Decidedly Picky

This year has been pretty great! (You can read all about it in my Newsletter 2015) It was not busy when I expected to be and then way more busy when I didn't expect it. My goals got a little mixed up because of it but goals are made to be ambitious and I really shouldn't expect to meet them all.

So here's how it went:

•  Go to the temple 12 times: 5/12 Ouch! That's not even half! I knew this goal was too ambitious with a nursing baby but I had no idea I'd do that bad.
• Write at least 20 blog posts: 14/20 I had planned on not writing much after I had Evelyn but that was when she actually slept and didn't chew on electrical cords... So when I went to do it when she was older, it just didn't happen. But I think 20 is still an attainable number.
• Keep a personal scripture reading chart: This went terrible. We threw away both charts half way through the year because they were just embarrassing. Even when we did read, we'd forget to mark the chart about 80% of the time. The chart worked in previous years but definitely not this year. Anyone have any other ideas on how to get us motivated? 
• Keep a family scripture reading chart
• Hold at least 45 Family Home Evenings: 39/45 I actually thought we were doing alot worse than this. I guess we picked up our game in the last couple months. This is actually a little more than 3 times a month, which really isn't bad at all. 
• Have at least 1 out of the house activity per month We totally smoked this one! We usually had 2-5 activities per month. 
• Go to 3 museums We got this one done super early because it was really fun. I would like to continue this goal for next year. Maybe make it 6 museum visits. 
• Host at least 12 game nights 14/12 with 3 ARGs (We did Team Bad Guy for Rena's family for Valentine's Day. We did a Back to the Future one on the day Marty arrived in the future and then we did a Polar Express one for Lewis' birthday. )

• Start a good things jar Just because I started it doesn't mean I ever put anything in it... Well, I did put a few things in it but only for a few months.
• Catch up in family journal NEVER HAPPENED! Probably the worst failure on here.

• Catch up in Indy's baby book DONE
• Write Wills! DONE

• Finish Strasburg Final Report DONE
• Make sure Indy is up to date on vaccinations DONE

April

•  Find and start baby book for Baby Girl DONE
•  Not have my uterus explode DONE!
•  Name the baby DONE

May

• Create savings account for Ireland trip (Decided to pay down school debt instead)

August

•  Refinish hardwood floors (We decided that this isn't the right time of year for it and we're not sure exactly what we want to do so this will have to wait for next year.)

September

•  Make window seat for hope chest DONE

October

•  Finish repainting foyer, living room, and hallway DONE

November

•  Have working prototype of our board game We're really close on this one. I'm sure we'll have it done in the next couple months.

At the tail end of the summer we took the opportunity to enjoy the great outdoors. The whole family hiked up to Scout Falls with some friends from Lewis' work. It was fun to take the two kids into the wild for a while, not the most comfortable spot to nurse though... The hike was just the right length for carrying the baby and carrying Indy about 35% of the time. We were all exhausted by the time we got back but, thankfully not hurting days later. I'd recommend it.

Lewis also took two overnight hikes with my brothers. It's so nice to be back in the great west where there are awesome hikes that are not only beautiful but actual hikes, not flat nature walks!

Goals for this month went alright...

Completed:

• Have at least 1 out of the house activity per month The funnest family activity we did this month was our neighborhood's annual block party. Great BBQ potluck with dunk tank, bouncy house, cotton candy machine, and all our great neighbors. Indy wished he could live there forever.

• Learn to play the full top hand of "I Love to See the Temple" on the piano I can't play it up to speed yet but I can hit all the notes. :)

Right on Target:

• Host at least 12 game nights (10/12) 
• Write at least 20 blog posts (12/20)

Needs Improvement: 

•  Go to the temple 12 times (4/12) Once again, I didn't make it this month.
• Hold at least 45 Family Home Evenings (27/45) I counted one that didn't have a gospel message because it was put on by our Stake and they called it a family night. So I figure it counted. But I'm consistently behind on this one. I guess that's why it's a goal, right?

Failed:

• Repack our 72 hr kits

We've been doing a ton of work on the house this summer and have several more projects planned before winter hits. So I've decided to focus on those for the next few months. I look forward to showing off all the before and after pics when I get it all done!

