JANUARY 2020

February 23, 2020

JANUARY 2020

Life goes by so quickly and I'll never stop saying that. I can't believe the year is 2020. I vividly remember 2008-2010, and can't believe an entire decade has passed! This is the year of our tenth anniversary, and I don't feel a day older than 25! It's just wild.

Janurary began with a trip to our favorite bike park with Morgan and all the kids!

We got Gwen and Emily new bikes (Emily's won't fit her for a few years, but it was a good deal) and so Gwen was falling all over the place. She took a pretty hard fall and smacked her sweet little forehead right onto the paved course. That experience was one of very few that quickly scared me bad enough that I closed my eyes for a long, but literal, second so I could reset and help her. I saw it coming, and I knew it would be brutal. A few preteen/young teen boys nearby ran over to her while I was also running over from a farther distance. The first boy helped get her bike off of her, and the second laid down by her to soothe her, and it was such a sweet sight to see in such a scary moment. As soon as I picked her up, the boys brought her bike and helmet over (I unclipped it as soon as I got to her and threw it to the side) and told her they thought she was cool and brave. It was a great learning day. She learned that falling hurts and I think that's a really important lesson, and she learned that people are always willing to help! I was so thankful to those sweet boys! I'll never remember their faces, but I'll always remember their help.

We went to the Riparian Preserve for our Sunday activity and the girls wanted to take pictures galore. They would run from one tree to the next, posing in front of the water, trees, bathrooms, and anything else they could find.

Emily started the year off as a Sunbeam at church! Her teachers are the best! We love Sister Schneider and Sister Workman! They are so sweet, and Emily just loves them! It's been super fun to hear her in the car after church singing along to the primary songs. It makes my heart sing.

Gwen is in CTR 6 this year! I can't believe that this baby of mine is such a big girl! She loves her teachers, too. Brother Akers and Brother Durfee are humble men who just love the class. We are so lucky to have such wonderful teachers and the best daughters.

Gwen is doing well in Kindergarten. She has struggled a bit with spelling and sounding out words, but her learning is on a steady, upward climb. She is positive in her education, even when it's hard. She loves math and often tries to trick Jake into letting her do more math instead of her phonograms.

Emily is at Mrs. Chris' home each day while I work, and she has become quite an excellent reporter. Each day, she lets me know who had a potty accident, who went to time-out, and who is her best friend. She is thriving, and is smart as a whip. I love listening to her. She says such funny things. One of my favorites is "I told you so." She does it to things she definitely has NOT told us about. Here's a great example. I needed gas, so I said, "Emily, we need to gas up the car." She replied, "Mom, I told you so." And my response is typically a mix of a smile and a frown with one eye rolling and one eye half way open. It's a joy! She's hilarious.

I got called as the camp director for our ward's young women group. I'm working closely with the Young Women's president to plan activities for our 3/4 day camp, and it's been a new adventure in every way.

Grammy Jan and Grandpa Chris very generously gifted us a Phoenix Zoo membership, and we have been going about every other week! We have loved it so much! We have loved seeing all the animals, and have been able to see them really active since we can go all the time! I can't express how much the girls love it, but I definitely compare it to Disneyland because they love it so so so much!

Gwen got her first cavities filled. What an experience! She did great. She got numbed and had nitrous oxide, and she was such a hoot to watch. The dental assistant reminded me to take a video and I'm so thankful because I never want to forget that experience. We love Dr. Happy so much. She was wonderful, and Gwen only hated the part where she was numb after the appointment.

Emily, Gwen, and Jake all came down with the flu, and the girls each got pink eye. It was a fabulous few weeks around here. Emily has never really loved getting her hair washed, and that girl was so sick that she fell asleep in the bathtub. I made a video of it out of sheer shock. I loved taking care of my sickos. I'm shocked I didn't get it, but I'm counting my lucky stars.