January goals update

January update on my 2017 goals!

1) Scripture reading is going pretty well (just wrapping up Corinthians), but it's definitely not study, and I don't love that. I'm reading 5 chapters a day and I feel like I forget what I've read as soon as I've read it (this also, however, could be the result of very little sleep and the fact that I read when I'm nursing, so I don't have the free hands to write things down or highlight something (although I've done this afterwards a few times). Nothing is sticking in my brain right now). I will keep going with this goal because I'd really like the experience of reading all the scriptures in a fairly compact period of time, just for comparison's sake, but once the year is over it's not a method of study I think I'll revisit.

2) Using my Instant Pot for at least one main-dish meal a week is off to a good start; I also used it for boiled eggs, yogurt, rice, etc. as I've been doing in the past. If you're considering an Instant Pot, this is the model I have--I really like all the different functions, especially the yogurt setting, which isn't easily replicated on other models.  These are the new recipes I tried out this month:

• Roasted whole chicken (certain coolness factor in jamming the entire chicken in the instant pot, but the presentation was pretty ugly, since it basically fell to bits and I was fishing out pieces of chicken with tongs. Not one I will repeat, but that's also because I don't really love roasted chicken. Too much effort in getting all the meat off the bones.)
• Chicken noodle soup (being honest--I thought this was gross. I didn't like the spice combo. And in fairness to the recipe, Neil made this one Sunday when I was napping and accidentally dumped an entire bag of noodles in, so it was like noodle mash with some other stuff. He says it would have been good with 1/3 the amount of noodles he used, but I think part of the issue was also that the chicken came from the roasted chicken day, so it was already pre-seasoned and it was just too much thyme & sage). 
• Smoky lentil and potato soup (great depth of flavor; really filling and delicious. I liked the combination of the 2 varieties of lentils.)
• Beef and vegetable stew (loved the parsnips in this; why have I never added them to stew before? I subbed purple grape juice for the wine and really loved the Frenchified flavor profile.)
• Barbecued ribs (I hate ribs but Neil loves them. He says they were good. I made myself eat one and guess what, still hate ribs.)
• Butternut squash soup (this was sooo good--probably my favorite. I loved the ginger! Next time I'll add either apples or pears. I also had about 1/3 c. of leftover heavy cream that I stirred in after pureeing.)

Here's what I learned this month about the Instant Pot: start way before you think you'll need to, since it takes (on average) 10-15 minutes to come to pressure and another 10-15 minutes to naturally release pressure. In the case of the stew, I ended up having to manually release the pressure because we needed to eat (browning the beef in 3 batches took much longer than I'd anticipated, since I was helping the kids with stuff the whole time) and it made a HUGE mess--greasy soup stuff jetting EVERYWHERE and pouring out and overflowing the little overflow thing--I ended up with my Instant Pot in the sink and holding a bowl over the pressure nozzle to deflect the flow from the ceiling...and it still took over 5 minutes to release pressure! But it was sooooo good that it was worth it, and I will definitely be making that one again.

3) Cleaning up my diet to get to race weight--In January I really focused on reducing my sugar intake (which basically meant no added sugar or desserts on weekdays), but I had a hard time with not eating later in the evening, especially on nights that I was running late (i.e. last night I ate dinner at 6, nursed Matthew at 6:30, nursed Matthew again at 8, ran 12 miles, nursed Matthew again at 11, and ate bread & jam while I was nursing him the last time). I will still work on cutting back post-dinner eating, but what I'm really going to focus on in February--in addition to continuing to keep my sugar intake down--is making sure I'm getting my 3 veggie servings and 2 fruit servings every day.

I've lost 57% of  what I'd like to lose to be at race weight, so I'm pleased with how this is going. I'm going to keep a close eye on weight loss over the next four months before Chicago training begins, however, to make sure I'm losing enough to make things easier on my joints and bones (the goal is to avoid another stress fracture!) while still maintaining bone integrity and overall health. The goal is an injury-free buildup and training cycle!! I'm really excited that I ran 171.2 miles this month--only 8.5 less than last month when I was doing my running streak! This will give me a great base for spring races and my fall bucket list race!