Everyone around here is adjusting to the new baby and the heat. She turned 2 months on the 26th and I have finally gone back to mostly normal (not counting those extra 15lbs... Hey! I'm sure 10 of those pounds are milk!)

We've been doing lots of projects on the house. Lewis put in new shelves in the book case in the living room and in the hall closet. My mom and I have redecorated the living room and entry way. We arranged everything so that the whole back of the house will have new windows and siding the beginning of August. 
My computer has been having lots of issues so it's taken me awhile to give you my June update but here it finally is:

Completed:

• Have at least 1 out of the house activity per month We had quite a few activities this month. We went to Lewis' niece's wedding, Lewis' cousin's house warming party, a game night at our friend's house, a couple birthday parties, a water park, and most fun of all, Father's Day activities. We decided to celebrate on Saturday with my dad and Sunday with Lewis' dad. So on Saturday, we picked up my dad and went for a hike up Rock Canyon. It was so hot and much harder than I expected. Man, I'm out of shape! We went up to the canyon until I was utterly exhausted (which was only as far up as the water was still running) and then stopped for a long while. Indy had a blast throwing rocks in the river and threw the HUGEST fit when we tried to make him leave. But the hike was fun anyway. We spent most of the way up talking about old cars, which is one of my dad's and my favorite subjects. Then we went out to dinner at our favorite Italian place in Provo called La Dolce Vita. I just adore their spinach raviolis! The next day, we had Lewis' family over. We had his mom, dad, and sister's family to celebrate with us. We had a great big dinner of pork roast, country potatoes, and shrimp. I'd never cooked shrimp before but that's what his dad requested and it turned out really good. It was simple and tasty. We had a great day full of eating and visiting.

 Right on Target:

• Hold at least 45 Family Home Evenings (21/45) We finally did it! Every single week this whole month AND it was on Monday each time unless otherwise scheduled! I have to give myself a huge pat on the back for that one. I have been trying so hard and it finally worked! ... now I just need to duplicate the results... :S
• Write at least 20 blog posts (10/20)
• Host at least 12 game nights (7/12) I'm actually ahead now since we hosted 2 game nights this month

  Needs Improvement: 

• Go to the temple 12 times (3/12)

  Failed:

•  Create savings account for Ireland trip
• Catch up in family journal I wrote one sentence all month. One sentence! Ugh!

July Goals:
I once again have not given myself any specific goals for this month because I was unsure how I would be doing with the new baby. I don't even remember anything from when Indy was this age because I was so sleep deprived. But Evelyn once again, proves to be vastly different from her brother. She is now sleeping through the night on a regular basis! And Indy is such an independent guy that I am having much more time on my hands than I expected. So this month, I've decided to add a few goals as well as carry one over.

• Learn to play "I Love to See the Temple" on the piano My mom bought a piano and we are all excited to have a piano in the house again. Now I can finally have my mom teach me how to play like she's been wanting to do for the past 20 years!
• Catch up 2 yrs in family journal Obviously, I'm having a hard time with this goal so I'm breaking it down into chunks. Maybe then I'll feel like it's not an insurmountable task. 
• Take 4 family hikes We all need to take advantage of the warm weather and get in better shape

May has been a month full of adjustments. I adjusted to not being pregnant and all that comes with that. We adjusted to having 2 kids. You know what they say, "2 kids are better than 1! Double the pleasure, triple the trouble!" And we adjusted to Lewis working full time again.

Things are going good but nowhere close to settling down into a routine yet.  Evelyn sleeps great during the night but only because she loves to snuggle while we sleep. During the day she constantly wants to be held, which I find really difficult. I'm so excited to get projects done now that I'm not pregnant but I really shouldn't complain that I'm forced to sit down with her all the time and watch TV!

That being said, I did get some things done this month. Here's how I did on my goals:

Completed:

• Go to 3 museums For Evelyn's first outing, we decided to go to the BYU Museum of Art. I was excited to look through the exhibits but Indy was not thrilled to be inside and quiet. Lewis tried to wrangle him while I looked about but it's just not as fun without someone to share it with. So we indulged Indy who much preferred the outdoor exhibits.

