January. Let's Start The Year off Right.

We rang in the New Year at a cool park in Ventura.

Kensington is now in Sunbeams!

 

 Jake had a birthday and I dug out some old boxes and made him a bday shrine.

Kit and Maybelle.  Big sister's 2 favorite things!

Amaryllis started cheer/tumbling:

Maybelle is growing like a weed.  I thought Kensington was a perfect baby.  Maybelle is a DREAM baby.  She has yet to have a fussy moment where I don't know what to do or what's wrong.  She's mellow.  She sleeps great.  She learned to sooth herself to sleep after 2 nights of "training".  She handled her first congestion/cold with grace and dignity.

Sunny California.

Awkward...how did this photo get here?  I didn't make it, I was just in charge of the bikini wax aka chocolate sprinkles.

This is the morning after we let the girls sleep with eachother.  They stayed up all night.

Me and baby in Santa Barbara :)

 Pretty sunrise.  I love riding my bike around our cute little neighborhood.

 The Clubhouse under the stairs in the back of the coat closet:

 Jake found some computer games that he plays and the girls love to watch.  They are actually pretty cool games.

 Anybody else getting amazing winter sunsets?

More park/beach days:

 My new church calling:  the 8-12yr olds.  They keep me young(er).

See? What kind of perfect baby falls asleep in Daddy's arm during Sunday football?

The dream baby, that's who.

Amaryllis made a diaper cake. She's very crafty and good with her hands, and always wants to make things.

Me spying on Kensington and her little friend:

Two selfies in one post, wow! I went blonde this month:

 

 

So I wanted to read a really great article called "Mothers Who Know" since I needed a pick-me-up and my friend just mentioned she had read it.  I went to google to find it, and all I typed was the first part, and here is what pops up.  Uhhh...

 Yikes.

I like this part of the talk.  Since it's January and goals were on my mind, for a few days, I was caught up in thinking I needed to do soccer and art lessons and bake a huge meal and all this extra stuff or else the girls would grow up failures.

Mothers Who Know Do Less

Mothers who know do less. They permit less of what will not bear good fruit eternally. They allow less media in their homes, less distraction, less activity that draws their children away from their home. Mothers who know are willing to live on less and consume less of the world’s goods in order to spend more time with their children—more time eating together, more time working together, more time reading together, more time talking, laughing, singing, and exemplifying. These mothers choose carefully and do not try to choose it all. Their goal is to prepare a rising generation of children who will take the gospel of Jesus Christ into the entire world. Their goal is to prepare future fathers and mothers who will be builders of the Lord’s kingdom for the next 50 years. That is influence; that is power.

 I have since settled down and for now, 1 extra curricular activity per week is all I can handle.  Hot dogs and scrambled eggs for dinner is just fine.  I have a housekeeper do the things I hate doing, so I have time to do things I like doing.  I'm ok with it. 

I used to feel lazy if I laid on the couch, and carried this guilty burden around that wouldn't let me enjoy what I was doing.  Now, so long as I have a baby cuddled in my arms or a little girl chattering in my ear, I've shifted my attitude and tell myself that the "lazy" couch/park/bed time is really an investment.  And it's what I'm supposed to be doing.

Everyone says "enjoy them while they are young, soak it up".  I've been trying every year to do that, and I get off track, but at least I get back on.