Marathon!

You guys! I did it! I am officially a marathoner!

Neil and I drove down for the race on Friday night, since there was only packet pickup the night before (!!). My parents were SO kind and offered to watch our kids so that he could be there with me, and I was so grateful! It was so so good to have Neil there with me supporting me and running interference on things.  Anyway, I was getting so nervous the night before the race—I had an awful stomachache, headache, and felt like I was going to throw up all night. I didn’t sleep very well (which is a shame because we had a beautiful and HUGE suite) and woke up an hour before I needed to in the morning.

Neil drove me to the starting line and I found the 4:10 pace group and lined up with them. I wanted to run it in less than 10-minute miles so I didn’t want to go with the 4:25 pace group. Frankly I was hoping to be way faster when I originally started training (my half-marathon time would have predicted a 3:50 finish) but I have been sick through so much of training that I have really struggled to go quickly—if I go under 8:45/mile I start coughing like mad and can’t stop—thanks to the double-header combination of bronchitis and strep midway through training. And, quite frankly, I haven’t been as careful about what I’m eating as I should be and so I’m not at an ideal racing weight.

Anyway, I LOVED running with the pace group! The two pacers were so incredibly friendly and really worked to create a sense of community within the five or so of us that were running with them. We had other people sort of ebbing and flowing and it was nice to talk to them as well, but there was a sort of core group that stuck together for most of the race. I spent about fifteen miles talking with another woman (we had the same first and last name!) and we got to be good buddies over the course of several hours! One thing I really liked so that our pacers insisted that we walk through all of the water stops to make sure we got enough water (it was pretty hot by the end of the day and I started taking one cup of water to drink and another to pour over my head) and then they would check to make sure everyone was there before we started running again. After about fifteen or sixteen miles I was so looking forward to those walking breaks! It really helped me mentally to know that I could walk for those ten or so steps as long as I just made it to the water stop, and I was able to avoid walking anywhere else on the course, which made me feel pretty good. It’s always nice for my internal motivation to be running past people who are walking up the hills or whatnot. 

Mile 22--I was super focused on never letting this girl catch up!

Another thing I loved about the pace group was the ability to maintain a steady speed without having to worry about it myself. When we first started off it (of course) felt way too slow and it was really good for me to have someone telling me to hold back (and then of course we passed all of the people who sprinted out). I loved not having to constantly check to see how fast I was going and worry about whether I should speed up or slow down—I just kept pace with my new friends! And it was so good to have people to talk to—we were literally about eight or nine miles into the race before I started paying attention to how far we’d gone.  

I felt really good for the first fifteen miles or so. After that it started to get incredibly windy and we were pushing against the wind the whole time. I dropped back a bit and focused on catching up to the pacing group at waterstops—that took me through miles 18-20. Unfortunately, those miles were easily the windiest of the whole course—we were running along a straight road with no trees lined with giant buildings and so the wind just funneled right down it pushing us backwards. It was sooooo exhausting! I finally decided that I would just run at my own speed and not worry about staying with the pacing group. I dropped down from 9:30 miles to about 11-minute miles, but by that point I was just thrilled to still be running past all of the people walking with their heads bent against the wind. I was worried about hitting the notorious wall but I never did—I was so thankful! I definitely slowed down but I just kept on going and let my legs go at the pace where they were comfortable rather than trying to push it too hard.