 

We had already gone to the dinosaur museum as a family (here) and for the 3rd museum, I took the kids and my mom for her birthday. We visited the new Museum of Peoples and Cultures, which was tiny and not very interesting. I did really like the Polynesian weapons display though. We also visited the Bean Museum, which was really awesome. They had a huge and terrifying polar bear and the liger from Hogle Zoo. But my favorite was the giant elephant. They also had a really awesome display of Boyd K. Packer's work. I had no idea he was so talented. 

• Find and start baby book for Baby Girl
• Have at least 1 out of the house activity per month We went to a couple family celebrations. One for the birthdays of this month (Ben, Mom, and Dad), a BBQ for Memorial Day, laser tag and one with Lewis' family where we got to show off the new baby and see his aunt and uncle who live in D.C. We also went to Tyrell and Adelaide's wedding reception which was just gorgeous! But the funnest thing we did as a family was go to Brick Slopes. The displays were amazing! They had a life-size Batman, entire battlefields, Elsa's ice castle, the entire town square from Back to the Future, and so much more! Those were fun to see but nowhere near as fun as the Brick Pits. We spent several hours in a pit full of thousands of LEGO pieces making lots of fun creations. Lewis made an awesome demon shrine complete with impaling spear. I built a space ship with cloaking device (do you remember the cloaking device from when we were kids, brothers? They totally had one there!), a tranquil garden and a motor boat. It was Indy who finally had to drag Lewis and I out of the brick pit so we could go home. 

 

Right on Target:

•  Go to the temple 12 times (3/12) On May 22nd was my 5th anniversary of being endowed. It was really great to be able to go again on my actual anniversary. I did spend way too much of that time worrying about my baby though. I guess that's what you get for having a brand new baby that you adore.
• Write at least 20 blog posts (9/20)
• Host at least 12 game nights (5/12) This month I invited a bunch of new people but like my previous experiences in other places, everyone I invited couldn't make it except 1 or 2 people. Next month I'll try again to include new gamers and give them a little more notice so they can actually come.

Needs Improvement:

• Hold at least 45 Family Home Evenings (16/45) I really need to get better at this. I think I need to plan ahead better if I'm going to get more than 3 a month.

Failed:

• Create savings account for Ireland trip

June Goals:
I don't have any June specific goals since I was giving myself plenty of space after having the baby. I didn't know how much I'd be up to doing but I am feeling great now and I've decided to make all the goals I haven't finished in their appointed months my goals for June rather than adding more goals. So my newly reorganized goals are:

•  Create savings account for Ireland trip
• Catch up in family journal 

This next month, I look forward to getting more projects done, my baby getting even cuter and some fun in the water. What are your summer plans?

P.S. If you've noticed that my writing has taken a nosedive lately, don't worry too much. It's just that my mind is completely disjointed from lack of sleep. Hopefully it will improve in a couple months.  

April has come and gone and what a crazy month it was!

The most exciting part of the whole month was the birth of my beautiful baby girl, Evelyn Prudence Strasburg. She was born on April 26th, weighing 7lbs 3oz and 19 inches long.

Mom and baby are happy and healthy. And for those of you interested, I will be sharing my birth story in a post just as soon as I get it finished. I started it a few days after she was born and I still haven't finished it 4 weeks later! Everything takes longer than you expect with a new baby and a 2yr old vying for attention.

The next most exciting part of April is that Lewis got a job! Evelyn was less than 24 hrs old when he got the call and they needed him in Southern California for training the following week! So I was not as thrilled as I normally would be for him. But everything went fine the week he was gone and now he has a job he likes.

I also had my birthday this month. I am now officially no longer a young person. To quote one of my favorite books "Being 'still young' is so different from being young!" (The Blue Castle, L.M. Montgomery) Of course, maybe that's more about being the mother of two kids than it is about being 27. I had a good birthday though. Lewis surprised me with a sapphire for my charm bracelet. You know any birthday where your husband gives you precious stones is a good one. ;)



Now onto how I did in April...

Completed:

•  Not have my uterus explode Yay! You can read all about that in Evelyn's Birth Story
•  Name the baby
• Make window seat for hope chest I didn't have this one slotted until September but I realized I needed to finish it now if I was going to use that as a diaper changing station for Evelyn. It turned out really well, I think. 

