One Dae at a Time: Happy New Year!

Sunday, January 5, 2020

Happy New Year!

2020.

This number has been in our head for years and years!

We had a great New Years week and I LOVE the feeling of a fresh start.

Michael:

Had a great schedule this week too thanks to their clinic move and the time off he had on the holidays. We loved his holiday schedule so much. It was so nice to have him home a lot more than last year. On Monday we all went to a Feline Rescue Center close to the entrance of Sequoia National Park, then to the taco truck on the way home. On New Years Day we hiked Pincushion Peak. We did this same hike the day after Christmas our first year here, and we didn't make it to the top of the trail. I had just had Bennett two months before, and Westin was in a backpack on Michael, and we were just in a different place physically and mentally. It felt fun to go back and be at a different stage and go to the top of the mountain and have a fun day outside with our cute boys. Michael also made fried plantains in our air fryer this week with a cilantro yogurt dip. It's been fun to try new things with our air fryer lately.

Maddie:

I love New Years and new goals! This is my year of just focusing on the basics. My only goal is to read the scriptures every day this year. I also have a goal tracker I printed out to give me a visual of the basics I'm accomplishing each day. I'm at a stage in life when the physical basics for me and my boys sometimes takes a ridiculous amount of time, and I'm done having that feel like I did "nothing" with my day. So I have a physical daily/weekly/monthly checklist by my bed now so that I can SEE when I do or don't exercise, drink water, take all our vitamins, read the scriptures, read The Friend, read 5 other books, have 10 minutes one on one intentional time with each boy, go for a walk, wash my face, say my prayers, etc, etc, so that if those are the only things I do in a day, at least I can see that we did accomplish something rather than get to 10pm and think, "What did I even do today?" #momlife

Westin:

was excited to move to Sister Wallwork's class today and to sit behind Bennett in primary now. I can't believe he's 5! He loved our hike and loved having dad home so much lately. He's also really happy to get back to school this week :) He loves both. I love that he loves both. My favorite Westin moment this week was when Michael did a mystery shop delivery for Five Guys, and Westin said, "Hmm.... these fries taste like the restaurant's fries that is by the movie theater and the ice cream place." He's describing Five Guys, and we haven't been there in maybe a year. His taste buds and his memory are seriously awesome. I love Michael. But Westin didn't get his taste buds from his dad. Hahaha. We are just always so intrigued by his relationship with food. Recently he told me that he likes to think of a number with food, "1 means I don't like it at all, 2 means it's ok, 3 means kinda like it, 4 means really like it, and 6 is watermelon". For some reference, we've learned that corn on the cob and salmon and caesar salad (birthday meal) are all 4. Chocolate chip cookies are 3. Mushrooms are 1. Cous cous is 4, chocolate cake is 3, raspberries are a rare 5, yogurt parfaits are 3. Anyways, he's got a whole system in his brain and the boy loves food. As long as it's not spicy.

Bennett:

My little sunbeam! I can't believe he's not in nursery anymore. I feel like we just barely got him to stay in there without us. Sigh. We had a dog named Luna for two weeks in December. Bennett LOVED her. When her family came to get her he said, "No that's my heh-heh!" Still using sounds for the names of animals. Sticking his little tongue out and panting like a dog instead of just saying dog. Speaking of which, we have a meeting this week to get his IEP sorted out and start speech therapy with the school district :) Sweet Bennett, we want to understand you more! Bennett had some melt downs over the holidays when we skipped his nap, since Westin is up all day now. We never (almost never) skipped nap time for Westin for like 4.5 years, Bennett is just at a different spot in the family and life is changing! And I realized that we still need to let him be 3 even when life starts moving faster. But also.... lots of three year olds don't take naps still so, there's that too :) I'm glad we've been more diligent about reading multiple books together every single day this week. It shouldn't be hard to fit that in but sometimes we just go so much that by the time bedtime rolls around we're too tired for that part. But we're finding reading time earlier in our days to make sure it doesn't get forgotten. I love when I hand Bennett a banana and he starts singing "Bananaphone" in his funny old many voice, or how he sings Baby Shark randomly (his own little version). Bennett keeps us laughing.

Camden:

Looking more like Westin all the time! Man, Camden is just pure sweetness and I love having a little 5-month-old baby around. He's either sleeping, eating, happy in his bumbo, happy in his monkey seat, happy in the car seat, happy on a walk, or fussing a little in any of those places if it's almost time for nap time again. He's eating twice a night, though sometimes just once. He always smiles so big at Westin and Bennett. He had a hard time with our new earlier church time today since it's right during his morning nap, poor cutie. He's so sweet and I can't wait for when he starts giving kisses and reaching for me. Those are the beeeeest milestones. No rolling yet. I think we're forecasted to slowly hit rolling, crawling, and walking, just like his older brothers. Fine by me -- I'd be just fine if he wasn't walking when we pack up our whole house in July! Haha maybe that's selfish :) Such a cute boy and I love being his mom soooo much.