The last six miles were kind of unpleasantly hilly. By this point it was quite hot and still really windy! Neil caught up to me about mile 22 and biked alongside me off and on for the next three miles. It was so good to have him with me talking to me and giving me something else to focus on. And it was also nice because he had cold water instead of the awful lukewarm stuff at the last aid station.  He peeled off at mile 25 so that he could meet me at the finish line and that’s when I realized it was a 3/4-mile looong uphill all the way to the finish—and the wind was back! I seriously felt like I was taking two steps backward for every step forward.  I just kept going and plugging away—I passed a LOT of people on that last uphill—and I was so grateful for all of the people cheering there because I focused on saying, “Thank you! Thanks for being here!” instead of mentally griping about the awful wind and hill. And then it was downhill to the finish line for the last two-tenths of a mile! It was so exciting and I felt great as I finished—I think I raised my arms and cheered as I was running downhill.  The two pacers from my pacing group were waiting at the finish line and they hugged me and congratulated me and pointed out where Neil was waiting on the sidelines. 

It was a great experience. I definitely was more worn out by the end than I was hoping to be and slowed down more than I was planning to, but I felt like it was a good decision with the heat, wind, and hills. I was most worried about hitting the notorious wall and I never did—I just kept plugging away with my same slow and steady pace. I was passing people all through the last six miles of the race and that felt great. And I was so, so, so grateful that Neil was there—he biked around and met up with me every so often and handed me a couple of Kashi bars, took my jacket, and had water when I needed it most. It was so great to have his support.

I think the hardest part of the race for me was miles 17-19. I still had a long way to go and pushing against that wind was miserable! By the time I made it to 20 I knew I was getting close, and once I hit 22 I felt great—I knew I had it in the bag with only 4.2 miles left and I’d gone past the dreaded 20-mile mark without hitting the wall. I made sure to walk around a lot after the race and even stopped in the massage tent, and so far I feel pretty good! Definitely stiff but not in horrible pain (although I did take a healthy dose of ibuprofen before I fell asleep last night).

All in all, it was amazing. It was so good to be able to finish something that I have been working on for SO long and was such a huge deal! I am so grateful for all of the people who made it possible—I still kind of can’t believe that I ran a marathon!! My final time was 4:17:55, so I came in under my goal time and still have lots of room for improvement if I decide to do another one some day.:-)

for the new year

I have really been thinking about what I want out of this year.  To be honest, most of my goals are family-oriented.  Neil and I have come up with some things that we really want to implement in our family.  We've been working over the last six months? year? to really be more mindful about our parenting. 

Something I read on Emily's blog a few days ago really resonated with me:  "I am realizing now that strong families don't just coalesce from happenstance and luck - they take a mindful and mighty effort."

That's really where my focus is this year--being more deliberate about the choices I make as a mother and the things we do with our children.

So here are the three things I am focusing on personally this year in order to go along with the bigger family goals we've set:

1) Get up by 7 am every day.  I have gotten out of the habit of being up at 5:45, and it's taken a toll on my day.
2) Pray before I even get out of bed. 
3) More practical sewing:  this is something I really love, and it's my "fun developmental" goal this year.

ps do you like my new blog look?  thanks to the lovely ladies at i.smitten for sponsoring the change!

Three for September

The start of a new school year always seems like a goal-setting time to me.  Like January, we're all kind of starting over again, right?  Plus fall is my absolute favorite time of year (barring the fact that my tomatoes have all officially succumbed to the blight, and we are now tomato-less until next summer. Horrible thought!).

Anyway, I decided that I want to start picking a few things to work on every month.  And then hopefully by the end of the month they will be habits, and I can move on to a couple more things the next month, and just keep improving.  So that's the basis for this, although some will be accomplishments rather than habits. 

So here's what I want to do in September:

1.  Run a seven-minute mile.
2.  Read my scriptures for at least ten minutes a day (I have really struggled to fit this in since Isaac stopped    nursing, since that was my scripture time--it's usually just been a quick couple of chapters when I'm half-asleep).
3.  Say, "Yes," to the kids, at least once a day, when I would usually say, "Not right now," or "Wait just a minute until I finish this..."

There are lots of other things I want to do, but we'll start here.

What about you?  Want to join me?  What do you want to work on next month? 

a late-night ramble

I decided to stick with the half-marathon.

