A New Year

Welcome, 2011!  A new year always feels like a fresh start, and that's what I'm feeling in many ways lately.  Mostly in my house.  It's been pretty messy for months now, and we've spent the last week cleaning out.  Do you feel like your brain works better in a clean house?  I know mine does.  (Not that my brain is firing on all cylinders now, but the clean house helps.)  Here's where my improved brain function is taking me...

It was suggested in Relief Society that we set four goals this year, each to improve a relationship that is essential to our salvation: our relationships with God, our family, our fellow man, and ourselves.  As I thought about it, I tried to think of the areas where I am lacking in each of those relationships, and found that going back to basics would probably have the most impact in my life right now (and, honestly, I'm not really up to any grand, elaborate plans this year!).  Here are my goals for 2011:

1.  In improving my relationship with God: Daily personal prayer.  It's really sad that this is something that I have to work on, but there you are.  I read recently a mother saying that as she pondered the words of the hymn, "Ere you left your room this morning/Did you think to pray?" she realized that she usually left her room in the morning at a dead run.  This may not exactly be the case for me, as I usually wake up and nurse the baby, but I definitely empathize because as a mother you rarely wake to peace and quiet and time for prayer and reflection. So I'm sure this goal will require setting a new routine of some kind. 

2.  In improving my relationship with my family: Praying for and practicing calm and patience with my children, and sincerely repenting for my lapses.  It's not really measurable to just say I'm going to be more patient, so I chose a specific action that I could be accountable for.  And lest you think I am leaving Adam out in my quest to improve my family relationships (as I initially did), I have come to the decision that this may be the best gift I could give to him, as my lack of patience is probably one of his greatest frustrations as a husband and father. 

3.  In improving my relationship with my fellow man: Monthly visiting teaching.  As a former Relief Society president, I am ashamed to own up to my sorry visiting teaching track record of the last two years.  I know how important it is to truly befriend and be accountable for our sisters, and so although I had grandiose ideas for service projects aplenty, this seemed like a better first step in serving others. 

4.  In improving my relationship with myself: Keeping a daily gratitude journal.  Looking back at the things that have improved my outlook on life the most in the last year, my infrequent gratitude journal is at the top of the list.  Finding things to be positive about, even on the worst day, gives me perspective that all is not as bad as it feels in the moment.  Surely by doing this daily, my negative attitude will at least diminish a little. 

One thing that I will be doing to help improve myself this year will be here on the blog, and I'm bringing my sister, Anne, along for the ride.  She recently borrowed a book my brother gave me last year, I Hate it When Exercise is the Answer: A Fitness Program for the Soul.  As she was reading it, she suggested that it would be a great thing to blog about.  So she and I are going to do each of the 31 exercises (one for each day of a month, but we'll be doing them weekly so as not to overwhelm ourselves) and I'll report our experiences here each week.  Stay tuned to see how it goes! 

Lily's Blessing

November 7, 2010

These are the only posed shots I got from Lily's blessing day, which is a testament to the fact that Lily is the fourth child.  In the past I've always made sure to get a shot of our babies with Adam (who has blessed them), and one of all the men in the circle.  But once you get this far, you are mostly just trying to get everything done that needs to get done.  I'm lucky I have any pictures at all! 

I was pleasantly surprised that someone picked up the camera and started shooting while Adam and I were putting out the luncheon food (we had a pasta bar, it was really good!), so we got some other fun shots:

Adam gave Lily a beautiful blessing, and we were really blessed to have so much family around.  Adam's dad, David, came and stayed with us, which was so special.  When he first came Katie and Max weren't even sure who he was, but by the time he left they were climbing all over him and sad to see Grandpa go.

Hello, little blog.  I have really missed you.  I have particularly missed all the minutes of "free time" you represent.  I haven't had much of that lately.  And I'm really sad that you were one thing that suffered (not the only thing, mind you, I have a lot of bills and housework to catch up on, too, but I didn't miss them at all).  I have decided that blogging is not really going to be at the mercy of when I have "free time" anymore, it is something I need to do, something that makes me happy.  So I will be spending a little more time with you than I have in the last year.  I have some ideas up my sleeve to make our time together more interesting and productive.  So just be patient with me while I get caught up on all the things you've missed out on that have been happening in my life, and then we'll have some new things to chat about.  And thanks, dear blog, for not giving up on me completely. 

