A New Year is Here!

January 2nd
Victoria likes to pretend. Today she was a royal sunflower that was sad sad and dancing, but not dancing because it was sad. She also sat in her throne and pretended to be a queen and especially Rapunzel. She really enjoys this idea of her hair getting longer. I think she and Greg have talked about it. We've been meaning to make a blanket fort too. She made it 2 whole days before having an accident at bedtime (We didn't realize that she hadn't gone to the bathroom after getting in her pajamas like Daddy asked. But she managed to miss the carpet and her bedding completely.)

Greg went in to work today for almost a whole day (over the Christmas break he would only go to campus in the mornings and that was to work on surprises for our anniversary as much as it was to do research on his computer uninterrupted.) This afternoon he picked up the rug doctor from the Winfield office and cleaned Victoria's room, most of the living room, and the upstairs hallway. He'll finish the leftovers tomorrow, even though the machine leaks some.

My goal today was to focus on deliberately coming to the Lord in all things. That meant spending less time doing things of lesser value and not getting irritated at my family or myself. It went okay, but not as well as I hoped or expected. It wasn't the conscious intention throughout the day that it ought to have been. So I'll try again tomorrow.

Tonight Greg and I talked about parenting by example and how we can better respect Victoria's agency by realizing that in almost all she does, she is mimicking us. If we vocalize our thought patterns we and she will be more conscious of them and together we can ask questions and make
better choices. Also, if we help establish her good character and a healthy relationship between us now, we'll be reaping dividends for years to come. Who says the toddler/preteens/adolescent years have to be awful and trying? Yes, she'll be determining who she is and self-discovery mode is not always fun or tidy but as a good movie line says: "Life is the messy bits." (Letters to Juliet) *My mantra through the highs and lows of this month.

My dad shared and great quote today that will be a beautiful end to today and beginning for tomorrow: “To reach a goal you have never before attained, you must do things you have never before done” (Richard G. Scott).

January 3rd
Today we finished cleaning our house. It took a while but we got it put together again for the Sabbath but we once again have a house of order as the scriptures counsel. I should study the rest of that scripture to see what we need to work on next! Greg even hung Victoria's blackboard in her room.

Victoria's dress is coming along nicely; it's frustrating work in that I need to concentrate and be uninterrupted but it is so gratifying to be creating in new ways. I just love creating beautiful things!

January 7th
Victoria and I are making slow but painful progress toward are goal of getting her to self-regulate (i.e. calm herself down.) I'm doing better at regulating my time online. I hope I keep this trend all month long.

*I feel like by the end of the month I wasn't much better in my goals than when I first began them. I know I made great progress though initially.

January 16th
I am grateful for my regular work out schedule and babysitting jobs but I am also grateful for the presence of the church in my life and other supports given to me by God that I often take for granted.
Dear reader, what are you grateful for?

January 20th through 22nd
Tuesday was a mad, bad day for us all. Victoria was volatile; Toria and the other girls I tend took turns being upset and upsetting each other. I was a mess by the end of the day. There are times when I really worry about losing my temper. Readers: what do you do to keep from losing it?

The next few days were much better and Greg really tried to buoy me up. Babysitting for others has always been a wonderful learning opportunity for me but this week I felt the growing pains. By the end of the week things were much better and I have hope that the little girls I tend will grow to love me as I serve them and their families.

January 29th
I had a lovely visit with Tess Shaw and her less-than-a-month old daughter Julia. Audrey and Toria played well together. We got to do a quick grocery run for forgotten things on the way there and made it back barely in time to babysit. The girls are playing upstairs while I grind food storage grain to make bread from scratch for my family. I'm doing family history while I wait. #feelingrighteous