Much as I really wanted to run a full marathon, I know it's not the best thing for me/our family right now in terms of training time, potential for injury, etc. 

The day I came to this decision, I was feeling so grumpy and mad and angry because I KNEW it would be really hard on our family, but I was feeling very selfish and just wanting to do what I wanted to do.  I was so irritable that I finally just went on an 8-mile bike ride to work out the anger. I pedaled as fast and furiously as I could, thinking grumpy selfish thoughts the whole way.  Part of my anxiety stemmed from the fact that I didn't know how long all the side effects from training for and running a marathon would delay another pregnancy--and while I'm not pregnant nor planning to be in the immediate future, that much running definitely affects your body for some time. 

Finally, I said a prayer about whether or not I should commit to a full marathon, and it was like a huge heavy black cloud came and sat on my head.  I felt even more miserable.  Can we say stupor of thought?  And so I grumpily thought, "Okay, fine.  I won't." 

And the cloud went away, and I felt a lot better.  (and then on my next run, about two and half miles into eight-minutes-per-mile speed training, I thought to myself, "Are you INSANE?  You really WANT to run 26.2 miles?")

So the half-marathon it is.  I'm planning on one in mid-October, and I'm going to run a 10K in my parents' hometown in mid-September (I am really excited for this!!)  I'm going to do more speedwork and interval training this time around to improve my time (I ran my first half in April in 2 hours 6 minutes; I'd like to get it at least under 2 hours but hopefully more like 1:55, which is about 8:45/mile.)  My biggest problem is simply timing myself while I'm running; any good recommendations for this problem?  I'd like to know if I need to step it up while I'm running outside; I don't like the boredom of running on the treadmill but I REALLY like how easy it is to step up the interval training.

In other news, my mom wants me to do yoga teacher training/certification with her and I really want to do that too.  I want to start taking yoga classes again this fall.

And I also want to lose weight.  Right now I weigh a couple pounds less than when I was married, but that's a balance between my toned legs and my not-as-toned waist.  I was reading an article today about improving your speed and the #1 thing was to lose five pounds.  Which I can certainly stand to do, by oh, NOT EATING FOUR COOKIES like I just did.  Neil made cookies before he went to play basketball and left them all sitting there without eating a single one.  Which was kind of cruel, because then I felt sorry for the poor abandoned cookies, and then I got immersed in a book and read while I was eating, which is stupid because I realized on the third one that I was practically gagging, but I still ate another one because I was mindlessly reading and not paying attention to my little cookie plate. 

I have really terrible self-control around food.  Partially because I exercise regularly and I'm still nursing, so I figure I can get away with it, but I really want to grow up and be like my mom, who will either a) refuse bad things entirely or b) manage to take a single serving of something and be content with that.   I seriously admire her so much for that--it's something I'm going to resolve more firmly to develop.  (I'm also very much a social eater.) 


And this is especially important since Isaac is turning one next week and is suddenly getting very lackadasical about nursing--I think he's just about done (which frankly is kind of a relief to me, because think about all that extra time I will now have!  And I will no longer have to plan the day around our nonnegotiable every-four-hour appointments with his horribly squeaky rocker and fluffy blue blankie, without both of which he categorically refuses to nurse).

On another note, I am still trying to find a time to sit down and inventory my life.  Where am I?  Where do I want to be?  How can I bridge the gap between the kind of woman I want to be and the kind of woman I am?  (In my dream world, I'm up before everyone else and doing yoga outdoors as the sun rises; you know, that kind of thing.  Also, my imaginary self has really awesome muscular definition, always remembers to drink lots of water, and doesn't let zucchini grow to be 18 inches long before picking them.)

go for it!

finalized my training schedule today for my first half-marathon. the race is April 24th.

I am so pumped! I've been feeling like I wanted more of a goal to be working towards--I've been upping my pace and my mileage, but I needed something more. So this is it.

