, mild compared to some

I've been working out more at the gym-though I confess I haven't made it every day. My friend Crystel showed me a great workout to do and I've been doing it. I decided I want to learn to run so I can make it at least two miles. I found a program that starts from walking and takes you up to two miles in 8 weeks. I started out great. However, I found within a few days that serious walking/jogging in six-year-old Nikes is not great on the legs. Sooo, that is on hold for just a while until I can get some new running shoes that will hold up so I don't kill my shins again. I am not as far down the ability scale as I thought though. The first step up from walking is to walk 5 minutes and then jog/run for 30 seconds. It was actually hard to stick to the 30 seconds 'cause I wanted to keep going. But I also don't want to overdo it. I'm looking forward to starting again next week.