We've been super busy the last few weeks! As I rushed to finish up Christmas shopping, I hurt my knee, then got the flu while packing for our trip to Maine, dropped out of the Pleonast exercise challenge, drove to Cincinnati and spent the night, caught our flight out of Dayton, spent 8 days in Maine, came home, skipped New Year's Eve (slept), then immediately enjoyed a visit with old friends Chad and Laura Lynn, Emily Hewitt, and Joel Williams. Joel just left today and life is now ready to proceed as normal (except that I have an anniversary dinner to make and Philip's birthday to plan for on Saturday!). Sometime in the next month or so I am planning on taking Eden to Minnesota to visit Aaron, Hilary, and my sweet nephew Amos. We've got a great meeting coming up at West End on addictive behaviors (like mass Oreo consumption). And then there's the housework and trying to get back into shape after sitting (happily) in a cabin in Maine surrounded by snow for a week.
I have mixed feelings about New Year's Resolutions but I have really enjoyed setting goals for the past several years. It started with a year without soda/ice cream, then chocolate. Then reading through the Bible in a year, and last year was healthy living and losing weight. I lost ~35 pounds in 2008, and this year I want to reach my goal weight and develop a plan for eating and living that results in a healthier, happier me. Personal change can and should happen every day of the year, but I love having a particular goal to focus on throughout the year in addition to all the other many ways I am trying to better myself. I could list 20 things I am working on doing better (becoming a more efficient and organized homemaker would be there!), but I only try to have one big big goal at a time. So here we are. :)
2009 began in a sobering way for me. That morning I was checking my email and learned that a young guy from West End had been killed in a car accident. My mind always has a hard time processing sudden deaths, but especially so of a person so young (29 or so). It boggles my mind to think of how someone can be there one day, and gone the next, and how quickly the lives of those they left behind are changed. My heart has been so heavy the past few days for the Vincent family and for Nathan's fiancee Becky, and please pray for spiritual strength for them and for comfort for their broken hearts.
I've always admired your determination to keep up with your goals. I can't wait to see you sometime soon to see the results of your hard work during 2008 - everyone who's seen you says you look great!
Isabel likes to help me unload our dishwasher, I just have to make sure I get all the knives out when I first open it, she hears me moving dishes and she comes running! ;) Eden looks so cute wanting to help you! Such a big girl!
we just handwash all of the knives now (sharp ones, not butter knives) because Jack is seriously ALL OVER the dishwasher! He here's it open and comes running! :) We had to make a rule that he's not allowed to climb inside.
Good news and bad news... the good news is that I found the monitor (I seem to recall that you were interested in that last time.) The bad news is that Abigail was in 18m her second winter. But I do have 1 sweatshirt and 2 sets of long john type pajamas in 12m.
i'm plannin on it-but i guess i need to call and figure out where he is! i just got his number from an e-mail, so i'll probably ring him up here shortly and figure out some plans. i ahve to work tomorrow, but i was thinking of coming down after work
sweet! I get off work around 4 so I could be in BG around 5 your time i think. Is that cool? can I come over? and if so, is there someone i could stay the night with in BG so I could hang with you guys on Saturday too? I don't want to inturrupt family time though-do you guys already have plans?
yay! thanks:) I'll give Joel a ring, since I have his number later today i think-but if you could drop me your number or address, that way I can google map your place. I think Julie Williams ilves with Ann and I know her too, but I don't have her phone number-do you?
At work Philip has been working on programming a new website since January.. and they finally launched yesterday! You can access it Actually you can't access it anymore. Long story. :) But it's still going well!
ooh.. and I got a free shirt out of it! :-D
Thanks for all the birthday wishes! I can't believe how much my girl is growing up.
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Ok, and this is just a fabulous day because Eden's new car seat came today!
Aww... happy (belated) birthday, Eden! Welcome to being a ONE YEAR old! You and Jenna are the same "age" for a few weeks. What a cute doll stroller!
Rebecca, when things slow down (umm... DO they slow down???) .. I'm definitely going to take you up on coming over for some moral support/adult conversation .. maybe for some holding of a baby while I actually get some laundry done..!!!!
.. I was in major denial that I was in labor. Thanks to my old apartment-building-mates for coming over and helping me pick something up off the floor that I was in too much pain to reach myself. ;)
And happy birthday ~15 hours early, my sweet Eden-girl.
Pray for my brother and sister-in-law who are in the last hours of non-parenthood! Aaron historically does not do well with blood and stuff so it's a good thing Hilary's the one having the baby.
What a Thanksgiving blessing!
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10:20 PM update: No baby yet. I'm turning off my computer because we're going out of town tomorrow and won't be able to update till tomorrow afternoon. But I'm sure someone on here will update you all!