I didn't sign up for the half I'd originally been planning on, since it's an hour away and I was worried about feeding Isaac before and after the race [nursing timing ruled out the possibility of a full marathon], but also having a nice place for him to be while I was running. So today I was super excited to find a race in my parents' hometown, and that was just the incentive I needed to finish drawing up that training schedule (fortunately, while I only have 9 weeks to train, my regular runs put me on week 4 of the training scheme I'm following).

Wish me luck!

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making changes

some thought-provoking words from my mom here.

I'll post more about this later on; I was just thinking today that I should do an update. the quick version: I have way more energy, I'm less cranky, I can get by on less sleep (not by choice, but I don't feel as awful), and I don't get the killer headaches which used to plague me all the time.

foraging

When we were at the library yesterday, I checked out a copy of Euell Gibbons' Stalking the Wild Asparagus and The Complete Guide to Edible Wild Plants (US Department of the Army). I haven't had the chance to do much more than flip through both of them (last night at dinner I entertained the kids by reading aloud some of the Army book; did you know, for instance, that pine resin can be used as an emergency dental filling?! Abigail was entranced), but I really want to learn more about harvesting wild plants. Especially mushrooms. One of the things I read in Gibbons' book is that he lived for five years on what he foraged. FIVE YEARS!

When I was helping my grandmother to weed her garden the summer before last, she gathered up a big heap of purslane from our weed pile and took it in to cook for dinner. Neil spends a lot of time every spring digging up nettles and thistles from our lawn and garden; we raise the best crop of dandelions in our neighborhood. I love the idea of putting things like this to (edible) use, although I must confess I'm a little hesitant about the idea of nettle soup (although I did see it featured in Martha Stewart Living a few years ago).

Do you do any foraging? Are you one of those lucky people who can identify mushrooms at a glance? Do you have an asparagus spot? Or does this whole idea just sound a little too far-out for you?

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this year

I made a number of resolutions to help me in my overall goal of being "anxiously engaged" in 2010. They're all written down in my scripture journal (which happened to be closest to hand at the moment, since I was reading my scriptures at the kitchen table when I started resolving).

But I'm going to use my blog to keep track of one goal: running 1000 miles this year (hence the new ticker on the sidebar). Not a lot for a marathon runner, I know, but it will be a lot for me! This means I'll add another 10 miles a week to my regular runs (which also means I need to find more time somehow).

And now I'm going to go take a nap. It seems appropriate.

I am not going to blog about this morning, because it was full. of. messes. I think we need more paper towels.

So instead, I will write about random things.

First of all, have you ever read this quote before? It's one of my favorites:

"We feasted on love; every mode of it, solemn and merry, romantic and realistic, sometimes as dramatic as the thunderstorm, sometimes comfortable and unemphatic as putting on your soft slippers. She was my pupil, my teacher, my subject and my sovereign, my trusty comrade, friend, shipmate, fellow-soldier. My mistress, but at the same time all that any man friend has ever been to me." --C.S. Lewis, A Grief Observed

Secondly, I am addicted to home magazines in a non-healthy way. I think it's akin to other photographic forms of addiction--I can't stop looking and then I mope around being uncontented with what I have. Normally I am very happy with my house, but there are days where I just click around online or flip through design magazines and sigh "Why don't I know how to reupholster furniture? Where does one find vintage glasses in which to pile bits of sea glass?" (while conveniently forgetting that a collection of sea glass is not exactly toddler-friendly.)

Which leads me to point 3: I need a project. I feel totally lost during naptimes because I have nothing to work on or accomplish. I really have trouble lying down to read or rest during naptimes--I'm fine with it at night when the girls are asleep, but during the middle of the day I need to be doing something. I love my family and I love being a stay-at-home mom, but at the end of the day, it drives me bonkers that I haven't done anything tangible. Yes, I've made three meals and two snacks and cleaned up after them all, I've done laundry and swept and mopped and vacuumed, I've read stories and sung songs and gone on walks and made Play-Doh animals and magazine collages...but there are no lasting records of my day. Of course, my children's continued growth and development are tangible in a way, but I really need to be doing something. That's what I like about teaching--I can look over at a pile of papers I graded or something like that. The limbo we're in right now with Neil's area exams is a bit frustrating for me, not only because well, he's studying ALL THE TIME and I feel so bad for him and all the stress, but it's also hard because I keep wanting to start a project but I don't want it to suck him in.