• Have at least 1 out of the house activity per month This month we did quite a few things as a family. We went to the Liar's Competition on April Fool's Day. It was a fun new way to celebrate this rather absurd holiday. We went to the Art Stroll which was fun but the baby shifted and I had a pinched nerve after only 2 blocks of walking. I was so ready to have the baby get out! We went to the nickel arcade with my brother Ben's family to celebrate my niece Cordelia's baptisms. And the day before I went into labor, we went on a fun hike up the Provo River Trail past Bridal Veil Falls.

Right on Target: 

• Write at least 20 blog posts (8/20)
• Host at least 12 game nights (4/12)

Needs Improvement:

•  Go to the temple 12 times (2/12) So much for going a bunch before the baby arrived...
• Hold at least 45 Family Home Evenings (13/45) We only got 3 again and that includes the one I squeezed in on the very last day of the month. :S

Failed: 

• Find and start baby book for Baby Girl

May Goals:

• Create savings account for Ireland trip (For our 10th anniversary we want to go to Ireland and stay in a real castle but that's really expensive and by then we'll have at least 2 children to tag along too so we need to start saving now if it's ever going to happen.)

  The month of April felt like a never ending stream of doctor's appointments and job interviews but it ended with a bang that gave us everything we wanted. And looking back, we really did have some good fun along the way.

Completed:

• Have at least 1 out of the house activity per month For this month, we went to the Gem and Mineral Show in Spanish Fork. It was really cool. Lewis' grandfather was a real gem hound and passed that love on to Lewis. I've always loved rocks. I even had a rock collection when I was little and that only intensified as I got older and started enjoying the precious faceted variety. ;) Indy, however, was not very impressed and spent most of his time running up and down the aisles being chased by one or the other of his annoyed parents.  We were also going to go to the Festival of Colors at the Krishna Temple in Spanish Fork but Indy fell asleep on the way there. So Lewis went and came back and showed Indy how it was done.

• Finish Strasburg Final Report
• Make sure Indy is up to date on all his immunizations
•  Finish repainting foyer, living room, and hallway I didn't have this scheduled to be done until October but we got it done in time for the baby shower. So not only did I get it done early, I got to show it off too! :D

Right on Target:

• Write at least 20 blog posts (7/20)
• Host 12 game nights (3/12) We didn't have a big one this month just had my brother Ben and Lewis' Dad over and played some games
• Hold at least 45 Family Home Evenings (10/45) We got 4 this month! It probably should have been 5 but at least we didn't stick at 3!
• Go to 3 museums (1/3) We went to the BYU dinosaur museum and Indy loved it! Lewis and I enjoyed it but we were most impressed with the mineral display at the front.
  
  
  
   
    

Needs Improvement:

• Go to the temple 12 times (2/12) I need to make up for missing in February and it's going to be much harder once the baby is born. I'm starting to worry that this one might be a little out of my reach.

Failed: 

•   NONE! How awesome is that?!

 April Goals:

• Find and start baby book for Baby Girl
•  Not have my uterus explode
•  Name the baby

 So March went great and I'm confident that April will too. My nesting hormones must have been going crazy because I got so much done even though I was so tired. I even detail cleaned my car inside and out and I've been meaning to do that since last August! In April, I'm sure I'll get less done as the nesting wears off and the exhaustion and contentment that comes with a new baby arrives. It's getting close and we are getting really excited! :D

So I spent the entire morning, while my 2 yr old was a perfect angel, writing this post. I pushed the save button 10+ times and was simply waiting to get a couple pictures put in, to publish it. That's when my browser froze and when I restarted it, all of my work was gone! Firefox, my beloved, you've turned into a Lying Liar of EVIL! (I know you are so impressed with my insult skills.) So now you will get a much shorter and angrier post about how February went and my goals for March.

February was busy and stressful. It started off with Mom, Windy, and I flying back from our girls weekend in the Bay Area. It was so much fun and I mean to blog about it at some point but obviously, today is not the day. Then we spent the next two weeks helping Rena plan a very complicated but super fun spy game themed Valentine's Day dinner. It was SO much work! But it turned out great! Everyone died when they put in the wrong password to disarm the bomb. He he he... :) Then there was Valentine's Day that you can read about here.