Lily - 3 months

three months

Likes: looking at faces, being held, kicking, a bouncer (vibration), diaper changes, baths, sucking on her fists, singing, white noise, the wrap (front carrier)

Dislikes: being cold, being hot, a wet or dirty diaper, toys blocking her view, getting dressed, the carseat, swimming/cool water

Milestones: first vacation (first flight, first long drive, first stay away from home), to Maui; grasping a toy (on Christmas)

Lily is our Mellow Miss; she is smiley and happy and fairly adaptable.  She puts up with a lot of noise and commotion from her big sibs (and a lot of abuse, from Max anyway).  She travelled really well on our trip to Hawaii, nursing and sleeping during takeoff, and only crying for about an hour total of about 11 hours of flying.  She napped both ways to and from Vegas, and slept in the resort better than she does at home.  She did not like the heat, crying the most when we visited Lahaina (Lahaina means "cruel sun"), or swimming, crying when her toes touched the water both at the beach and in the pool.  So she mostly napped under an umbrella when we swam. 

Her favorite thing is looking at faces, and she'll get frustrated if we hang toys blocking her view of a face.  She smiles at everyone, including strangers and even Max, who quite frequently rewards her smile with a smack on the head or a pinch on the arm.  And because she is staying awake for longer periods we are having fun "playing" with her more and including her more in family activities. 



Can you tell which of these babies is Lily and which is Katie? 



Lily - 2 months

We haven't had an opportunity for a proper photo shoot, so this iPhone video of Lily cooing will have to do.  Turn up your volume to hear her "singing."  

2 months

10 lbs 2 oz

21 1/2 inches

Lily has grown and changed so much over the last month.  She is growing a personality!  She's tracking us from across the room, and smiles and coos all the time.  She "sings" when she coos; she sounds like she is trying to match my "hi."  Lily is a sensitive little soul and is easily overstimulated.  She sleeps soooo much--I think at least 18 hours a day.  I was comparing her with pictures of Katie at the same age and was amazed that Katie was awake in all of them--I feel like it's hard to find time to take pictures of Lily while she's awake.  It always seems like a race to get her fed and changed, or take a bath, etc. before she's overtired and falling asleep in the swing, the bouncer, the wrap (strapped to me), or swaddled in her cradle. 

She does better at night than she was doing a month ago.  She's usually awake and often fussy after about 9:00 pm.  I feel like I'm always raiding my bag of tricks to get her settled--but I'm so glad I have those tricks!  My best strategies come from The Happiest Baby on the Block (swaddling, shushing, swinging, etc.), but some nights nothing but snuggling to my chest will do.  She sleeps in my arms more than I'd like to admit.  (Adam has his own bag of tricks.  She'll take a binkie for him, and they go on midnight excursions to Alvaro's for burritos.)  Lately she's been settling for the night by 11:00 or 12:00, and she'll sometimes sleep through until 6 am.  Those nights are awesome!

The kids love Lily, and are so happy when she smiles at them--which is often, so she must love them, too.  We are just loving getting to know her!

Nonfiction

Funny story: Isaiah insisted this week that he needed to start giving "basketball lessons" and that he was working on a poster or flier to hand out to kids in the neighborhood.  He had it all worked out: how much he would charge, when the classes would be, etc.  We tried to gently explain that it was fine if he wanted to play at that with his friends, but not to take any money from anyone because only adults can give lessons for money.  He was very upset that we insisted he couldn't really give lessons, and it finally came out that he was working on this poster (flier?) at school and that it was supposed to be nonfiction and if he didn't really do it his poster wouldn't be true, so it would be fiction.  We had to smother our laughter because he was so serious and worried about it.  I don't know if we convinced him or not that he had done his assignment correctly, even if he didn't really give lessons, but I thought it was funny that he was so concerned about it! 

Anybody want a 2-year-old?

Yesterday, just after I found Max pouring himself a cup of milk. 



Adam made my favorite brownies last night.  I had one last night, and then found the pan in this state this morning.  *sigh*



Here, Momma, you can have this one.  (Thanks, bud, you can keep it.)



Here he is a minute before he was off again, hitting Lily over the head with a toy helicopter. 

So, anyone want a 2-year-old?  I'll sell him to you cheap!