So here is my list that I am making for myself as I write this. I think it will help me to feel better.

When Neil finishes the area exams, we/I/he will:

• extend the front flowerbeds
• divide the hostas
• plant trees
• build a swingset
• prune back the bushes for winter
• winterize the lawn
• plant ornamental grasses along the fence
• refinish the dining room table
• paint silhouette prints of our family using this technique
• build a padded headboard
• fix the dishwasher
• paint the master bedroom closet
• paint the laundry room
• rip up the garden for winter
• recaulk the kitchen doors
• add to the insulation in the attic

Ooh, I am so excited to get started. How 'bout you, honey? Doesn't that make the end of your exams look tantalizing? :-)

Mostly I just want to get outside in the sun and the breeze and dig things up. That's really all I ask.

life lessons from a toddler

This morning was Abigail's first day of Joy School. I really wanted it to go smoothly, so we all got up early and had breakfast together as a family. Unfortunately, a certain small blonde person did not want to eat breakfast. She wanted to snuggle with her blankie. This caused no small amount of stress at our breakfast table, especially when another small person joined in the yelling chorus.

Consequently, most of the morning my interaction with Abigail was conducted with a very raised voice and lots of frustration, like "PLEASE eat your eggs NOW! We have to LEAVE! DO YOU WANT TO STAY HOME?!" As you may know, there are few things more frustrating and futile than trying to cajole a stubborn two-year-old into eating when she does not wish to eat. And few things more frustrating than having a child refuse to eat when you know she will be cranky all morning and you will not be there to salvage the mess.

So I took some breakfast with us in the car hoping to get her to eat. But in the car I discovered that Neil had forgotten to take a lunch (what is it with my starving family?!). I tried to turn the car around to go home, he protested that it didn't matter, we both ended up yelling.

Are you seeing a pattern developing here?

Anyway, Abigail decided she wanted her banana after all. She ate about half of it, then said it was yucky (a brown spot) and refused to eat any more. But she also refused to give it to me--she just wanted to squish it around. And guess what...I ended up raising my voice again.

I was seething in my frustration and irritation, exacerbated by the fact that we were late dropping her off due to moronic drivers who blocked the road waiting to turn and silly bikers who cut across in front of us and made us slam on our brakes and all those other things that aren't irritating except when you're in a hurry, and told her one final time "Abigail, eat your banana! JUST EAT IT!"

...and I heard a very small voice say from the back seat "Quiet voices, Mommy? Quiet voices?"

I can't even tell you what an effect that had on me. I almost started crying. I felt so horrible and guilty for yelling at my family all morning and doing exactly what Abigail gets put in time out for: raising my voice to the people I love best. Talk about a lesson for me as a parent...I've been making some new resolutions this morning that I sincerely hope I can stick to. I was so excited about today and about her being able to do this preschool thing with her friends and about having time to myself to do all the things around the house that have been pushed aside lately that I completely forgot that the very most important thing is to show my family how much I love them. I haven't been doing a very good job of that lately--I've been taking care of everyone's physical needs, but I haven't made their emotional needs a priority. So thank you, Abigail, for reminding me of my primary responsibility as a mother--to nurture and teach. I love you, kiddo.