The next Thursday we threw a Chinese New Year party. It was a ton of fun and I was amazed by how many people came! In Wisconsin, we would be lucky to get 5 people to come but here we had about 20 people help us eat Chinese food and play games! (I guess it really does help having an overly friendly mother)


In February, we all got our dental work done. In fact, Indy went to the dentist for the very first time. He was a huge fan of the train set in the lobby but not a huge fan of waiting in the actual chair. We had to compromise a little:




My brother, Ben took the Bar Exam and there was lots of fasting and prayers for him. I also went to a wonderful Relief Society meeting where we talked all about angels. It was fantastic. You could practically feel the angels in the room. The quote I remember most was, "When something catastrophic happens in your life and you're looking at the broken pieces of your life, like shards of broken glass on the floor, and you know there is nothing you can do to fix it, know that there are angels all around you to bear you up." I loved the imagery and comfort of that. I can just see the facets of the broken glass reflecting the light up onto the sparkling angel wings.

The month ended with the guys all taking off for a weekend snow adventure. No one got injured or stuck and Indy was very well behaved for me. So I'd say it was a great success.

Now that you've heard all about my month, let me tell you how I did on my goals.

Completed:

• Write Wills! I got this one done really early and you can read about it here.

Right on Target:

• Write at least 20 blog posts (5/20)
• Host 12 game nights (2/12) Yay, Chinese New Year!

Needs Improvement:

• Hold at least 45 Family Home Evenings (6/45) We just can't seem to get more than 3 a month.
• Have at least 1 out of the house activity per month We went to the dentist as a family. As for a fun outing, I'd say that's pretty lame.

Failed: 

•  Go to the temple 12 times (1/12) Not this month but I still have until the end of the year.
• Catch up in Indy's baby book I can not believe how much work this one is! I tried REALLY hard to get it all done and I'm still only about 1/3 of the way through. I'm pretty sure I can get it done before the new baby comes though.

 
 March Goals:

• Finish Strasburg Final Report (I'm writing a document to help our BHAB camp director from last year)
• Make sure Indy is up to date on all his immunizations 

  Those don't sound too hard but we'll see how well I do as I get closer to my due date and becoming the size of a house. And on that lovely note, I'll end this post with some exciting news. You are all invited to my baby shower!



 

• Catch up in Indy's baby book
• Write Wills

Continuing Goals:

•  Go to the temple 12 times
• Write at least 20 blog posts
• Hold at least 45 Family Home Evenings
• Have at least 1 out of the house activity per month
• Go to 3 museums
• Host at least 12 game nights

Since the month is already half gone, I'm glad to report that I've actually been pretty productive. (Obviously not in the blogging department though...) 

I've already written our Wills. I used a sight called Law Depot which offered a TurboTax-like experience, where they ask you simple questions and then fill in all the legal mumbo jumbo for you. They offer a 7 day free trial in which you can use their service to complete as many legal forms as you want. I did a Last Will and Testament each for Lewis and I and a Living Will for Lewis. I have yet to cancel the subscription since my mom wants to use it to do her Will too. I'll let you know if they give me alot of grief to cancel or if it is as easy as it sounds. Now I just have to con two unsuspecting people into witnessing it. ("You know the rule. Never witness nothing. You live longer." - Name that incredibly awesome movie!)

I haven't been very artistically motivated to work on Indy's baby book or finish our family journal which I didn't get done last month, which is kinda weird considering how much I've enjoyed making handmade Valentine's for my mom, my husband, and my friend in our awesome Valentine exchange. But I've been pretty busy being sick, and helping make a spy game for my friend, Rena's Valentine's Day party. So now that things are quieting down a bit, I'll hopefully feel inspired to work on the books as well as all my other goals. I already have plans for a Chinese New Year party/game night, and an out of the house FHE activity which will be 2 birds with one stone. So things are looking good that I'll at least meet most of my goals if not all. Wish me luck!

January has come and gone and it's now time to let you know how it went. I must say, that having to report back in public on my goals has really motivated me. It motivated me so much in fact, that I almost did them!

