Here come the terrible two's!

Not really. I actually like the 2's. It's the 3's that are the pits.  But anyway, regardless of what you think of them, Zelly has reached the milestone of her 2nd birthday! (this happened way back in January. I am a terrible blogger.) But I did manage to take a few pics, buy her some balloons, wrap some presents, and make a pink ruffle cake:

Oh how we love our little Zelly! I'm sad that she doesn't cuddle so much anymore and her skin is losing that soft baby feel. But I love this age of the verbal explosion, hearing what's been going on inside that little head of hers. We all dote on her and can't imagine life without her.

The choices you make matter

The lesson I taught the Beehives today was called "Do the choices I make matter?"  In preparation for the lesson, I made a list of choices I've made (I tried to focus on "smaller" choices) that have mattered to me. In that list was writing in my journal, which is kind of ironic given that I don't write in a journal anymore and we all know how fabulous I am at this blog lately :) I love that I kept a journal through my college years. I love reading it. Most of the time I'm surprised to find out that I was very insightful or wrote good poetry or had deep, spiritual thoughts and experiences. The gratitude I feel about choosing to keep a journal has made me want to do better with my blog again. And if not, then with the paper journal again.

A few other choices I thought of:

• Choosing to try to have children right after we got married. I didn't want to have a baby right away. I wanted it to be just Joe and I for a little bit. But it felt selfish. I already had a master's degree, I'd had some great jobs, I'd traveled a lot. I had no excuses. So we tried right away. And it took us a few years, a lot of tests and procedures, before Mister joined us and more years before H and Zelly. That small choice now seems big--I'm not sure I would have the family I have now had we waited a couple of years to try having children.
• Choosing to run for student body secretary when I was in high school. I lost. And it was so hard for me. But I learned to find a place and to try to make a difference in other ways. 
• Choosing to believe in myself--maybe in 9th grade? I can't remember exactly when, but this was a distinct choice I made. I was (am still, in a way) very self-conscious and doubted myself. I was very aware of the things I wasn't good at. My parents gave me "How to win friends and influence people" and another book. I can't remember its title--something like "Go for it"--but it came with a stack of affirmation cards for the reader to read to themselves. I know--totally something from Saturday Night Live. But I read those cards aloud every day and as I did so, I decided to believe that they were true--that I really was a good listener and I really could make friends and I really was a person worth knowing and worth talking to. 
• Going to BYU. I wanted to go to an Ivy League school, particularly Harvard. But my parents said they wouldn't pay for a bachelor's degree at an Ivy League school, so in the end, I applied only to BYU. The experiences I had at BYU I'm still drawing on. The people I met are still influencing me. That one decision has affected every single aspect of my life today. Interestingly enough, majoring in English was not on my list of choices. That seems strange since I have a Ph.D. in English. But I think I could have been happy with many other majors--maybe even happier. It's the education that has mattered--not the subject.

Well, I need to head to bed since I could write about choices forever and the choice to stay up too late will matter tomorrow. But this whole process of thinking through my choices has humbled me as I've realized how I've been blessed and led and comforted and strengthened throughout the choices I've made. The choices I make matter to me and they matter to my heavenly parents because I matter to them. 

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! In the car the other day, J said that he wished Christmas were at the end of January so we could get 2 months of the spirit and magic that accompanies it. While I agree with his wish to prolong the season a bit, I'm also very glad that the New Year comes after Christmas. It seems fitting to celebrate the birth of the Savior and then focus on renewal. I love the hope that accompanies the thought of new goals and the goodness of things to come. And, of course, I have to remember this great advice:

This year for New Years', we headed up to my parents for my family Christmas party. We went a day early so we could ring in the New Year with cousins. Here they are watching the countdown:

 We also exchanged gifts. Here Zelly and I take a few selfies while we wait for the gift exchange:

 And the boys play with Uncle Mark:

Merry Christmas!

We took Christmas down yesterday and it was bittersweet. I was ready to declutter, clean, and simplify, but this Christmas season passed so quickly, and today (while Henry and I are home from church, thanks to pink eye), I was watching the videos on my phone and was engrossed again in the magic of the season. It doesn't seem that long ago that Mister and Sweetie were the ones singing Frosty while turning the pages of the book or pounding the piano while singing Jingle Bells. By the time we have another Christmas, the kids will be older and different. My Cindy-Lou Who might not even look like Cindy-Lou any longer:

This Christmas was really nice. It was the first in a while in which I felt like I was prepared in good enough time and not too stressed over little things. 

Right before the Christmas break, Sweetie had her tumbling performance:

  

And she and I went to see A Christmas Carol at the Hale Center Theater. Sweetie wanted to see it instead of going to the Nutcracker or Christmas Around the World or another holiday music concert because her class had put the play on earlier. I was fine with that but prior to the play, I secretly wished she had chosen a musical concert. I was so glad she didn't. The play was amazing and I think we'll keep doing that from now on. It really brought the Christmas spirit to my heart--"mankind is my business." 

 
During Christmas break, we made lots of tasty treats, including sugar cookies and the gingerbread house.



And the kids did a lot of this:

We read Frosty the Snowman and Santa Clause is coming to town at least once every naptime and bedtime:

On Christmas Eve, we had our traditional candlelight dinner with tri-tip, twice-baked potatoes, rolls, Christmas jello, green beans, and sparkling apple juice.

And acted out the Nativity, with Zelly as Mary this year.

Christmas morning we follow J's family tradition--the kids can't come down until we come get them. We say a prayer together first before descending to the magic!

 We set up displays with all of the kids' presents after, including gifts from Santa, each other, us, and grandparents. I was really proud of the kids this year. They put a lot of thought into each others' gifts and used all of the money they had. For Mister, he spent his hard-earned $80 on gifts for others. H unloaded the dishwasher every day to earn money for sibling gifts.

 

 A close-up of Sweetie because she looks so grown-up in this pic!

Christmas day was spent relaxing, playing with the Legos and games we got, and heading to Grandma and Grandpa's for dinner.

 
 Zelly wore her new pink boots everywhere:

 After Christmas, I took the kids to the Leonardo museum to see Body Worlds, which they thought was interesting and gross!