Journaling

I've been reading through my journal (most of the entries are from my freshman year in college. After that I kept it on the computer or not at all) the last couple of days, and it's been an interesting experience. Part of me felt sort of sad, because I'd had so much fun during my freshman year and grown in so many ways. Another part of me really missed certain people (namely Jen! So many good times!) and all the free time that I had to myself. Jen and I went to the temple at least once a week, and I just really--have a hard time with not being able to do that now, and it was hard to read about how wonderful that was for me then and realize I didn't have the same opportunity now. Only having to get myself ready in the morning is something I never appreciated before I had Abigail--I was reading about getting up half an hour earlier to have scripture study time, and I thought about much earlier I'd have to get up now to ensure quiet time. And another part of me sorely missed doing things that brought me so much immediate gratification and fulfillment. That sounds selfish, but I mean things like all the leadership and service work that occupied a lot of my freshman year. One of my very favorite memories is of the three days that Jen and I spent being Master Teachers for the Foundations of Leadership conference at BYU (I recommend volunteering for that whole-heartedly. It was seriously one of the most meaningful experiences I've ever had), and I wish I still had opportunities like that. And my journal really just made me miss Utah and student life. I'm sure if I was back in the "I only slept four hours tonight because I have so much homework" I would be miserable, but they really were good days.

Which brings me to why I wanted to write this post. I think since Abigail was born, I've spent too much time thinking about the things I could be doing instead of the blessings I have now. I really wouldn't be happy living freshman year over and over again in a sort of Groundhog-Day thing, and the same thing goes for the first year that Neil and I were married, or the first year of my M.A. work, or dozens of other things that I look back on as idyllic. I have so many blessings now, and I really want to focus on appreciating those to the utmost. So this blog posting is a sort of reminder to myself to do that. Actually, one of my journal entries when Abigail was about six months old talks about that, so I'm going to write that in here to remind myself: " I think I spent too much time thinking about the "good old days," when during those times I just wanted to fast forward to now. I guess that's one of life's paradoxes. It seems to me that one is truly happy is simply one who looks on the past with fondness and the future with anticipation, but loves and lives in the present."

Another unrelated entry four years earlier from my journal that really made me think--one of my friends remarked in a leadership training session that "sometimes we get so caught up in who we're leading that we don't think about who we're following," about which comment I went on to write "you know, out in the big wide world we're so worried about protecting our followers that we don't even stop to think about who we're following, and whether that person is worthy of our emulation. And if we're not following Christ, then we're leading them the wrong way--that's all there is to it." As a leadership teacher, this provided a lot of food for thought for me, and it becomes even more meaningful as a mother.

So those two quotes are going to be my goals for this next year--my real "New Year's resolutions," persay. To appreciate the moments instead of looking forward to something else, and to focus on Christ as my role model and in turn, enact a similar model for my children.

New Year

I'm debating waking Neil up to wish him a happy New Year, but I think he would prefer continuing to sleep. The poor guy's been asleep since about 9 pm--apparently we're not much for partying this year. To do him justice, I slept for about four hours this afternoon (I had a horrible headache and I kept waking up, realizing my head still hurt, and going back to sleep in hopes that it would be gone when I woke up) so he spent an hour or so trying to keep Abigail from waking me up. When I did finally wake up he'd been sitting in the hall guarding the door to keep her away--apparently we'd had a repeat of yesterday's small fists banging on the door while yelling "Mommy! Mommy!" Cute kid.

I feel like I should have some New Year's resolutions to post, but truth be told, I can't think of any offhand. My main resolution in the past has always had to do with regular exercise, but that's one resolution I've managed to keep phenomenally over the last eight months, if I do say so myself. So...ok, I will think of some.

1. Continue to go to the gym 3x weekly, refusing to allow myself the "I teach really early" excuse for this semester.
2. In bed by 9:30, since I have to be up at 5:30 most days.
3. Spend at least 15 minutes reading stories to Abigail daily.
4. Spend at least 15 minutes singing with Abigail daily.
5. Quit letting Neil get up with Abigail every single time she wakes up in the night.
6. Spend 15 minutes each MORNING studying my scriptures.
7. Not eat anything after 8 pm in the evening.
8. Drink 64 ounces of water every day.

Perhaps not as earth-shaking as some goals I've set for myself in the past, but these are things I try to do and would like more daily success with, so here goes!