Here's how it went:

•  Go to the temple 12 times (1/12)
• Write at least 20 blog posts (2/20)
• Host at least 12 game nights (1/12)

Needs Improvement:

•  Hold at least 45 Family Home Evenings (3/45)

We were supposed to have done 4 FHE's by now but I knew this would be the hardest one for us which is why I picked 45 for the year instead of 52. So As long as we stay as good as we've been doing, we'll still reach our goal... barely. 

Failed: 

• Catch up in family journal

I started it but my creative juices just have not been flowing. So I did all the preliminary stuff like jotting down the main things that have happened, and printing out and trimming the pictures I want to put in. But I just haven't wanted to write anything, which is one of the reasons it's taken me so long to write this post. The other reasons for the delay you can read all about in the next two posts I'll put up in the next couple of days. So check back soon!

My good friend and fellow blogger Karen, has created a fun way to set goals and actually stay on top of them. It's called Project 52. I wanted to join in the fun (and get more motivated!) I don't have 52 goals (that is way too many for a pregnant lady! Unless, of course, the goals are eating and sleeping and peeing.) So I've come up with 10 personal goals and 12 family goals I hope to accomplish this year. Thus the birth of:

•  Go to the temple 12 times
• Write at least 20 blog posts (1 down already!)
• Keep a personal scripture reading chart
• Keep a family scripture reading chart
• Hold at least 45 Family Home Evenings (must contain a gospel lesson)
• Have at least 1 out of the house activity per month (This was Lewis' idea. He said pretty much anything counts, visiting family, going shopping (ok, ok! He didn't actually say that one) going to the park, etc.)
• Go to 3 museums (I'm planning on the free ones around here like the BYU Museum of Art, BYU Museum of Paleontology, and Hill Aerospace Museum. Let me know if you want to join us!)
• Host at least 12 game nights

• Start a good things jar (in case you haven't heard of this, it's just a mason jar that you put strips of paper in with good things that have happened during the year. It's any easy way to keep a journal since it only takes a minute to do. It's also great if you are having a bad day, to go back and read through some of the good things that have happened.)
• Catch up in family journal (When Lewis and I got married we bought a big sturdy journal for our guest book and have been keeping a family journal in it ever since.... ok, so it's really 4 years behind now but hey! That's why it's a goal)

• Catch up in Indy's baby book (It's really not my fault I'm so far behind in this one. It's been packed away for a year because of all that was going on last year that you can read about here.)
• Write Wills! (This one has been on our goal list for the last 3 years running... But this year we're going to do it!... really!)

• Finish Strasburg Final Report (I'm writing a document to help our camp director from last year)
• Make sure Indy is up to date on vaccinations (with all the moving we've gotten behind)

April

•  Find and start baby book for Baby Girl
•  Not have my uterus explode
•  Name the baby

May

• Create savings account for Ireland trip (For our 10th anniversary we want to go to Ireland and stay in a real castle but that's really expensive and by then we'll have at least 2 children to tag along too so we we need to start saving now if it's ever going to happen.)

August

•  Refinish hardwood floors (This is the big renovation project for the year. We are tearing out all of the old linoleum in the house and refinishing the original hardwood flooring underneath. We've never done anything like this and I really hope it turns out.)

September

•  Make window seat for hope chest

October

•  Finish repainting foyer, living room, and hallway (We'll probably do this earlier in the year but I'm giving myself alot of leeway on this once since it took me an extra month longer than I thought it would with our last painting project.)

November

•  Have working prototype of our board game

I'm sure you've noticed a few months in there were missing. I wanted to leave a space for catching up. I'm not sure how much I'll be up to doing after having the baby and I'm a little worried that I've bitten off more than I can chew. So I've left June and July with no specific goals. If I don't have to use that time to catch up, I'll use it to get ahead on the continuing goals. I've also left December completely empty because it is plenty busy enough and I'm sure there will be one or two things that I will need to finish up before the new year starts.

I'll check in with all of you once a month and let you know how I'm doing. That way you can give me a little kick in the pants when I need it. If you want to join in, you can tell me all about your goals in the comments below or you can even join our community! Just use this button: