1. What am I up against for the coming year? My sweet genius of a husband will be doing the preliminary defense of his doctoral thesis and taking a class or two in addition to his current work load as an RA. As his wife I’ll need to be supportive. Our toddler daughter is working on toilet training still. And I've signed up for a weekly babysitting job in our home.
2. What are your secret goals that seem impossible? I want to sing opera again but have come to admit that my work ethic needs work. I need to stay motivated in order to keep my talents cultivated. I want to do more with decorating our home on a budget which means that some projects (redoing my master bedroom and bathroom with new bedding and a paint job) will have to stay in the dream stage until we can afford them or I get creative enough to modify them.
3. What are you struggling with? I don't want my soul to feel stifled as it waits for things. Whether it's an updated look for my home or a second child that's been sought after for years now, I want to find ways to express and fulfill myself even if it means not getting what I want. I need to make art that brings joy and beauty to myself and those around me independent of a few specific creative visions yet to be made real.
4. What do you wish for, creatively and personally? In short I hope to make the most of my opportunities to nurture others while nurturing myself.
Well since 2015, Gregory has not only successfully completed his preliminary thesis defense but has also written and defended his doctoral thesis and nearly completed a post doc in cancer research at Yale. He had a stroke which led us to discover his PFO and had it closed. He has enjoyed teaching at Albertus Magnus this semester.
Victoria went to kindergarten at the lovely elementary school in Savoy, IL and is now finishing up second grade at a wonderful school here in CT. She has of course successfully completed her potty training. She enjoys her gymnastics class and riding her bicycle when the weathers warm enough. I have been enjoying a weekly institute class (both in IL and her in CT.) I don't babysit for pay on a regular basis but I do enjoy teaching several piano students and one young voice student. I did get paid to come sing on a professional recording in UT which was a delight.
What are we up against in 2019? Deciding where to go and what to do after this post doc, probably a college professorship somewhere near family.
What are some secret goals that seem impossible?
Since 2015 I was blessed to study with a dear friend, Cynthia Haymon Coleman, in IL who taught me as much about life and God as about music. Together we prepared for my audition into Yale's Early and Sacred Music master's program; I was not accepted. I auditioned for the university choir that is also open to community members but I didn't get in. I did give a private concert and record it though. Money is still tight but I've been able to decorate our CT apartment some. Since coming to Yale for infertility care we have discovered that I don't have "asymptomatic PCOS" after all. This month we've revisited monthly hormone treatments to prepare for IUI.
My struggles are a bit too personal for sharing on the blog at this point and my wish is still to make the most of my opportunities to nurture others while nurturing myself.
Our 6 Month Holiday Newsletter (including photo album links)
Danielle's dad came to visit at the end of June on his way to a work conference. Victoria was supposed to be out of school already, but weather cancellations extended our school year almost a month, so we had her miss a Monday to come explore NYC. We enjoyed the audio tour at the statue of liberty, though Victoria was disappointed to not quite be tall enough to go all the way to the top. The Cloisters at the Met were an unexpected highlight with their unicorn gallery and a temporary exhibit of clothes and fashions inspired by religious art and teachings. It felt good to have Dad at church with us and watch him be a Grandpa by playing chess with Victoria and teaching her how to use Family Search.
In September it was so warm and many school's air conditioning systems were breaking, resulting in early dismissals and closures. Since Aaron, Eliana, Rebecca, and Spencer came to visit at the beginning of his 8 week study break, we picked up Victoria and went to the beach with our niece's family (on the Hart side.) Even after the AC was fixed, we kept her home from school to go to the Peabody museum and Yale's rare instruments library and Arethusa (because sometimes you need ice cream for lunch when you've been walking in the heat too long.)
July being our designated month to travel, we flew out for the biannual Hart reunion with Greg's siblings and Mom. His sister was kind enough to share her newborn son with all the aunts and uncles; it made us a bit more baby hungry and grateful for Victoria. It was nice that our visit lined up so we could attend the Joseph F. Smith family dinner in SLC since we've been meaning to attend but unable to do so up until now.
Since we don't live very close to any of Danielle's relatives we added a visit to her parents on either end of the Hart reunion. Having Kent and Heather Hansen's family visit us in CT was also a highlight. Soccer camp as well as church history day camp we're further highlights. Blueberry picking, a successful lemonade stand (almost $15 in less than 2 hours!), blanket forts, free tickets for a mommy daughter date to the U.S. CT open, and playdates with school friends wrapped up our summer.
We enjoyed general conference as usual even though the morning session begins at noon here. It was fun to have the missionaries over to watch conference and eat. We began building Victoria a loft bed as a family. It was mostly built in two weekends but a few wrong cuts and less urgency have slowed our finishing of the final tower and bookshelves. Victoria and Danielle also joined a monthly crochet club on campus.
Just after Thanksgiving Gregory had us accompany him to his job interview at BYU-Idaho. I attended my Grandpa Eaton's funeral the following weekend. We're looking forward to celebrating Christmas with our midwestern family and ringing in the New Year with Gregory's sister's family.
